1/11/02
The Big Blue "H" had been parked on us providing stunning views and clear skies all week, but not really doing any favors to our somewhat marginal snowpack. I drove on down to Jon's in Bend in the Oldsmo-bubba on Friday evening. A freezing fog plagued the drive from Government Camp all the way to Madras, making the driving pretty greasy.
| Broken Top (L) and lesser Ball Butte (R) - photo taken 1 week prior from the top of Tumalo Butte. (Jon Carney photo) |
|
Plan was to pick up Allen and Matt next morning and do an overnight in the area below Broken Top and Ball Butte. A big red and yellow blob was ominously approaching from the SW on the radar - forecast was for some weather to come in later Saturday. The high pressure was breaking down but we hoped for it to hold thru Saturday so we could get fairly high up.
After the morning rondevous we made our way up to the Dutchman Flat Sno- Park and pulled in and parked with the rest of the "boys." Dude #1 and Dude #2 parked next to us were already diggin' into what was probably not their 1st Coors Light of the day . . . at 9:10 AM, thoroughly grooving to the wilderness-friendly sounds of AC/DC. We did our best to avert our eyes. Them boys obviously ROCKED . They remained intensely interested in our goings-on: 1 pickup; 1 snomoblo; 4 dudes piling out of 1 pickup; 4 sets of skis; 2 sleds/pulks designed for behind-snomoblo-pullin'; 2 PVC bazookas/mortars/potato guns (ski carriers) on the back of same snomoblo.
I think they were watching to see how long it took for the wheels to come off of whatever we had planned.
| Matt, Allen, and Jon readying a weeks worth of gear for our overnighter. |
|
So we started the shuttle deal out to the wilderness boundary using the services of Jon's mule of a sled. Not sure the Wal-Mart purchased sleds were designed to go 35 miles per hour behind a snowmobile . . . we probably could have pushed them even harder. The snowmobile shuttle changed our probable 4 hour slog in to a very easy 30min spin.
|
"Whut 'er them pipes on the back 'a yer sled? TURBOCHARGERS??!?"
Allen and Jon ready the rig. |
|
| Game on . . . pushing the edge of the envelope with the plastic kiddie-sled pulk. |
|
After we re-grouped at the wilderness boundary we started the short tromp in to our camp. It was parked just short of 7K below Broken Top and Ball. Jon had gone in the day before and cached some gear and done a TON of snow moving - he had basically dug the whole camp in - all we had to do was arrive and unload. The amenities were outstanding. Maybe this is why he got a little bent when I pointed out that the bench in the kitchen that he dug was a little bit off of level.....!
| The approach ski into camp . . . weather threatening but Broken Top still visible top to bottom. |
|
We unloaded a bunch of gear, set up the kitchen, set up tents and then started for a stroll up toward Broken Top. On the roll in and early part of our tour the skies were threatening but South Sister, Bachelor, and Broken Top were all visible top to bottom. As we motored into the crater the deck began to lower and the summits were swallowed up.
| Allen and Matt preparing to set out into the crater. Tarp in place over the kitchen area. |
|
| The weather beginning to break down a bit as we get a little higher. |
|
We angled up to what Jon labeled the "Chandelier Couloir", a striking shot that Allen and Jon had put a bead on the year prior. At some point the pitch steepened slightly and I had a tougher and tougher time holding the traverse. After a couple of my slow-motion hip slides, we all regrouped partway up the couloir.
| Approaching the Chandelier Couloir - so named by Jon for all of the frozen water dotting the buttresses surrounding it. |
|
Allen decided to give the couloir a poke sans-skis . . . There was just a bit of new snow in the couloir over a rock-hard base, so we turned and skiied out of the crater and back to camp & stayed in radio contact with Allen. The skiing started out as wind-hammered chicken heads but got pretty creamy as we continued down. Interesting skiing as the light was so flat that even slight depressions in the terrain could cause a terrifying sense of falling into the abyss.
Allen topped out on the crater rim & was on his way back - I decided to go for a short spin while the light lasted to a short pitch not far from camp, but by the time I met Allen coming down, the visibility was getting poor, the light dim, and my interest in skiing dimmer. I returned to camp behind Allen.
|
Every good party winds up in the kitchen.
Sitting out the storm on Saturday evening enjoying Jon's surprise libations: smoked steelhead, cheese, and red wine. |
|
Allen had brought along some sort of Vodka Nuke-Juice that he was sharing. We all sat down and enjoyed the smoked salmon, cheese, and red wine ( individually packaged, for his pleasure) that Jon had smuggled in. It was excellent!! We all did our dinner things and shot the bull for quite a while . . . It felt like well after midnight when we turned in at about 9pm.
Night was spent shoving new snow off the side of the tent, fighting the urge to abandon the warm sleeping bag to answer nature's call, and listening to the snowflakes fall.
| Jon and Allen's yet to emerge from the chrysalis Sunday morning - tent door partially buried to the left. |
|
The vis was still poor the next morning so more skiing started getting ruled out fairly early. Finally slowly started loading up and making our way back to the 'bile at the wilderness boundary.
| Matt doing some camp breakdown housekeeping. |
|
| Jon pulling the pig on the way out Sunday morning. |
|
| Still in the milk bottle as we approach the shuttle rig on the way out. |
|
Jon expertly shuttled us all out - all the while dodging other bilers, a skijoring couple, and a dog sled race and their associated ejecta.
Turns out a bunch of people got pinned down in a snow cave up on Mt. Hood in the same storm . . . wonder if they had any smoked steelhead and cheese??