The Harry Gates Hut
During the last weekend of February I (Don) went on a fantastic three day backcountry ski trip with some good friends from Broomfield. I haven't written about it yet because no post would suffice without the video I included at the end. We skied into a 10th Mountain Division Hut (Harry Gates Hut) outside of Basalt, CO. The trail to the hut was 7 miles long and climbed 2000 feet. Unfortunately for me, I don't own telemark skis, so I brought my skate skis, which are designed for use on groomed, flat trails, not for powdery, steep backcountry trails. Despite the terrain/ski mismatch, I had a great time! One of the worst thing about skate skis (among other things) is that they can't turn in powder. This was unfortunate, because while everybody else was out practicing their telemark-turns I would just ski straight down the mountain. This proved to be disastrous on two occasions, one of which is documented below in the video. Unfortunately this is the less spectacular of the two crashes, there was no camera pointed in my direction during the second crash.
Overlooking Lime Creek Canyon
Note: I could not see the drop-off that ultimately caused the crash. All I could see was whiteness everywhere. Enjoy!
Me, Dan, and Garrett