Polar Star Inn

Last weekend we were lucky enough to get invited up to the Polar Star Inn, part of the 10th Mountain Division hut system.  The trail head was located about an hour south of Edwards, CO.  Our approach route (Newcomer Spring) was a beautiful six miles in, with around 2,000' vertical gain.  As we gained elevation towards the hut, the  snow coverage improved drastically, and during the last couple miles we enjoyed big flakes falling steadily.

The hut itself was fantastic.  It sleeps 18 comfortably and was very clean and spacious.  The outhouses were completetly managable, and running water eases snow-melting chores.  It snowed off and on all weekend, and I'd say two feet fell over the three days.  Half the crew skinned in Friday, with the remaining nine coming in Saturday morning.  You can imagine our mood in the hut as dark fell on Saturday night and all nine of our late crew were unaccounted for.

Soon two headlamps appeared from the forest, and two hungry hikers entered the hut.  Our friends Tiller and Suzie.  They had news that Mike and Tiffany had been forced to abandon the hut weekend the day before, but we still had five people unaccounted for.  90 minutes later the remaining five showed up in pitch black, in suprisingly good spirits.  I was glad to see them, but it meant our meal crew had to do double dish duty.  But I guess I'd rather do dishes than form a search party...

The terrain around the hut was great, and snow condition were killer.  Everyone was super excited to get some good powder action in this sorry, sorry snow year for the Front Range.

Here's the good pics:
    PHOTO GALLERY

Here's a teaser video until I get all the footage

          VIDEO

Wolf Creek Slide

On 1.24.10 we triggered a pretty sizable avalanche while backcountry skiing at wolf creek pass.  Everyone wants to hear all the details, so here it goes...

Wolf Creek Pass had gotten approximately 65" in 4 days, but the storm had passed and it was beautiful out, still winds and blue skies.  We began from the trailhead near the pass summit and skinned to the bench between the two "radio tower" mountains (no idea what the locals call them).  From here we cut right and headed for the southern radio tower mountain.  The bowl that drops off to climber's left has everything from northeast to south-facing terrain and about 600' elevation loss.  We had been assessing the snowpack during the approach; there was about 3' of light powder from the big storm, on top of the old base, which seemed to be pretty variable in terms of thickness and density.  Below the old base layer was a layer of hoar, of variable depth.  From the top of the bowl we picked what we thought would be the safest line, a spine with trees, and traversed to the drop-in.  We dug two reusch block pits about 15 meters apart.  Both tests did show layer shear, but only after significant force was applied by the skier, and in more of a 'crumbly' rather than a 'clean-break' fashion.  We spent another few minutes ski-cutting the starting zone.  There were no signs of fracturing, no whoomping or settling, and minimal slough.  Of course we had been reading the Avy forecast and were wary, but we were surprised but the apparent stability of the snow, and made the decision to ski.  On our second run we worked our way clock-wise around the bowl to another spine.  On our third run we came counter-clockwise along the ridge and dropped into an east-facing slope, through some pretty thick trees.  

I skied first and then carried my speed across the gully and up the opposite side.  A minute later and I'm filming Vince.  I was so totally focused on keeping the camera steady and keeping Vince in the screen that I didn't notice the slide right away.  The first thing I recognized was this surreal noise, of all that snow moving, and a low-pitched rumble or drone.  Before I looked up from the viewfinder I realized what was happening.  I ditched the camera (after pushing 'stop' apparently) and made to kick turn and traverse away (hopefully far away).  I turned uphill and yelled at Vince, who was cruising to a stop above me.  He didn't realize yet what was going on.  It was difficult to judge how far the snow would run up the opposite hill, and for a second I panicked.  Another couple seconds and it was obvious that the main flow of snow would miss us both, which was sweet.  Below find links to some pictures of the slide and the starting zone, etc.

The slope of this bowl is about 35 degrees in most spots.  The slide was triggered by our second skier on our third run of the day.  The main crown looks to have run to the ground, the picture is about 30 meters looker's left of our drop-in spot.  We estimated the crown at 100 meters wide.  Interesting to note that it triggered fairly late in Vince's run.  You can see in the video that the trees on this run are fairly thick, and I always equate tight trees with improved safety in my mind, but that was obviously not the case on this day.  

Pictures of the slope, crown, etc.

Video (watch it in HD!)

I have more footage and I'll try to get it up soon.

Argentina & Uruguay

Well chicos, we're back! You most likely didn't notice, but it's been a couple months since we've posted. This was due to the fact that we were saving all of our money and vacation time for our most recent trip, to Argentina and Uruguay. I'll break the trip report down into three parts; Buenos Aires, Patagonia, and Uruguay.

Keep your eyes peeled for upcoming montage with all the best pics and video (including helmet-cam on the glacier), coming soon!!!

