More Blodgett Dayz

I was able to get out and ski some new terrain in Blodgett with excellent conditions during the brief window where we had excellent low elevation snow coverage and good snow quality this winter.  I still think good skiing in Blodgett is a bit of an anomaly, but with enough snow, sometimes it's fun to go all in on the Bitterroot experience.

Sears couloir to Sears Point 

Enjoying the sun with Caesar's Palace in the background.

Cold hardy Ned was not deterred by the cold snap, and suggested a big ski day with an early start.  Reluctantly, I obliged, and we were walking in sub zero temperatures before first light.  Soon enough, we were up into the sun, and despite poor route selection on my part, we topped out on the Sears lake couloir slightly surprised by how much new snow was present, but excited to ski.  We hemmed and hawed about dropping into the couloir, but couldn't find any indicators of instability other than the higher volume of new snow, so we went for it.  

Savoring the powder near the terminus of the Sears Lake couloir.

The Sears lake couloir was most excellent.  It's rare I feel confident skiing couloirs with deeper powder snow.  We took it all the way to the lake.  Another good long climb put is at the top of skiable snow just shy of Sears point 8587, and we had another excellent 3,000 foot run.  Some roller ball debris and a bit of a schwack back to the trail kept it real.  Best day of the year to date. 

The upper pitch of Sears Point south to Blodgett.

Blue Ice bowl East and West

I was back a week later for more.  This time, I climbed the Blue Ice bowl, with intentions on skiing Southwest off the top and heading farther up drainage.  On the way up, the bowl itself looked great, so I decided to ski it.  The ensuing run was fantastic, aside from getting a little bit stuck on thin snow over rock slabs pinched against thin snow over ice at the top of the bowl.  

Blue Ice bowl.

From the bottom, I re-climbed my track and skied Southwest.  Once again, I got stuck on thin slabs on a short little step at the top of the gully and bailed up and out, tenuously, on thin snow over slabs and ice.  Once above the slab section, I found an alternate entrance (a hidden gully skier's left of the primary entrance).  The rest of the run was great.  I stopped in the forest a couple hundred vertical feet above the trail where ski quality had deteriorated to something more resembling bushwacking.  I rounded out the day by skiing the skier's right fork of the gully, which was also excellent.  Another long exit was a small price to pay for the privilege of skiing three new to me long runs with great snow.

3,000 feet top to bottom.  Peak to creek dreams alive and well.

Learning note:  This was a really good day, but I did a poor job assessing risk around rock slabs.  After a few months of reflection, my primary lesson learned is just re-learning the same lesson again:  lots of terrain in the Bitterroot has steep smooth rock slabs.  They can often be skied safely, but between glide avalanches and often weird snowpack, there are usually safer and better options.  

Below the innocuous looking slab at the top of the Blue Ice South West run.