Freshies

Sitting at home looking at the several inches of snow outside the window, I wondered skeptically if the snow reports could really be accurate. And even so, would the first dump of the season be enough to avoid any core shots or traumatic injury to my skis? Dreaming about the pros and cons I woke up comfortable with my decision from the night before but as the morning progressed, the clouds dissipated revealing a much whiter mountain range than I had remembered.

Heading out towards the pass, Ryan and I both silently imagined what lay ahead of us. Seeing a couple of flashing signs that a chain law was in effect was unnerving but figured we wouldn't worry until the pavement got wet and slushy. And then the pavement got wet and slushy... but only for a piece of the road that didn't get the morning sun. After a quick scare, we were practically at the top and ready to park and gear up.

Having only driven 25 minutes, it was odd to already be gearing up. Back east, car rides up north to ski never lasted less than 2 hours and sometimes as much as 6. Once Ryan and I had exchanged several pounds and a high five all before touching snow, we took the advice a local had given us and started climbing. It wasn't long before I had to indulge just a little bit.

The great thing about Wyoming is that you can pretty much do what you want, where you want, and probably whenever you want. Living among the best terrain in the U.S. it's amazing that any mountain I look at I can hike up and ride down as I please. Staring at Glory Peak, which we hiked four days ago, we decided to take a less grueling route.

At the peak of our hike we were treated to a wintry October view of Jackson and the mountains.

And the backcountry scene out here is ridiculous. By noon the bowl behind us had been mostly tracked out.

My first turns confirmed that there was a lot of powder and that I was going to get a solid work out. Being in this fantasy world, the smiles were hard to wipe off. We may not have gotten above 9,580' where 41" were recorded falling in 48 hours (presumably more atop Glory Peak at 10,086'), but at somewhere slightly below that, we enjoyed untouched turn after turn of the light stuff. Making turns in thigh high powder in October still has me giddy eight hours later. Thank you La Niña.

Dick Cheney wannabes

Trying to fit in more with the western scene here (Wy. license, plates, residence, p.o. box, library card, etc.), Ryan purchased that shotgun he had been talking about since day one.

In talking with the pawn shop owner, Ryan got directions out of town to the end of Gros Ventre Rd. through Kelly and into the National Forest. This was our spot for the day practicing in the canyon under the falling snow. If you look closely you can see the orange pigeon. And of course, we took all of the safety precautions necessary ranging from rules and practice to ear plugs.

Shooting in this canyon from this natural perch with all the snow coming down made my national sense of pride glow, for this is what people live for in "'Merica". The blasting echo off the canyon walls definitely encouraged my pride. Here's Dave mid-pump.

Driving back past a huge herd of bison in a gas guzzling pick-up packing a monster lip to dine on a big Wyoming steak and PBRs would've been the only way to outdo our pride parade in the park but I was just as content taking the Camry back home and making some killer lasagna. But before that, I had to check out the migrating herd.

Dear Diary: First Flakes Flying

October 25, 2010 - There's nothing like the build up for the upcoming winter season: new ski movies, scoping the new gear that you probably don't need/can't afford, checking the weather, memories of lines you charged and those you can't wait to dominate... All that anticipation hits me like a ton of bricks even before the first flakes of the season. Today I'm one step closer to what we're all waiting for; Three wet inches isn't much but it only serves to excite the passion for snow I suppress for what seems like most of the year.

That passion is something that didn't fully take a hold of me until four years ago. In the last four years I have skied the majority of the "big" mountains of the east. With fond frigid memories of Jay Peak's tree runs,

ripping down Tuckerman's in May,

3' of fresh in the secret stashes of Loon,

4' of pow at Sugarbush, and over 5' of ultra dumps above timberline on the snowfields at Sugarloaf,

I am uncontrollably excited for my first season here in Jackson. That excitement is only fueled harder by the fact that I've never set a ski outside of the east. I quit my job, put my relationship on hold, and said goodbye to my friends and family in hopes of having an unforgettable winter. Thankfully this wait will be short lived as in Jackson the skiing starts in November and doesn't end until early summer. We are actually going to scope the ski scene at The Pass later today as there's 30" up around 9,500 ft. (7,808 ft. Snowking behind our house this morning)

Being in the midst of the Grand Teton National Park and surrounding mountains, the search for long, steep terrain is already over. It's just time to watch the white stuff pile up; winter is almost upon us.

Glory Peak - 10,086'

With the looming storm closing in quickly we decided Saturday that we had to get a hike in while the weather was still good (not frigid, not wet). Driving up to the pass that heads into Idaho the elevation is already over 8 thousand feet. We arrived at the parking area to see this welcome sign. So Wyoming.

Starting up the trail head we passed by several warning signs. The first one was a memorial of empty warhead shells with peoples names and dates on it. It was a sobering reminder of the reality here. And a little further up, we saw this sign well up a tree. I guess the snow piles up quickly here. And the warheads don't always explode. Nice.

The hike itself is relatively short but the altitude and my poor lungs were taking a beating. I'm not used to exercising around 10 thousand feet. That's going to have to change. Although it wasn't a blue bird day, we were still treated to some standard views.