Buenos Aires

We started the trip off with a few nights in Buenos Aires. On a friend's recommendation, we booked a guest house in a trendy neighborhood called Palermo, and it didn't disappoint. We spent our days wandering around the cafes, museums, parks, and shops, and our nights eating and drinking more than we really should have. One night we saw a Tango show in downtown BA, but we mostly stayed in Palermo and Recoleta. You can view the photos from BA HERE.

Patagonia

We could have stayed in BA another week, but the mountains were calling. We boarded a plane and headed south, way south. After landing in the tiny airport in El Calafate we rented a car and drove three hours north El Chalten, the trekking capital of Argentina. El Chalten was a really cool little mountain town, with people from all over there world there to experience the incredible mountains and surrounding scenery. On our first day we trekked to Lago Torre, beneath the stunning Cerro Torre. I've seen dozens of pictures of Cerro Torre in the climbing magazines over the years, but to see the amazing spire in person was something else. We poached our way into a "guides only" area and ate lunch about 100 meters from the glacier.

The next day we trekked to Lago de los Tres, the closest spot to Fitz Roy and probably the most famous hike in the area. For the second day in a row we had warm temps, very little wind, and no clouds. It wasn't even really that crowed, and we lingered for an hour at the frozen lake in short sleeves.

After the great time in El Chalten we drove back to El Calafate for a guided all-day trek on the Perito Moreno Glacier. The Perito Moreno really has to be seen to be believed. At the toe where it calves into the lake it's 5k wide and in places 400' tall. We took a boat across the lake and then crampon'd up for a 4-hour tour of the glacier. It was like walking on another planet, with crazy blue lakes and gushing creeks cascading into sink-holes and crevasses you couldn't see to the bottom of. The weather started off miserable, but 30 minutes into the hike the wind and rain stopped and it was actually pretty nice out. Too soon we had to hike back out and catch the boat. On the boat ride they served everyone a whiskey with a chuck of glacier ice, a nice touch. It had truly been a week to remember. Photo Gallery of PATAGONIA

Uruguay

The last leg of our trip was a tour of the East coast of Uruguay. We spent a fun night in the capital city of Montevideo before renting a car and heading east to Cabo Polonio. Polonio is a tiny little beach town that has two hotels, a lighthouse, and a couple hundred houses. Only three building have electricity, and those only for a few hours at night. There are no roads that lead into town, so you have to ride in on a big diesel truck that locals have outfitted to carry tourists and their luggage. We saw sea-lions and seal by the hundreds sunning themselves on the rocks, and the beaches were basically deserted.

After Cabo Polonio we toured the Ombu forest, and really crazy tree/shrub that is only found in concentration at this one place in Uruguay. The anarchaic growth pattern of the tree result in some fantastical shapes, and it was really cool to tour this unique forest. After the Ombu forest we headed to La Paloma, a little beach town south of Cabo Polonio. Our final destination was Punta del Este, one of the most upscale beach resorts in South America. It was quite a trip to go from humble Cabo Polonio to the beach-side high-rise condo madness of Punta del Este, but it was a great way to spend our last night. At this point work was calling, our bank accounts were close to exhausted, and we were missing Hayduke. It was the trip of a lifetime, and left us pondering where to check out next. Photos from URUGUAY!

USGA Senoir Amateur Championship

Team Hayduke travelled to the Midwest this weekend in support of their elder statesman Robert Cloud, as he competed in the USGA Senior Amateur Championship. The tournament took place at the Beverly Country Club on the south side of Chicago, IL. Bob's son and daughter Aaron and Anne made the trip to serve in a dual capacity as caddy and cheering section. The course was immaculate and the weather was absolutely perfect for this national championship, which featured 150 of the best senior amateur golfers from the United States and Canada.

The tournament began with two days of stroke play to determine which golfers would move on to head-to-head competition. On Saturday Bob carded a 78, leaving him three strokes beyond the projected cut-line, but still well within striking distance for the second day. On Sunday difficult afternoon conditions, coupled with a handful of unlucky breaks led to a score of 80, and left Bob on the outside looking in as the field was whittled to 64 competitors for the match-play phase of the tournament. Even though he was hoping to make the matches, in his eternally optimistic style, Bob never showed a hint of disappointment or regret. He wished the other players well, and thanked the employees and volunteers of the USGA for an amazing week of competition.

Playing in a USGA event has been a life-long aspiration for Bob, and it was an incredible weekend for the Cloud family to enjoy together. Here's the PICTURE GALLERY, and the MONTAGE is live! I know he was hoping for a better result, but even if he had won the whole thing we couldn't possibly be any prouder of our old-man. We love you Dad!

