The Fall is Here

We can finally say goodbye to shorts and running shoes. It’s raining, but the fun of snow peaks out through blueberries and shrinking day length. A chill is in the morning air, a yellow tinge is sweeping through the canopy, and once again we can dream of winter.

That’s right, fall is here.

This is a time to reminisce on the past and dream of skiing. Tick lists evolve through failure, success, virtue, and vice. Dreams emerge from experience. So, I find myself reflecting on a few ski mountaineering lines from the days of yore. I can’t say why these lines floated into my mind’s wonderings, you tell me. 

Each line below is rightfully ‘classic’ (no secrets revealed), yet each also lacks appropriate fanfare IMHO. These lines rarely land on any sort of ‘top five’ list, provide relatively easy access, and involve something that makes them ‘ski mountaineering’ in my mind (glaciers, ropes, steeps, technical movement). I’ll try and share why these lines deserve space in my subconscious and a spot on this unlabeled listicle. For starters, each line here is a relatively short day trip (or less), with incredible bang-for-your-buck. Each line has impacted how I look at mountains in some way. Each line involves at least one component that requires what I would consider ski mountaineering skills. For the record, this is in no particular order and is not intended as a “best of” anything list. It’s just five lines worth sharing.

**Author’s note: I live in Anchorage, AK, and used to live in Leadville, CO. No surprise why these lines are in these two locations. Again, not a ‘top five’ or ‘best of’, just fun skiing….