Apr 8: Spring Storm

The season is changing. It's full spring one day, deep winter the next.
A big spring storm nailed the Wasatch, providing some terrific late season skiing.

Cait Morgan rips it through the trees.

Then it became so snowy that the camera could barely see anything. What it did see, however, was strange...
This guy has a tree for a head. (Nate Blouin)

And this guy only has a head.

Wet and gray, the camera stayed in the bag the rest of the day.

Apr 10: Red Rocks

Forecast called for heaps of snow in southern Utah.

We chased it. Drove 5 hours through rain wind graupel ice...

Saw one car spin off I-15 @ ~70mph. Crazy!

Got there late, took a sunset lap, and returned through this sparkly boulevard.

Camped at 10,500'. Headed out at 5am. Made a good plan, but skinned in a huge %#$*-ing circle and ended up back at our original skin track, right at sunrise. Made a left instead of a right. Whoops.

Then we looked across and saw our line.

3..2..1..Dropping!

Oh, crap, we're still 2 miles away?

Much discouraged, we started over. We still found some really cool terrain.

Matt scouts a line.

Looking in from the top.

Nate works through the (unskiable) pepper entrance, as Matt lowers the skis.

We also found some simpler terrain that matched my photo style.

We returned to the car when it started getting warm.

The aspens were amazing, but the snow was too soggy to ski them.

5 hr drive. 2 hr sunset ski. 4 hrs sleep. 8 hr tour. 4 hr drive home. A handful of interesting photos, and 1 helluva good time.

It was my 4th sunrise tour in 7 days. And we're going out tomorrow for another one. It's been a good spring.