In a valley with mountains surrounding the town, it was obvious to see how Jackson Hole got its name. This picture below shows a small piece of Glory Bowl and only one of maybe 7 oddly placed tubes. We learned that these large tubes are filled with propane and ignited after large storms. The result is a shock wave that travels down the bowl as a means of preventing catastrophic avalanches. Pretty ingenious.

Once at the top, we were treated to some crazy views and met up with a local and his pup, Luna. She's a gorgeous Husky/Malamute mix. He dropped some knowledge on us and we were happy to have made a new friend who does the avalanche report 3 days a week. The ravine which looks strangely familiar to east coasters is actually named Little Tuckerman Ravine. This will be awesome in the spring when it's safe and warm.

Due to the impending snowstorm headed in and the snow flakes flying up top we didn't dilly or dally too much on the summit. After a quick hang sesh in the yurt we decided we should get down.

The hike down was so much easier on the lungs but a little tougher on the psyche. I hadn't realized how steep it was coming up, but going down you realize that one little trip could easily send you 20 feet. Thankfully we all avoided that. Half way down Kyle wanted to get Luna howling, so we all chimed in and helped a bro out. We are now all dying to get a dog (one that howls or not), even if from the animal shelter just for a week or two.

The life that the select few lead

For more than a week now Ryan and I have been working through the temp. agency at a couple of properties around the Jackson Hole Golf Course. Our pseudo boss, Mike, makes a living out of taking care of these three properties that border each other. In total, he cares for over 100 acres of property. The consistent work through this guy has been great. We were originally told that this job would last only 2 days, so the fact that we've been raking, clearing fallen branches, and pruning all spruce, cottonwood, and willows for days now is just fine by me. In addition to Mike's laid back approach and easy going attitude we have enjoyed working here for mainly 3 reasons (other than a steady pay check).

1. We spend all day driving around in the Polaris Ranger.

Sitting shotgun in any vehicle with Ryan tests my nerves so I've done the majority of the driving. To his credit, we haven't gotten in any accidents, yet. As you can see, this Ranger is no joke. We've taken this through all terrain and made it out. We haven't tested its floating capabilities but it's dominated everything else we've driven over. And what would be the fun if I didn't Tokyo Drift this thing every now and again on the gravel roads.

2. The views and scale of the properties are unmatched by anything I've seen in Jackson, and much of the U.S.

The first 3 pictures are of the "guest house". It's basically a mini mansion. The last two pictures are of the main house and the view it has from its massive windows facing the Tetons and the all stone large patio out back. In addition to the houses there are a few rocky streams that empty out into the pond with a little island that Ryan and I had to canoe out to and do some work out there. One of us almost fell in... not me.

According to the care taker, Mike (who Ryan and I have decided probably makes six figures), the owner bought the 40 acre property for many millions. That was just for the land. He then spent more to build the two houses out of massive tree logs, have hundreds of spruces and willows planted with irrigation tubes coiled around the bases of each, and brought in massive boulders from Idaho to have the Snake River altered to flow better and carry "natural" streams through out people's properties in the area. As with many properties in the area, this property is used for about a week or two our of the year. The rest of the time it gets taken care of by Mike.

The interiors of both houses are impeccable; there is exposed wood everywhere and no detail has been overlooked (heated garage floors year round, built in screen windows that retract and disappear when the windows are shut, massive glass windows with unobstructed views of Jackson Hole Ski Resort and The Grand Teton National Park... the list could go on forever).

3. Mike's dogs Dewy and Dora and all the wildlife.

Despite never having owned a pet (Goldfish and hermit crabs the exception), I've always been a big dog person. German Shepherds have always topped the short list of favorite dogs thanks to my cousin Isaac's dogs and Gunner, Ryan's albino, when I was a kid. Huskies and Labs trail close behind. After having gotten to know these two dogs (they now lose it when we pull up at 9 am), I'm definitely open to some day having a mid size dog. Dewy, the black and white one, is the old wise sage. She's a 6 year old Australian Shepherd. Dora, the young, energetic juvenile, is a 2 year old orange mutt with some coyote in her that's a little skittish; she came from a shelter. Both dogs love playing go fetch and rolling over for a good belly rub. As much as this sounds like an ad from the local town's pet shelter, Mike isn't looking to let anyone borrow them. Lucky for us, Kyle seems to have a friend that needs someone to take care of her dog while she's away for a week or two. We'll see.

This is a typical shot from the scene on the way to work every morning. Jackson Hole Ski Resort is in the background.

These days, there is a road-side electronic sign that reads, "Driver alert. Moose Crossing nxt 2 miles. Use Caution. So one morning we drove to work and saw 4 moose on the way and...

another 2 moose right next to us while we were working at 1245 Bugling Elk Trail.

We were probably 25 feet away from the big gal. Her 7 foot frame was pretty impressive to see so close. And her youngster was probably almost about my height. I think we got close enough to them. I hear they charge and can kill with their kicks especially when with a baby. Good to know that now.

