After what seems like an eternal Indian Summer, it is winter again in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Our typical mid-October snow provided a short-lived treat and then proceeded to spend the next month rotting under sunny days and cold nights to become our infamous buried layer of facets. However, the last 10 days have been kind, depositing 3+ feet of snow across the zone.

Early last week, when the avalanche danger was high, I spent time touring around Durango Mountain Resort getting my skinning legs back in shape. As conditions stabilized after Thanksgiving, I started venturing out in the backcountry. Snow pits revealed the normal San Juan surprise, 2 to 3 inches of facets on the ground covered with multiple feet of new snow. It appeared that most of the steeps had already run naturally during the most recent storm. The backcountry was very good, especially given that it is not yet December. Hopefully, we will continue to get good snow and build a solid safe base for the upcoming winter. Get out, play and be safe!

Osprey Athletes, Outdoor Activities, Southwest Colorado, Uncategorized, travel backcountry, Colorado, Osprey Packs, skiing

Who says roadtrips are just for summer? Here, 5 ideas for trips through North America’s best ski highways, connecting resorts and grinning powder heads from coast to coast.

Via Chris Weiss on Matador Network:

For me, mountain picking is usually a 3-3-3 game: 3,000+ acres skiable terrain, 3,000ft vertical, 300+ inches snow/year, give or take.

Truly epic ski trips, on the other hand, I measure by a different count: number of resorts. No matter how close together two areas are, each has its own vibe, its own terrain, its own locals, its own stashes.

Here are some of the best thoroughfares on the continent that weave big mountains into big trips…

1. Wasatch Boulevard, Utah

Ski Areas: Alta, Brighton, Snowbird, Solitude

Cuttingbelow the 11,000ft peaks that look much larger up close than they do lining Salt Lake City’s skyline, Wasatch Boulevard is the ticket to the “Greatest Snow on Earth”…
 

2. I-70, Colorado

Ski Areas: Loveland, A-Basin, Breckenridge, Copper, Vail, Beaver Creek, and more

This Interstate is not only the road to just about every one of Colorado’s 26 resorts — it’s the gateway to the Rockies in general, where the plains of the American Midwest finally give way to more dynamic topography. And when an Interstate climbs and drops through valleys and passes below 13 and 14,000ft mountains, it’s not the typical exhaust-huffing highway experience…
 

3. Icefields Parkway, Alberta

Ski Areas: Mount Norquay, Sunshine Village, Lake Louise, Marmot Basin

More than a road to a resort parking lot, Trans-Canada Hwy 1 and the branchoff onto the Icefields Parkway (AB-93) is one of the most spectacular roads in the world, any time of year. National Geographic ranked the greater route one of its “Drives of a Lifetime”…

 

4. Route 100, Vermont

Ski Areas: Mt. Snow, Okemo, Killington, Sugarbush, Stowe, and nearly every other Vermont ski resort

This is one of the highways I grew up skiing. It cuts down the center of Vermont, roughly paralleling the Green Mountains to the west and passing by more than a dozen ski mountains on its way…

 

 5. Powder Highway, British Columbia

Ski Areas: Fernie, Kicking Horse, Kimberly, Panorama, Red Mountain, Revelstoke, and Whitewater, plus dozens of cat, heli, and touring operations

The most famous ski highway on the continent — the one named in honor of the sport — isn’t even a highway at all. It’s a whole network of them…

More info, including road-condition links, on Matador Network.

Uncategorized

The American Alpine Club owns a single backcountry hut. It’s the Snowbird Hut, up in the Talkeetna Mountains of Alaska. Through the hard work of AAC Alaska section president Harry Hunt, James Brady and Cindi Squire, the new hut is functional for this winter. The Snowbird Hut sits above the Snowbird Glacier. The Glacier is just a stagnant melting piece of ice like all Talkeetna Mountain glaciers, but the skiing is incredible. A popular trip in the area is the Bomber Traverse.

