A row of pine trees provided shelter from winds, otherwise we had a grand view over the frozen lake towards the Inconsolable Range with Cloudripper in the distance. We made basecamp at the shores of Green Lke (11,054'). The next day, we would plan to carve these slopes. The 12,000' ridge of the Inconsolable Range that would be explored in later summer trips. Some inviting gullies which were loaded with fresh, untouched powder up to Were so lucky with the weather, the spring sun was out, no wind, and weĬould ski with one layer of clothing. As a reminder, we saw a big, fresh,Ĭornice-triggered avalanche on a nearby ridge of the Inconsolable Range. We switch-backed up among large boulders, everyone spaced properlyįinally, the slope mellowed and near Bluff Lke we Less than one foot of soft snow on top of a solid base felt much better. We traversed into an open area which, unfortunately, was an old avalanche path. We ascended half way up in the forest, but then the snow became so unsettled that at places one could push the entire ski pole into the snow without reaching a solid layer. Since the snow from the last storm had not yet settled, safe route finding was the highest priority. The tour starts with a good warm-up, a 1000' climb through forest up to Bluff Lke (10,523'). After sorting out shared gear, packing, testing avalanche beacons, we were off to an 8:30am start on a sunny crisp morning.
The road was officially closed, covered with an icy crust, but everyone made it somehow up. We met on Sat 7am, at the end of the South Lake Road just beyond Parchers Camp (9,400'). After describing the situation to our potential 15 participants, the group shrunk to 10 die-hards: Tom Marsh, Mark Vogt, Mike Rector, Angel Ocana, Jim DeRose, Brad Kinney, John DiGiacomo, Doug O'Neil, Michael McDermitt. Here is how it went: On Thursday before the trip a winter storm moved through the range, the avalanche conditions were rated as high, and another storm was forecast for Sunday. This trip was a fine ski mountaineering adventure with great powder skiing, a challenging peak ascent, a gamble with the weather and avy conditions.
Cloudripper April 10-11, 1999 Reiner Stenzel
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