EPIC Adventure

March 29, 2018 - EXTREME SKI ADVENTURE

Sixty five miles by truck, nine miles on my 4-wheeler, 1.2 miles along Alunite Ridge, then 1800 feet straight down an avalanche path into the South Fork of Bullion Canyon and my Memorial Day Epic Adventure was just a memory.   As I slid down those 1800 feet, after a quick change of footwear and stomping into my Volkl skis, I left about 250 “C” shapes down a thin ribbon of snow visible from Interstate 70 at the Elsinore exit. OMG the conditions were fabulous, the “corn” snow was creamy on top, yet firm underneath, and I didn’t want it to end!!! The ravine got tighter and tighter, boulders and trees emerged, and white snow turned into a tumbling stream as I dipped below 10,000 and the slushy brown snow wasn’t fun to plow any further.   The previous day I scouted my line from I-70 as I munched on a Western Bacon Cheeseburger I had picked up in Elsinore. The length of this one particular snowfield impressed me immensely and I knew I would have to tackle it. In general, it was half way between Etna Peak and Mount Delano, North facing slope, and the shapes of the snow drifts on Google Earth very closely match this year’s remaining snowpack. With that snowfield’s shape burned into my memory, I identified exactly which knob on Alunite Ridge was the one I would target and I knew approaching  it from the dry roads of Cottonwood Canyon would get me right close. We’re all aware of how weak the snowpack is this year, but the depth of drifted snow clinging to ridgelines and packed into ravines above 10,000’ really show’s how extreme the weather gets atop the lofty peaks of the Tushar’s. This is absolutely not an adventure I’m inviting you to attempt, I’m simply trying to make you aware of what amazing world class mountain activities are available right behind Beaver, Utah! (And perhaps a touch of bragging.) The Tushar Crusher racer’s know it, the Ultra Marathoner’s know it, the A.T.V. jamboree folks know it.  Now is your time to know it!

You’ve heard the expression,”seize the day”, and it’s Latin translation, “carpe diem”,  well, that’s what I ask of you this summer. If I had waited even one more week, this opportunity to ski this spot would have melted away.  I am forty years old now, and lucky to have lived this long with behaviors like these, but my window of opportunity is slowly closing for adventures like this.  Don’t let opportunities for adventure, fun, and travel pass you by this summer. School is Out! And it’s time to make plans, not excuses. If you’re ready for a hike, check out my descriptions of 40 hikes in the Tushars at mcmullins.wixsite.com/intothetushars.  I will have a new hike picked out for you in two weeks, not this ski scene from Better Off Dead, but humor me a little, nobody got their fair share of skiing in this year!