Choosing the top outdoor adventures of the year is a difficult task to do here in Utah. Our state is so full of amazing scenery and recreation opportunities that it’s near impossible to whittle all the trips you took in a 12-month period down to 5. But myself and Ryan Malavolta went back into...
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Wanderlust can cause a backcountry skier to not only travel in many different places, but also travel farther than what would normally be prudent. The urge to see just over that ridge, or peer around the next corner can turn “wanderlust” into “wanderlost.” Garden City Canyon in far northern Utah’s Bear Lake Mountains was...
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The start of December welcomed a much needed snowstorm in Utah’s mountains, with high winds and 8 inches of snow falling on the western Uintas. The day before, Adam and I drove to Wolf Creek Pass on State Route 35 to explore a bit of Uinta goodness, and hopefully score some powder shots in...
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WANDERLUST – Definition: “a strong desire for, or impulse to wander or travel.” The definition is apt, as I’ve had a strong impulse of wanderlust lately. Backcountry skiing is a nice way to tamp down any feelings of wandering, but limiting myself to the Wasatch Range the last 11 years has made “The Lust”...
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Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving and the biggest shopping day of the year, is memorable for images of frenzied shoppers practically rioting in pre-dawn madness just to score some deals on stuff. Well, there’s another pre-dawn tradition on the day after Thanksgiving, and that’s backcountry touring into the Wasatch Mountains to burn off...
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The backcountry can be an ugly place. Grizzled, bearded men populate the canyons and mountainsides of the Wasatch, with fewer of the fair sex getting after it. Our mountains would be more charismatic and probably be safer with more women ripping skins and making turns. Females are far more less likely to die in...
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So the Weather Channel recently decided to start naming large winter storms, much in the same way tropical storms and hurricanes are awarded an epic-sounding name when they develop off some coastal region. Well, the first of these storms, Winter Storm Brutus, slammed into the Wasatch Front, dropping over three feet of snow (even...
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Who knew the Utah Avalanche Center could make a ski movie as good as any other adrenaline-fueled tomfoolery currently on tour in mountain towns? For this week’s Friday Video, we’re featuring the UAC’s “2011-2012 Utah Backcountry Review,” an educational recap about last season’s snowpack and avalanche accident season. If you think that may sound...
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There a new map of the Central Wasatch for backcountry skiers, and it’s a doozy. The Wasatch Backcountry Skiing Map by Steve Achelis is the most comprehensive map we’ve seen. It features every known, named ski route in Mill Creek and the Cottonwood Canyons, which covers over 1,100 skiable lines. In addition to the...
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Ah, Patagonia. One thing you can say about the company (aside from the fact that they make some of the most bomber outdoor apparel in the industry) is that they sure aren’t afraid to design new and unusual outerwear. None is a better example of this than the Nano Puff Hybrid Jacket. I got...
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