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Sawtooth Ski-Tours

Original Post
Petsfed 00 · · Snohomish, WA · Joined Mar 2002 · Points: 989

I've got nothing better to do the weekend of Valentines Day, so I think I'll see how the snow near Ketchum feels under my skis. I am looking for a low-difficulty overnight/2-night skitour.
I'm also looking for a partner for such a trip. I am a mediocre-to-lousy downhill skier, but I can skin the flats with gusto. I've got some winter camping experience, but wouldn't describe myself as current. I'm out of practice and looking to shake the rust off on something more interesting than the local ski-hill, but not so committing that I'll end up dead. What I do have is some familiarity with continental snow-pack, but only insofar as what I experienced in SE Wyoming and northern Colorado. I'd really like to learn how Idaho's transition snowpack behaves, and a day touring, digging pits, and playing snow-scientist with somebody who knows the patterns would be super useful.

Any would-be partners or mentors? Any advice other than the super-taco/mountainproject/rockclimbing.com adage "yer gunna die!"? This is cross-posted at CascadeClimbers, so you can tie the user-names together, if you like.

Dave Bingham · · Hailey, ID · Joined Feb 2007 · Points: 72

Brian,
I'd recommend getting conditioned and familiar with gear, snow, backcountry travel by getting out on a bunch of day trips first.Have fun!

Petsfed 00 · · Snohomish, WA · Joined Mar 2002 · Points: 989

Thank you for that Dave.

Let me rephrase, as apparently I was unclear.

I live in Boise. I have a 3 day weekend. I am unwilling to drive 2-3 hours each way, 3 days in a row, just to get to some good snow. Therefore, I am looking for people who are willing to sleep in a tent in a Forest Service Campground in Sun Valley, and daytrip from there.

Once upon a time, I taught people how to camp in the snow, so I'm not a novice, but I haven't practiced those skills in about 10 years. Therefore, something low-commitment camping-wise would be ideal. Likewise, I haven't been on my tele rig in about a year because the last two seasons of snow in the Pacific Northwest have sucked; my nascent telemark ascendance coming out of Wyoming was cut short when I moved to Oregon.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

Northern Utah & Idaho
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