 |
Friday morning we got an early start and the sled was loaded to full capacity with Danielle in tow at 9:00am on the Slim Creek FSR right at Gun Lake! Conditions were pretty firm at -5degC but the pow looked preserved and juicy high above us.
We took a few breaks to rest Danielle's quads and take in the views. Yami recliner!
After 3.5 hours we arrived at our camp and spent a few hours digging it out.
The weather and conditions were way to good to not get after it right away so we headed out and arrived in the limitless paradise that is Slim Creek!
Ear to ear grins! April showers bring April Pow!
April 22 and winter is still alive in the alpine!
After a couple of hours on the Larry Glacier we were on Mt Scherle's West Ridge. The back-ground was dominated by Ursus Mountain.
We dropped in at 6:00pm just at the light started firing. A late day 800m run awaited us from the summit of Scherle!
And just as the sun slipped behind Tillworth I remembered the massive quantity of beer and wine that awaited us back at camp! This was close to being one of my best days this endless season!
On day two the Dickson Range delivered another bluebird day and we headed out again deep into the alpine. The objective was Shishbanga and it's north facing glacier.
On the way up the massive Hurley range showed itself across Downton Lake. Ethelweard and Athelney Pass dominated the back-drop.
We finally gained the col between Ursus and Shishbanga and made our way up the spine to the summit.
The forecast was for a higher freezing level but we were still way above it and farmed the fresh pow usually reserved for TLH's heli slackers! May is only a week away!
On the lower slopes we got some views of the vast Slim Creek valley and some it's more remote peaks to the west.
We got back to camp just in time to soak in some late day sun and take down some well deserved pops at the local pub!
Day 3 we awoke to another stellar day and headed towards Tillworth. This was a vast glaciated area that needed to be shredded!
Just as we left the sled the weather finally hit us and we were in a white-out in an area with no features to follow. Amazingly a couple of hours later just as we summited we got a break and the light turned back on.
From the top we got incredible views deep into the Coast Range and the headwaters of Slim. The previous days ascent route in Shishbanga was impressive looking from the other side of the valley.
It was now time to get some Easter Sunday pow on the North Coulour! It didn't disappoint!
With plenty of time left in the day we climbed Scherle again to within 100m of the summit but the snow started flying and the weather was now upon us.
Our beer supply was still healthy and we only had one last night to take down the solders.
It was a perfect night to reflect on a great spring trip into a remote and rarely visited area! We'll be back Slim Creek!
The next day we made our way out just as spring was really starting to show it's face. Was the creek this open on the way up?
We also got to see some recent old growth clear-cutting created by an avy path from the Leckie Range.
Cheers to a great week-end!
