It’s 2AM and I’m crammed into the back of a Subaru with another dude.
We’re here to climb Mount St Helens.
To say this trip has some unknowns is an understatement.
James and I just got touring setups at the beginning of this season.
I’ve never even seen this mountain before, let alone walked up it.
Yeah, there are definitely some variables at play here.
We were one sketchy, out of control crew in the best way possible.
Apart from some bad choices in the freeze-dried dinner department our semi-early start went off without a hitch.
Finally we hit snow and started skinning up a decidedly euro skin-track.
Some people make backcountry skiing look good.
I guess that’s why companies give those people their gear to wear.
I am not one of these people.
Flylow, you want to send me some Patagonia gear so I don’t ruin your rep?
Summits are always pretty cool and this one was no exception.
I am a little disappointed though.
Oh well, I guess you’ve got the option to’t win em all.
After hours of hiking and skinning it felt weird to finally lock those heals down and start arcing turns.
We were met with the best skiing I’ve had all year, soft slashes on wide open slopes.
To any onlookers we probably sounded like a kindergarten recess mixed up with some out of control ski bums.
Loud giggly skiing is the best kind of skiing.
The car is miles away but the stoke is still high.
We walked up a mountain and then skied down it and nothing too bad happened.
