Red Mountain Pass Backcountry

We made a trip over to Ouray last weekend to soak in the hot water and be surrounded by big mountains. The San Juans are amazing and not really all that far from Moab. Toad and myself got an early morning ski tour in around Red Mountain Pass. I had never skiied in the San Juans so I was expecting to just do a short tour and scout the area out. We ended almost summiting MacMillan Peak at 12,800 feet and finding amazing snow conditions up high, even though it has been a week since the last storm. Once we were above treeline we were surrounded by high peaks and alpine terrain.

Good sized avalanche in US Basin that we could see from Macmillan

Todd skiing excellent recrystallized powder above 12,000 ft


Looking over towards the high country between Red Mountain Pass and Telluride

Skiing back to the Pass

Slickrock Sledding

Rime encrusted trees at the Geyser Pass Trailhead on Monday. The lighting was pretty amazing with the dark clouds behind them.

Last Friday we went out and hiked up some of the slickrock domes to see if we could sled on them. There was still plenty of snow and the slickrock made for a perfect luge run. A friend of mine actuallu went up and skiied on the slickrock trail. The warm temps Sat and Sun pretty much melted everything but it was fun while it lasted.

Ridge jumping slickrock ledges

Slickrock sledding

Moab Dump

The first "Snow Day" in Moab in over twenty years happened on Monday. It was the biggest storm we have seen in town since we have been here. 8 inches in out backyard, 18 in the La Sals and almost 30 inches at Camp Jackson in the Abajos. Hope it keeps up.

Smokey showing the snow totals in the backyard

Sledding down the driveway. Rowan was yelling "it's the best day ever!"

Sand Flats and South Mesa covered in white stuff

Climbing Courthoue Rock with the Taliban

We went out Sunday to a place Todd found while working. It is a route to the top of Courthouse Rock via some ledges and then a crack with a fixed line. It was too late to make it all the way up but we did find the crack and rope, so we will be back.

River and Ridge watching Toad climb the crack in the setting sunlight on top of Courthouse Rock

Uncle Todd forgot his coat so he grabbed part of his Fidel Castro costume from Halloween out of his car trunk to hike in, which made him look even more like a Taliban. Shadows in the setting sun

Tree thinning in the La Sals

Last weekend, before the big storm we went up on the mountain to kill some living trees to put in our house as a symbol of eternal life, kind of ironic but I like the tradition nontheless. We send most people up to Geyser Pass to get thier christmas trees because the aspen groves there are dieing off and conifers are encroaching on them. So it is actually a good thing to remove the small firs and spruces moving into the aspens.

I think my favorite thing about Christmas is the tree.