When spring hits the Elk Mountains there is a narrow window to ski big peaks. Last spring we decided to maximize our time in the backcountry and minimize our slogging by seeing if we could knock off two of Aspen’s big lines in a single push. Fortunately we were able to line up the conditions and ski the East face of Hunter (13,497′) as the sun hit it in the morning and then ski the West face of Ski Hayden (13,300′) across the valley before it got too warm. To do this we had to bivy down the night before on the scenic (and windy!) highlands ridge and eat a few more burritos than on a typical tour. Both lines were 3,500′ of non stop leg screaming fun and offered steep open faces reminiscent of Alaska style shredding. Though we were pretty worked after a 20 mile tour with 13,000′ of gain/loss this mission opened our eyes to how big our own back yard is and how one can maximize vertical, smiles, lactic acid buildup and adventure while minimizing our carbon footprint and cost by skiing local!
Follow upcoming adventures like this at beansandricefreeride.com/
or on Instagram @jakesakson and @morganboyles
Speaking of spring…if the lack of snow and beach temps this “winter” have you moaning and groaning make your voice heard! Go to 350.org and protectourwinters.org to see what you can do to help fight climate change. Lets keep our winters–and our knee dropping–DEEP!
