Laura & Mark

Snowmass summers are chock full of activities for the whole family.  From raft trips with Blazing Adventures on the Roaring Fork River to lift-assisted downhill biking trails to Wednesday night Rodeos, everyone has something fun to get into during a visit to one of America’s highest ski resorts. 

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.

Snowmass, the Tatsuno Way

I gave a quote to Jamie Lynn at the Snowmass Sun .  She wanted to know about where I like to go when riding Snowmass.  Here is an excerpt:

My favorite moment is cresting the top of the High Alpine chair, ready for that quick 10-min jaunt over to the Hanging Valley Headwall.

Well, I’ve finally packed away my ski gear for the summer, much to the protest of a local ski photographer or two still itching to climb the high peaks around Aspen’s Independence Pass. And, as all seasons’ endings tend to do, I’ve had my fair share of time spent revisiting what may go down in history as the best winter ever in the Aspen area. The multitude of pow-shredding experiences and the new friends I’ve met along the way were the icing on the proverbial cake that is living in a mountain town doused with 181 percent of its average snowfall for one season. But now that the ice mustache has long since melted away, I find myself biking, hiking, and rafting to fill up the long Summer hours. I’ll continue posting new stuff every so often, so make sure you check the recent comments added to the sidebar on the right. And, if you’re jonesing for some outdoor gear of your own for that adventure you’ve been planning, click the Backcountry.com logo to the right to save 15% on any purchase. Just a little something from me to you. Enjoy!

If you’ve found this page because you had a chance to paddle for me during a Blazing Adventures raft trip, feel free to leave some feedback in the comments section. I want to thank you for checking out my site and if you enjoyed your experience on the river, I would love to take you out for another trip the next time you find yourself vacationing in Aspen. Between all the jeeping, hiking, biking and rafting that’s available in this area, I’m sure we can find something fun to do!

Cheers!

Tatsuno