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Back to Ushuaia
This was my seventh crossing of the Drake Passage and it was almost a perfect average of conditions – a bit of 40+ knot winds, some rocking & rolling, but then lots of fairly smooth sailing as well. Very few broken dishes or violently sick people. Like all Ice Axe trips, this one was a […]
*&^%(@’ing Ice
Snarg. We’ve had had a lot of sea ice on this trip, which is perhaps what you might expect on a trip to Antarctica, but WTF. Antarctic ice is a very dynamic situation and something that has to be seen to be understood. When in moves in, it is a force to be respected, like […]
Scratch & Sniff in Paradise
Started out the day with an incredibly scenic breakfast while we cruised through Lemaire channel, which we actually got to see twice as we were turned around by sea ice. I’m far from a savvy Antarctic vetran, but this year has had more blocking sea ice than I’ve ever seen which has made Zodiac landings […]
Nansen Island
Hmmmm.. clear, sunny, stable, powder, splitter skin tracks, gorgeous peaks, penguins, a polar plunge into the crystal clear Antarctic water, a barbecue on the back deck, music, icebergs, friends from all over the earth, Zodiac rides, scenery beyond description, a fast group, steep skiing, gourmet ten degree slopes that go on forever, crevasses, corn snow, […]
A Ship of Blue in a Bright White Sea
Much to my disappointment, we had a smooth crossing of the Drake Passage with mild cross winds and 2-3 meter waves. Sigh. Nice and sunny, lots of Albatros, a few whale sightings and not too many seasick people. I’m sharing a room with Rich Meyer and Kris Erickson and last night Kris put on some […]
Mountains of Gear
I’ve seen some piles of gear before, but nothing like the mountain I witnessed this morning. With 118 people and no weight restrictions, it put backcountry.com to shame. The pile must have been 15 x 15 feet wide and a good 10+ feet high – all of being, solid, dense expedition packs, There were some […]
Soggy Martial
Being a pampered Wasatch skier, it has been a long time since I’ve had he pleasure of skiing in the rain, but my Northwest roots were well watered today on the Martial Glacier. Aside from the gusts of wind that could knock you down, the skiing itself wasn’t too bad. As an added bonus, what […]
First Day of 2013/14
I got out for a tour today with 20+ good friends from all over the world, which was a great way to start the new season. From the town of Usuhaia, it is about a ten minute taxi ride up to the Martial Glacier, which has a small (1 chairlift) ski area and lots of […]
Ushuaia & Antarctica
The 25 hours of flying and eating food out of plastic isn’t that much fun, but once you get here, there’s nothing like it in the world. Ushuaia Argentina reminds me of a fun magnifying glass – people start converging from all over the world, then, one flight at a time, start concentrating at the […]
Sucking the Bloody Marrow
Backcountry.com enters the mainstream media in a large, naked, gloriously documented way… This is Backcountry. Here, blood meets rock, sweat meets trail, and the well-worn path to a routine existence reaches its terminus. This is an invitation to feed your wanderlust, to rediscover the spark inside you and feel the strain of your muscles against […]
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