Fairy Meadow Photos

Oh Canada! Heading out on the Granite glacier for a big day of powder skiing.

Leah and I were able to once again join a strong Montana/Seattle crew for a week at the Bill Putnam Fairy Meadow hut in the Adamant sub-group of the Selkirk range. We had to contend with a buried weak layer and several days of grey weather, but were also treated to several blue days which afforded us adequate opportunities to get into the alpine. It was a great week of mountains, snow, friends, and all around high quality fun.

The first three days were spent skiing around the limited tree skiing near the hut in a storm with High avalanche danger. We were able to push out to Friendship col toward the end of the storm days.

Pushing up to Friendship col.

Team Canada plots their next move during a
hotly contested game of Cards Against Humanity.

We had two clear days, and everyone went out and just skied as much as they could. On the first clear day, I teamed up with Leah and Natalie. We didn't really have a plan, but ended up doing an absolutely stellar loop up the Granite, down into Austerity creek, and back via Mount Sir Williams. It was one of the best days of the year.

Nicky giving her stamp of approval in front of Doubletop.

Leah and Natalie climbing up out of Crystaline Creek.

After braving gale force winds and tricky climbing on the West ridge,
Natalie drops off the summit of Sir Williams.

Leah down on the Granite at the end of a very good day.

The following day, Leah and I ended up on our program, too gun shy about avalanche danger to hit up steep couloirs, but too ambitious to wait for the remainder of the group. We ended up doing a really nice loop up to Friendship, then skiing the justifiably popular Sentinel and Pioneer peaks before returning via Pioneer pass and the Granite glacier.

Leah climbing up to Friendship col.

Airy ridgline scrambling to the summit of Sentinel.

Primo powder turns low on Pioneer peak.

We had enough visibilty and stability to ski a trio of couloirs in the Houdini needles. I spent the afternoon alone, skiing the big West facing couloir near the hut that we had been staring at all week, and a the striking Northeast face of another craggy Adamant mountain which I forget the name of.

The crew getting technical in the Houdini Needles. Photo: Frank Huster

Dropping into one of the steeper Houdini Needle couloirs. Photo: Fank Huster

The big couloir that I skied in the afternoon.

Excited to ski this one after staring at it from the hut all week.
Despite elevated avalanche danger, three solid days of consolidation on sunlit aspects
allowed us to just start poking up into select steeper terrain.