Like some nice touring pants, his have suspenders.
Buttons on the cuffs to keep the outer flap from going the wrong way in a breeze.
From there, however, the similarities sort of stop.
Hence the full length side zips, usually wide open.
Its June or July opening heralds fresh car access to above 6000ft.
We both putzed around for a while gathering up gear in town.
Two laps of the campground yielded nothing we thought were fellow skiers.
Cy was out on his ninth day touring, ever.
That’s including Mt.
St. Helens, Mt.
Then we dropped in again.
Maybe they’ve driven from Iowa, or Texas.
“Where are you going skiing?”
“So, are you going skiing?”
I have to give the pants that credit.
They’d gotten there late, and had to set up camp further back.
They planned an early start so that Dave could get back south.
Cy and I initially planned to follow later, then gave up on sleeping in to join them.
5am in the parking lot was the agreed time.
I made some dinner after our drive back to camp, and passed out for a quick six hours.
5am saw us atop the pass, getting ready as Dave and Cody pulled in.
A light coat of fresh snow decorated the upper elevations of the peaks.
We had to get wet; there’s no bridge.
Some flats lead around the mountain.
After a rest, we were off again.
Photo by Dave Glueckert of getoutridehard.com
Cody, Dave, Cy right to left.
This line, though.
It got narrow, twisty in the chokes, and was filled with deep runnels.
It was legitimately steep.
Up front, I got excited.
Going into familiar places with people who haven’t ever been there brings a freshness of perspective.
As a group, we hung out for a few minutes and talked strategy.
Keeping it under control.
Slow, cautious turns.
Falling wasn’t an option, and might likely pinball into someone else further down.
I skied first, and found it steep, committing, and really fun.
I ducked into a safe spot.
Cody made his way, axe in hand.
Things got wilder from there.
High fives all around.
Making it back to the lake was easy, and the crossing seemed warmer with the sun up.
Dave had to bail, and Cody went with him.
Cy napped on, and I went back out for another lap.
After I got back, we headed back down to camp.
Cy’s feet were in bad shape from the past couple of days.
Our plan was to ski over, then switch to shoes and climb Mt.
Reynolds without our gear.
Cy near the top:
Two stoked dudes, impeccably attired.
I didn’t realize that Cy is that much taller than me.
That’s no ordinary tolerance for suffering.
Here’s to more wintery adventures.
Read Cy’s account of it all over on Blister:http://blistergearreview.com/features/trip-reports/trip-report-glacier-national-park
