SierraDescents | Page 52
June 26, 2011
Jetboil Sol Ti

Ever since I got my Jetboil PCS stove, I haven't used another backpacking stove in the backcountry—that's how much I like it, despite the extra weight. But there's a new (more)
June 20, 2011
A Double Dose of Dana

Looks like this is going to be it for me this year: a double descent of Mount Dana via Solstice and then Dana Couloirs. Tioga Pass opened on Saturday, so we hit the road and (more)
June 14, 2011
Split’s North Face

It is one of California's big mountains, colorful, complex, and consequential, and for ski mountaineers, it holds not one but several of the range's most coveted lines. Split's (more)
June 13, 2011
K2 Wayback

As its name implies, K2's Wayback is a touring/ski mountaineering-specific plank designed for longer and deeper forays into the backcountry. The Wayback weighs in at a (more)
June 4, 2011
Arcteryx Motus Crew

When it comes to clothing, I tend to bounce back and forth between synthetics and wool. Arcteryx's ultralight Motus Crew makes a strong case for the synthetic argument. First of (more)
June 2, 2011
Mammut Creon Light

Mammut's Creon Light backpack offers us a significant ultralight achievement: a load-worthy backpack weighing less than two and half pounds. Traditionally with backpacks you must (more)
June 2, 2011
Say No to Summer

Okay, it's June 2 and I just bought a new pair of skis...for this season. (more)
May 31, 2011
Split Mountain

Huge, huge day on Split yesterday—we skied the north face right off the top of the north summit, then down into the Red Lake basin right beneath the east face and the (more)
May 28, 2011
Skiing Whitney’s North Face

Whitney has eluded me. When I first tried to ski this mountain the defeat was so humbling and so absolute it was years before I dared return to the Sierra backcountry. But, every (more)
May 24, 2011
Eureka Casper

Think of Eureka's Casper as an economy-class sleeping bag with higher aspirations. At roughly 1/4 the price of a high-end down bag, the Rteq™ synthetic 15°-rated Casper is (more)