SierraDescents | Page 15
June 6, 2015
2005: Origins
SierraDescents officially started in November 2005 (when the first post appeared), but I tend to think the site began during the 2004-2005 winter, when I was extensively climbing (more)
May 26, 2015
The Winter Wrap: 2015
What happened? I think I can safely speak on behalf of most Californians when I say 2014-2015 was not the winter we were hoping for. Coming fresh on the heels of last year's (more)
May 8, 2015
Say No To Summer Alert!
On the strength of an out-of-nowhere May storm that has dropped 12-18" of fresh snow and is still going, Mammoth Mountain has cancelled their planned closure this weekend. I (more)
May 5, 2015
Steep Skiing: Uphill Ski Strategies Part II
The downhill ski works. You do the move, and it's practically universal: hard snow, soft snow, low angle, high angle, damn the consequences, it works. It's simple, it's (more)
May 2, 2015
Mammoth in May
Here was my thought: what if I could pretend I was skiing in August, instead of May? Today's conditions would be pretty spectacular, I reasoned, if we were skiing in August, and (more)
April 5, 2015
Mammoth April Fools
That popping sound you hear is the sound of loose rocks pinging off the tips of my skis. Attentive viewers will notice the sound is nearly continuous. Welcome to winter 2015, (more)
March 25, 2015
Marmot Front Range Jacket
For cold but fair-weather Alpine skiing, I love wearing a windproof fleece jacket. But I'd gotten tired of looking like a fuzzy black puffball in my Patagonia R4. When my old (more)
March 22, 2015
Telluride Blues
As is my annual custom, last week I traded Southern California for Colorado's San Juans, spending six days in the town of Telluride. And, as is also now a yearly tradition, (more)
March 9, 2015
Dust to Dust
Those of you who made it to the Big Bear area this past weekend found conditions about as good as they've been all year, thanks to fresh snow and a furious bout of snowmaking. (more)
February 26, 2015
The Kabookie Bids Adieu
A sad bit of news I unfortunately have to report following the WWSRA demo at Mammoth Mountain is word the Kabookie will not return for the 2015-2016 season. As the metal-free (more)
February 23, 2015
At The Eleventh Hour, Snow
I was thinking, yesterday, about skinny runs. For those of you who skied in the 70's or 80's, I'm sure you remember them, because that's all there were: narrow, winding runs that (more)
February 17, 2015
2015 WWSRA Mammoth Mountain
It’s been hard, these past dry years, to think much like a ski buyer, but the makers have continued their work notwithstanding, and, snow or not, they’ve made some fantastic (more)
February 11, 2015
Mammoth Encased In Ice
Yes, I'd heard Mammoth Mountain saw rain virtually from top to bottom over the past few days, but some things you just have to see with your own eyes to believe. Holy Mr. (more)
February 11, 2015
Above and Below the Line
Here's a fairly dramatic look at just how high the snow level was during this last Sierra storm cycle. This looks like the aftermath of some kind of freakish summer snow squall, (more)
February 9, 2015
Reluctant Post-Storm Discussion
I guess we have to say something about the storm, though for the past few hours I've been wondering if maybe it would be better if we all just pretended it never happened. (more)