Lander, WY

We headed out last weekend with our friends Steve and Rebecca for some fun in Lander, Wyoming. Lander is a great little town tucked on the southeast side of the Wind River range, in my opinion one of the prettiest places in Wyoming. The Lander Bar is in my top 5.

We did some sport climbing in Wild Iris, which has to be one of the most scenic climbing areas in the U.S., and also boasts some fantastic dolomite. The camping is fantastic and you can walk to the cliffs. In camp Olympics Aaron was unstoppable, building a 2-0 record in Kick-Catch, and nailing the furthest two camp targets with the pellet gun. Up the road a few miles we found a perfect little meadow for shooting some skeet, which Rebecca says "is almost as much fun as trundling".

On our last day we day-hiked in the Dickinson Park area of the Popo Agie Wilderness. While not quite as spectacular as approaching the Winds from the west, it was still a beautiful hike. I think we saw two other party's the whole day. The Final competition of the trip was the "Split Rock 3k" footrace back to the truck. Steve was suffering from a self-diagnosed stress fracture, so could not participate, but his girlfriend held their banner high with a first place finish, beating Meredith by 20 seconds and Aaron by 5 minutes.

View the PICTURE GALLERY! Watch the MONTAGE!!!

14'ers in the Sangre de Cristo's

For two straight weekends in July, Team Hayduke was fortunate enough to find itself in the stunning Sangre de Cristo range of southern Colorado. Bordered on the west by Great Sand Dunes National Park and the San Luis Valley, and hemmed in on the east by the breath-taking Wet Mountains, the Sangres are a very unique and beautiful range. Here are a few images from Google Earth that give an overview perspective. Overview. Crestone Needle & Peak. Kit Carson.

The way the mountain rise directly from the surrounding plains with basically no foothills is what I like most about the Sangres. The conglomerate rock is really fun as well. It's crazy to think that those huge walls were once the bed of a prehistoric river.

The first weekend Aaron & Arne climbed the Ellingwood Ledges route on the Crestone Needle. It's a really fun route, and one of the better moderate rock routes on any 14er in Colorado. Here's the GALLERY of the day on the Needle.

The next weekend Team Hayduke packed the truck with Meredith, Rebecca, Steve, Aaron, and their fearless leader Hayduke. Not only was Kit Carson to be Rebecca's first 14er, but it would also be HER FIRST TIME EVER BACKPACKING! But I know her, so I wasn't that worried.

Here's the pics from that weekend, and here's the MONTAGE!!! that covers both trips.

4th of July '09

Certainly one of Team Hayduke's very favorite holidays, we were really looking forward to the 4th this year. We began with two days of kayaking and rafting on the Arkansas with our good friends Brandy and Spencer. We ran Brown's Canyon on Friday and Pinnacle Rock Saturday. Meredith even got behind the oars a couple times.

After a couple days of paddling we met up with our long-lost friends from the ATL, Jordan and Melanie and their beautiful malamute Duncan. Jordan got a job professing at Georgia State a couple years ago, and they moved out to the dirty-dirty the same time we did for nursing school. We spent many fun nights together reminiscing about the Colorado Rockies and playing Dance Dance Revolution until our calves ached. They normally spend the summer relaxing in Estes Park, so hopefully we'll get to see them a lot during the coming weeks.

After camping near Alma we climbed the very leisurely 14er Mount Democrat. Melanie had just returned from two weeks in China and another week in Thailand, so she was concerned she might not have her mountain lungs/legs back yet, but she did great. We miss you guys!

See the PHOTO GALLERY. Montage to follow!

West Slope - the Best Slope

Alex, Mikey and I, headed out for a long weekend of kayaking on Colorado's Western Slope. The hit-list included the Gunnison Gorge, surfing the M-Wave, and some creeking on Upper East above Crested Butte. It was a fantastic trip, and a more than a little bittersweet as Alex is leaving Boulder for a couple years to work in Germany and forward his research. He's not only been a great kayaking partner, but also a very close friend, and his company will be missed. Good luck buddy, I'll see you soon when we ski in Chamonix!

Here's the video and pictures from this trip. The VIDEO! THE PICS!

San Rafael Swell

We headed out to Utah for a great weekend of exploring the San Rafael Swell, one of the most remote regions of the Colorado Plateau. We checked out the Little Grand Canyon, did some climbing on beatiful wingate sandstone, explored the Upper Black Box, and finally did some canyoneering through Baptist Draw and Upper Chute canyons. The crew consisted of Meredith, Aaron, Rebecca & Steve. A great way to kick off the summer. Here's the pics and video that re-cap all the action... THE VIDEO! THE PICS!

Powder Review '08-'09

Shameful self-promotion disclaimer;

This montage was completed well before Team Hayduke launched their blog, but it's a great video of the best moments of the 2008-2009 ski season, hope you enjoy!

Powder Review