2023-04-30 - Intro to ski mountaineering
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Did an intro to ski mountaineering course today!
So one of my long term goals and one of the things I’ve been trying to work towards over my adventures of the past few months is getting to the point where I can tackle some big ski mountaineering objectives (which is the way people who do this like to say “climb big fricken mountains and then ski down”). In the course I did today, I had the chance to practice a bunch of different skills that I might use in the future doing this kinda thing. Today has me totally stoked to get out and try to take on an actual objective. I might try to visit California or the PNW over the summer and climb something along the way if anyone wants to travel out there with me! 🥺
1/5 - practicing boot packing up a couloir while the team is roped together (if one person falls then everyone else digs their ice axe into the snow and hangs on to stop the fall)
2/5 - video of me attempting (and not quite doing it right) to self-arrest (catch myself and stop sliding using an ice axe) after falling headfirst backwards down a slope. Bonus at the end of me getting brutally attacked by an angry chunk of snow ⛄️😡
3/5 - me about to (unsuccessfully) attempt to rappel (lower yourself via a rope) with a snowboard attached to my feet using a kinda weird body positioning that my brain couldn’t quite figure out on this try
4/5 - one of the places we were working on skills today (plus fun clouds!)
5/5 - our guide demonstrating a crevasse rescue system to pull some backpacks along lol
