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Return to Dana

Solstice Couloir - Mount Dana

With Tioga Pass Road now open to the east Yosemite gate (and intermittently all the way through to the Central Valley), this past weekend seemed like the perfect time to revisit (more)

Mountain High East

Mountain High East

I knew I loved to ski Mountain High East, but I had forgotten why: MHE offers by far Southern California's best intermediate/cruiser skiing, reminiscent of Colorado groomers, with (more)

Waterman Spins its Lifts

Waterman Spins its Lifts

Here's one of the Holy Grails of Southern California skiing: I finally got to ski Mount Waterman, which opened this past weekend. Yes, I've skinned around the area before, but (more)

Southern California Dreaming (Reprise)

Southern California Dreaming (Reprise)

Motivated by forecasts of ultra-low snow levels and dreams of cold-smoke glory, Trevor and I returned yesterday to the San Jacinto Wilderness to reprise our 2012 Southern (more)

Skiing Baden-Powell, 2018 Edition

Skiing Baden-Powell, 2018 Edition

You should have seen the look on my wife's face when I brought out my skis this past weekend. For the record, this was 100% Al's doing, not mine. He's the one who had a (more)

Mount Sill: Two North Couloirs

Mount Sill: Two North Couloirs

After a long break, I made my way back to the Sierra's Palisades Crest for a climb and ski of Mount Sill. My expectations were modest on this one, but Sill turned out to be a (more)

Mount Russell – Northeast Couloir

Mount Russell - Northeast Couloir

I haven't skied anything remotely like this since Mount Muir six years ago. This is normally just a giant cliff face. When we crested Russell-Carillon Col and saw it was covered (more)

Skiing The Thumb

Skiing The Thumb

A few quick notes: jeez, the wind was bad on this one, but the trip itself was great. This is a new format designed to better feature my photography. Yes, I know a lot is broken (more)

Scouting Sugarloaf

Scouting Sugarloaf

Sugarloaf Mountain is kind of a nondescript bump at the east end of the ridge that connects Snow Summit and Bear Mountain ski areas above Big Bear Lake. I'm tempted to ski it (more)

Mount Pinos & Sawmill Mountain

Mount Pinos & Sawmill Mountain

At 8831', Mount Pinos is the highest point in Ventura County and, believe it or not, the 11th most prominent peak in California. Pinos is an easy drive up the 5 from LA County, (more)

Snowbowl Gets A Lift

Snowbowl Gets A Lift

A new chairlift, that is. I would tell you its name, but the Snowbowl's website is currently down, so the new lift will have to remain at least temporarily nameless. Nameless (more)

Fransson

Fransson

He was one of the titans of modern extreme skiing, with a traditional, mountaineering tilt that connected him directly to the most storied names of the past. On September 29, (more)

The Vertigo Machine

The Vertigo Machine

It is unlike any other chairlift I know of, and it scares the hell out of me every time I ride it. I'm talking of course about Mammoth Mountain's wonderful Chair 23, that aging (more)

Memorial Day

Memorial Day

For me, the 2013-2014 winter began and now ends with Mammoth: a Thanksgiving opening and a Memorial Day close. Yes, in terms of snowfall, this year ranks easily among the most (more)

Reading the SoCal Backcountry

Reading the SoCal Backcountry

I know what you're thinking: it's snowing! How much has it snowed? Has it snowed enough? It is worth it to try hitting the SoCal backcountry? How do you know if it's deep (more)

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