Well, I finally did it…I stuffed my bandaged and padded toe into my ski boots and found myself skinning up Snowmass. At this point in the season, I am re-acclimating to mountain elevation after spending close to two months at sea level. It’s nice to breathe the fresh air up here in Colorado, but the air definitely felt a little thin upon my return.

Now, with a few days of skinning and skiing under my belt, I feel once again like the ski bum that won Powder Highway’s Ultimate Ski Bum contest. Snowmass has limited coverage, so it’s mostly groomers, but that just makes the ascent that much easier. Typically, I would go find some backcountry tours to mission, but the snowpack here in the Roaring Fork Valley is the worst its been in years. There are reports of a hoarfrost layer 13 inches deep. The worst part? …it’s the bottom layer in the snowpack, making things really unstable and scary.

So, inbounds touring has allowed me to get after it in a controlled environment and build my climbing/skiing muscles up for the rest of the season. I even had a great day skiing on Aspen Mountain with my good friend, Mike Glock, and his liftie co-worker Keith. We ripped around the mountain looking for whatever soft snow stashes we could find. But, due to my sad big toe (see previous blog entry), I’ve been relegated to my Agent AT alpine touring boots. They’re nice and soft for comfortable climbing, but a little mushy for inbounds lift accessed shreddage. This leaves my ankles a little worn out after a dozen runs, so I ended up calling it quits by 2pm.

Tomorrow, I will skin up Buttermilk with Jamie and then head over to Breckenridge for some Winter Dew Tour action. I will crash at the POC house, where some of the athletes will be staying.

Tags: Aspen/Snowmass, Dew Tour, Powder Highway, ski bum, skinning