I joined Harry and Cindi for a super fun weekend at the Snowbird. The old dingy, leaky, half-crushed-in-by-snow Snowbird Hut sits below the fancy new Snowbird Hut. The old hut will be helicoptered out next summer.

Cindi reveals the shiny new steel kitchen counter.

Harry fluffs in the R30 duff into the ceiling. Toooooasty!!

In splitter weather we insulated the ceiling, finished sheeting the floor, started sheeting the ceiling, built a bench and a table. It helps that Harry is a carpenter.

We had both a full moon and the northern lights. Become a member of the AAC and visit the best hut in Alaska. P.S. The Mountain House on the Ruth Glacier may be more dramatic, but the location will drive a skier batty.

Osprey Athletes Alaska, Joe Stock, Osprey athlete, Snowbird Hut, Talkeetna Mountains

American Rivers campaign America’s Most Endangered Rivers™ works with local partners, elected officials, media groups and concerned citizens to protect rivers through awareness and action. 2010 marked the program’s 25th year of fighting to save our country’s most threatened rivers.

Via American Rivers:

American Rivers’ successes in our river protection and river restoration efforts would not have been possible without the help of our many supporters With your support, we can continue our work on projects such as dam removal, restoring flood plains, conducting river cleanups, ensuring a clean, safe and reliable water supply, and fighting to secure wild and scenic river designations.

For a list of 2010’s America’s Most Endangered Rivers™  and to submit your nominations for 2011, check out http://www.americanrivers.org/our-work/protecting-rivers/endangered-rivers/.

Conservation, causes causes, Conservation, dams, rivers, wilderness

photo by Charlie Kindel

Via Huffington Post:

The holidays are just around the corner and we all know what that means – winter is on it’s way. But instead of dwelling on the dark cold nights and nasty weather, let’s think for a minute about the upside of the season – the white, fluffy, powdery upside that is. And what better way to enjoy deep powder than jumping out of a helicopter in a remote mountain range for some of the best skiing and boarding of your life?

Read more at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/11/18/top-9-heliski-adventures-_n_784596.html#s184221

adventure, travel adventure, photos, ski, skiing, travel

Unless you’ve been living in a deep, dark cave… You may have noticed that there is a lot of cool stuff going on out there. So, we thought it was high-time we started rounding up some of our faves each Friday. Every month, we’ll be choosing a theme that fits with the Osprey lifestyle. Since it’s about this time of year that people seem to start getting antsy with wanderlust, we figured we’d feature one of our favorite topics: travel. Welcome to the Osprey Friday Round-Up!

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It’s no surprise that we’ve always got travel on the mind. Exploring new places is a beautiful thing, both because it can change our perspective and connects us to new communities. So this week we’ve got a special Friday favorite: Passports With Purpose.

In its third year, PWP is built on the idea that “travel can change the world.” (We love campaigns that promote travel doing good things!) For the last two years, its founders and a whole lot of travel bloggers have put together their efforts to raise money for a good cause. Last year the initiative raised over $30,000 and built a school in rural Cambodia. This year they’re raising money for LAFTI, an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of the Dalit (untouchable) population in India. Raising $50,000 will allow LAFTI to build a whole village of homes.

So seriously, as you start to think about things to buy this holiday season, consider putting your money to a good cause; because not only are you proving that travel can change the world, you’ll get the opportunity to score some cool gear — including an Osprey Vector 22!

Read more…

Osprey Culture, travel charity, India, Passports With Purpose, travel

Glacier National Park. Photo by Trey Ratcliff.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) has been protecting our wild places since 1965.  Now, with Congress back in session, the time is right to voice support for permanent funding for the LWCF.

