Despite lean times, I am happy to report I skied a descent this past weekend that’s been near the top of my most-wanted list: Bloody Couloir, in the Mammoth Lakes region of the Sierra.

Blood Couloir has something of a reputation as a test piece for the locals—at least according to the guidebooks. In any case, it’s a popular backcountry skiing destination, accessible via 4WD.

I was most interested in the chute that drops from Bloody Mountain’s west summit—this appears to be the steepest pitch on the mountain. How steep was it? I brought my inclinometer and was surprised to repeatedly get measurements nearing 50° in the crux section.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a Sierra Descent without some sort of fiasco: in this case, I decided to try to bike the 4 1/2 mile approach road, with skis and overnight gear. The experience was nothing if not educational. While I can’t recommend the Laurel Lakes Road for bicycles (in fact I strongly, strongly recommend against trying it), biking to long approaches could work, given the right conditions.

Epic Tents and Rain

If you’re familiar with Black Diamond’s ultralight single-wall tents (such as the Firstlight, Hilight, or Oneshot), you’re probably aware of at least some discussion involving the reliability of their Epic™ fabric.

Nobody seems to know exactly how waterproof (or not) Epic actually is—which would seem to be a question of some importance if you’re venturing into the backcountry with an Epic-based tent.

There are plenty of reports across the internet to further confuse the matter. Some people say Black Diamond’s Epic tents are as good as waterproof. Others say the tents start leaking as soon as it starts raining. I’ve weathered a spot of rain here and there in my Firstlight tent, but nothing spectacular enough for me to feel confident making any definitive statements on the subject.

But I will offer some thoughts. First, seams in Epic™ tents cannot be factory-taped. They must be sealed by hand, at home, by you, adding at the very least an afternoon spent breathing interesting vapors to your already-busy schedule. If you don’t seal the seams, they will likely leak at some point. Keep this in mind when reading claims that Epic tents leak as soon as the rain falls—did these owners bother sealing the seams?

And if they did seal the seams, did they do so carefully? Properly?

As a test, I rigged a new Oneshot outside my apartment during a winter storm in SoCal. I’d hoped it would rain like crazy. Instead, we got only a few hours of steady rain. But, the tent (which was not seam-sealed) didn’t leak. Hmm. The Oneshot remained completely dry inside. The fabric showed no sign of becoming waterlogged—it appeared to be well-protected by the water-repellent coating on the tent’s exterior.

My guess is that Epic fabric can saturate over time, becoming waterlogged, at which point the fabric will being to sweat. If you are in a well-sealed tent, this would probably take at least 24 hours or more of heavy, sustained rain. That number will probably vary depending on how new the tent is—and how effective the DWR-coating is on the exterior. High humidity levels will probably hasten the process of saturation.

So here’s what we’re saying: if it pours continuously for several days, your Epic tent is probably not the best place to be. But let’s get real—I don’t care how waterproof your tent is, if Mother Nature is going to throw her worst at you, maybe you should consider staying home that weekend.

Note also that if the weather features intermittent rain or breaks that allow the Epic fabric to dry out, seepage is not likely to be a problem at all. And in many so-called leakage incidents, it may well be that people are experiencing not actual leaking but condensation, because when Epic fabric saturates, it loses its ability to breathe. This is an inherent liability of a single-wall tent, and a legitimate reason to use traditional double-wall designs if apocalyptic rain is on the agenda.

So, for most people in most conditions, Epic tents will probably do just fine. As for those of you who live in rain forests, my advice is clear: stay indoors!

For the latest entry in my never-ending search for the perfect ski mountaineering pack, I’ve taken a look at Black Diamond’s new Quantum backpack.

The Quantum really marks an evolution in the BDEL pack lineup. This is the first BD pack that is truly able to carry approach loads comfortably.

Especially notable is the Quantum’s modularity, which allows it to easily strip (yes, really easily) from its full configuration down to a two-pound summit pack.

This is an exciting development for those of us seeking a technical pack capable of carrying overnight and climbing gear, yet still light enough to comfortably use for skiing.

Black Diamond Quantum Backpack Review

This past weekend, I joined a group of SMS Angeles members for a day tour in the South Lake region, off highway 168 west of Bishop.

The forecast called for snow, but given a sunny morning and the no-show performance of this year’s storms, we weren’t expecting much in the way of weather.

I was therefore most surprised—and delighted!—when a full-fledged blizzard blew in around noon.

Winds shrieked, visibility plummeted, and snow fell at a rate around an inch an hour. This are normally the sort of conditions that keep me at home, because of the obvious slide hazard.

However, touring at the very start of the storm gave us the opportunity to safely travel the lower South Lake drainage, as well as contemplate the speed of the day’s changing conditions.

We obviously chose to alter our plans and stay relatively low, though it was tempting to keep climbing higher.

Aside from the obvious beauty and remoteness of the area, South Lake offers great Nordic skiing, a bevy of technical possibilities, and preposterously good access—paved road to nearly 9900′ !

I’ve been using Black Diamond’s Winter Bivy Sack a little over a year now. While I’d hate to get caught in a downpour in it, I’ve found the Winter Bivy makes a nice substitute for a tent—in certain conditions.

If you’re used to carrying a four or five pound tent, switching to the nine ounce Winter Bivy Sack can certainly change your perspective when it comes to shelter: Black Diamond Winter Bivy Review

Amazingly enough, I’ve put together an actual backcountry skiing trip report from my latest visit to the Southern Sierra.

At 13,930′, Mount LeConte just barely missed being a fourteener. Given the way the year has gone, I didn’t expect to ski anything south of Mammoth, but as I was driving through Lone Pine, I thought I saw snow.

I was wrong. The resulting misadventure is a little embarrasing, but in these lean times, we have to make the best of what we have: Skiing Mount LeConte.