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Show JANUARY 1996 Reminiscence of Ski Adventures lip, then a half hour march under Robert's Horn to snow-covered Emerald Lake, followed by a moderate and then steep climb up the Mt. Timpanogos snow field. Glade, as always, reaches the windswept saddle first and then minutes later I arrive, panting and wheezing. Nearly four thousand vertical feet on skis and skins is a respectable morning climb. We gaze out over the blustery crest at surrounding high mountain peaks and beckoning Utah Valley far below. Adrenaline pumping, Glade then approaches the massive cornice atop the snowfield. He leans and then lunges into open space and finally lands and then cascades down the broad snowfield, linking and arcing tele-turn after turn, bellowing yo’s and ya’s the full course. By Steve Lewis t's early winter and Bob Athey, Alexis Kelner and I pace skis in rhythm through consolidated snow up a narrow canyon to a steep basin and mountain cirque. Daybreak paints the high peaks pink and sunrise warms chilled bodies as we finally ascend the spiny Little Cottonwood Canyon ridgeline. Spent from aerobic exhaustion, we marvel at the silent serenity and splendor of the skyline and cirque that beckons below. I chase after cougar tracks, while Alexis readies his 4X5 camera and sets the shutter Athey, “the Wizard of the Wasatch,” poses, then begins his ride down a precipitous top angle, 40degree slope, jumping and carving into the basin below. On his 40th birthday, the Bobster cranked nearly 400 consecutive turns off Gobbler’s Knob. Today he fights for fifty successive linked turns and wonders aloud if he'll get his three-to-six thousand vertical feet today or when he'll next carve his split shift snowboard Late winter arrives and friends and [ join in a La Sal Mountain ski adventure. We climb for hours, finally reaching the ridgeline between Mt. Mellenthin and Mt. Tukuhnikivatz and scan the horizon. To the north, the rise of vermilion cliffs and the pale pink Fisher Towers; to the west, the sweeping vastness of Canyonlands; and to the south, the snow-capped Henry Mountains. We witness one of the most pic- Weeks later, Glade and I park at Aspen Grove above Sundance and march past frozen waterfalls and then up perilous Primrose Cirque. It’s a fastpaced heat-pounding two hours to the Past fall line. Skis effortlessly carve arc after arc, so exquisite and exact. You finally come to rest and glance up the slope at your partner, who is cutting a trail next to yours, as if a wizard had wand waved a magic through the powdery snow. You have become a winter backcountry skier and this life-sustaining ven7 Photo by Steve Lewis turesque and sublime settings nature could ever afford. Then an ever-sopleasant ride takes us down the steep slopes, through evergreen, past open meadows and stands of aspen ‘till we finally reach the barren hills overlooking the emerald Moab Valley below. se Jtah \ C ts 38-meter accept EC it-—is JUMP Stephen W. Lewis is a Salt Attorney, outdoor enthusiast canyon conservation activist. the You’il join the 2,000 people of all ages soared from the 18and Park! miss Thursdays and the opportunity to F = es don’t Wyoming watch Nordic and i EE i Ey 4 : Woolens 518 Historic Main * Park City, Utah & Jackson Hole Wyoming training sessions and competitions throughout this winter. Call today for a brochure or schedule of events. 801-645-9427 en UTAH 649-5447 (Just 5 miles 3000 Bear Hollow Drive northwest of Park City via ¢ Day Lodge © Snack Bar * Ski Shop Programs © 2002 ® International Winter Olympic Training Games Site Hwy 224) ® Athlete Development © National Competitions = Nes / Spoe \ i S = TETON TOAST PAGE Lake and yoming oolens Shows pride in organizations that protect the world we live in by continuously donating a portion of our profits to: Wilderness Society © Sierra Club Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund We hope you take a vested interest in your Surroundings by making The Wasatch Mountain Times an important part of your mountain lifestyle. jumps And solitude and renewal can transthe winter backcountry into an outdoor fountain of youth. But it can ‘high ho’ and off you go. Suddenly, you are sailing along, balanced on edges no thicker than blades, floating weightlessly down the speree days. writer’s note: Fitness, fun, friendship, form ened, you signal your partner, let out a to at sensation that just possibly, also be hostile, exhausting, intimidating and dangerous to the naive, unfit and uninitiated. Before taking on serious backcountry winter terrain, participate in an avalanche safety course, practice safe ski techniques, carry a beacon and shovel and regularly consult the Utah Avalanche Forecast Center — 364-1581. FO you are nestled on a backcountry ridge, geared up, ready to arc down an untracked slope in the Wasatch Mountains. You shed skins, scan the horizon and marvel at the mystic splendor. Your pack is tight- ei Saal ture instills within you the you are forever young. @ > 4 é aoe Waoomine Weac F JACKSON ¢ HOLE, FLEECE FEET USGA 6 Pr: |