Via The Nature Conservancy:

Support legislation now before the U.S. Senate that guarantees permanent funding for the Land and Water Conservation Fund — the U.S. government’s key program for protecting land and water…

The program is authorized to receive up to $900 million a year. But despite an increase in energy production, funding for land and water protection has been low and unpredictable — diverted elsewhere by Congress…

Some of America’s most important natural areas are supported by the Fund:

• National parks and forests such as the Grand Canyon and Petrified Forest
• Working farms and ranches
• Fish and wildlife refuges
• Neighborhood parks
• Beaches and land around rivers and lakes.

And the program also benefits people — through ensuring clean water supplies, supporting jobs, reducing the cost of firefighting, and protecting the great outdoors for wildlife and recreation.

Let your Senator know you support legislation for land and water conservation.

Conservation, causes adventure, lakes, outdoors, recreation, rivers, water, wilderness, wildlife

photo by Alan Kahler at www.flickr.com/photos/hue62/

Photography is an invaluable tool in our travels and lives. Photos document and create memories, allow us to share experiences, and evoke a sense of place or of a moment like nothing else. Some of the most compelling photos are so alive that a viewer can interpret the captured moment in a hundred different ways.

Matador Network is calling for these enigmatic snapshots that tell a thousand stories for The Story in the Picture photography contest. Submissions will be judged by a panel of Matador editors, and the winning entry will receive a copy of Rough Guides’ Make The Most Of Your Time On Earth: 1000 Ultimate Travel Experiences.

The top 10 entries will be included in a future photo essay on Matador’s Travel Notebook.

Via Matador Network:

How to submit your entry:

1. Ensure your photo is at least 930 px wide (or 620 px tall if vertical).
2. Attach the photo in an email to carlo[at]matadornetwork[dot]com.
3. In the subject, enter Photo Contest Entry – Story in the Picture

Deadline for photos is 11:59 PM EST November 28, 1010, so get your submissions in soon!

More details here.

contest, travel photos, travel

Unless you’ve been living in a deep, dark cave… You may have noticed that there is a lot of cool stuff going on out there. So, we thought it was high-time we started rounding up some of our faves each Friday. Every month, we’ll be choosing a theme that fits with the Osprey lifestyle. Since it’s about this time of year that people seem to start getting antsy with wanderlust, we figured we’d feature one of our favorite topics: travel. Welcome to the Osprey Friday Round-Up!

***

Today I can find no better inspiration for travel… For living, than this incredible teaser of 23 Feet — a film by Allie Bombach about people who make the conscious choice to live simply in order to pursue their outdoor passions.

Watch and be motivated to live this life exactly how you want to. “That cheesy expression that you hear… Do what you love and the rest comes. It’s true. It really works like that.”

http://www.vimeo.com/16708859

Osprey Culture, adventure, travel adventure, inspiration, mindful living, outdoors, simple life, the road less traveled, travel

Sunset in Boulder, CO. Photo by J. Paxon Reyes.

Amp up for winter and go get exhilarated at the sixth annual Adventure Film Festival, held November 18-20 in  Boulder, CO.  The international festival is dedicated to the “best and most inspiring independent films of the year,” and will bring together filmmakers, adventurers and activists to explore a world of risk, challenge and experience.

Via Kraig Becker at Gadling:

…films will take viewers around the globe, visiting such places as beautiful Argentina, remote regions in Russia, and the very ends of the Earth itself in Antarctica. The movies were specifically handpicked by a selection committee that was looking for inspiring, well made, and informative independent films that exemplified an adventurous spirit while capturing their subject matter in the most amazing way possible.

In addition to the great films that will be on display there are a number of others special events on the docket as well. Aspiring adventure photographers and filmmakers will want to take part in one of the workshops that will take place over the course of the festival, while live music, gear giveaways, round table discussions, and guest appearances will help to keep attendees busy while they’re not sitting in a dark theater.

The films will be shown in the historic Boulder Theater, at the local REI and Patagonia store, as well as the famous Neptune Mountaineering store. They’ll cover a host of outdoor activities including mountaineering, kayaking, cycling, skiing, and more.

More about the Adventure Film Festival here.

Events, travel adventure, Colorado, Events, film