This job will end very soon and Ryan and I will go back to temping at the agency whenever there's work. As for me I landed a ski valet job (helping with the rentals) at the Four Seasons Hotel. Kyle also got the job so it looks like we have some planned q.t. in the future. Work starts Nov. 17 so less than a month and winter season is right around the corner!

Iron Top Chef: Jackson

Since the days when the idea of this trip out west to Jackson was but a foggy memory from the night before, we knew that we were coming for one reason: to ski the best North America has to offer (Valdez, Alaska - out of my league, price range). We knew we would road trip and we knew that we would pack light; I still can't believe we packed everything we both needed in the Camry (over 192k miles and counting). But most of all we knew that penny pinching would have to become less an ironic statement and more a simple way of being. Nowhere else in our spending is this more prevalent than in our Albertson's receipts.

By no means is Albertson's the cheap place to buy, but what Ryan and I talked so much about before ever touching foot in Wyoming was that we wanted to cook. And it turned from being a matter of urgency due to our economic situation into a matter of excitement and inquiry into what was possible, on the cheap. Were it not for Ryan's Crock-Pot, this soliloquy would not be possible.

Since arriving at our new home, we have rarely eaten out and tried to cook and fend for ourselves relying less on paying someone to package a meal for us. We have had now 2 all roommate supermarket shopping experiences and have done well to buy inexpensive and create meals inexpensively. As much as Dave, Kyle, and I have done in the kitchen, Ryan has done wonders for this apartments' collective palate.

His first official dabble with chef-hood began with an assortment of beans, tomato, chopped meat, vegetables, herbs, and spices. To say it was the best chili I have had would be a lie. But considering who the chef was, I was totally blown out of the water by Ryan's newfound skills. Plus, can you really screw up chili? His second official meal was beer chicken.

After soaking it for hours in a salty, herb filled water solution, Ryan worked his magic with the chicken while veggies were grilled on the deck. It was one of the better chicken experiences I'd had in more than recent memory*.

*My selective memory is astoundingly awful. This chicken was not.

On several occasions he has busted out the scrambled eggs which (sorry mom) Ryan can actually compete with my mom's scrambled eggs. Speaking as someone who can't make legit scrambled eggs and has feasted on his mom's delicacies for years, I wont dare to compare those two again.

And here are Ryan's recently made peanut butter and chocolate chip cookies: awesome.

Trying to maintain a cheap and inexpensive palate, we realized that although tremendously healthy for you, granola and yogurt aren't going to cut it financially for us. At $5 a bag for 12 oz., Bear Naked Granola is absolutely tasty, but unappealing to the average ski bum wallet. Our solution was to make our own granola. And Ryan decided he was going to spearhead that project.

I wish I had some information on how healthy/detrimental to my health Ryan's granola is because it came out awesome. I don't even know all that went in it (tons of peanut butter) but I do know he spent a lot of time preparing the granola for the house to share, on the cheap. And enough was made to fill a huge tupperware bin. It's just about time to bake another one up. Now, if only we could figure out how to make yogurt on the cheap.

Lost Creek Ranch

Day two at the LC Ranch was exciting (I know somewhere both Folg and Sean have Lauren Conrad on the brain). Even though the guy assigning us work referred to our all day task as "prison work", we weren't upset considering we had to stare at this all day. Talk about vanishing point.

Our task was to put in snow poles down the 2 mile long gravel driveway in preparation for the upcoming winter season. Apparently due to how open the land is, they get drifts 10'-15' high and can only access the ranch via snowmobile.

Our lunch break spot wasn't bad either.

After our job was done we were told by our pseudo boss that the big boss GM of the ranch wanted him to tell us that we have work in the Spring if we want it. He was "very impressed with the both of you. He said he noticed how hard you guys work and likes your attitude". Although that's a little way away, it's nice to build long term relationships with work being the extent of the hooking up. ...what a difference a few hours makes.

Oh and day 2 supplied us with more free fire wood to bring home and chop. So Ryan and I woke up and did some more chopping today. Note: Jumping and swinging an ax is not recommended.

Our days at the ranch are over now, but our paths may meet again. You never know when we'll want to pull a wake and chop again. Apparently we have another whole cord of wood coming our way courtesy of a roommates hookup, so that will be a glorious day.

How much wood would a woodchuck chuck

This week Ryan and I have been working through a temp. agency doing "construction and landscaping", or so the agency told us. We had the miserable task of trying to unearth bushes from in front of a hotel in Jackson. Anyone that's been out here can attest to how hard and miserable the soil is at the end of the summer that trying to put anything in it except a pickaxe or an explosive is borderline impossible. We had neither pick-axe nor explosives, but ended up using some thick elbow grease and an F-250 to pull a few out. The next part of our day wasn't exactly construction or landscaping - we helped some nice, old, rich Texan move him and his wife into a house over the pass in Victor, Idaho. Not only do I know he's rich because he builds resorts around the country, but more importantly all of his crap was so heavy (marble everything, 9x7 mirror with gaudy frame, 2 piece china hutch, mostly glass, and an heirloom of the family - a 16' solid, heavy wooden structure that used to house speakers and a record player which didn't break down which of course had to go on the 2nd floor). So I can now check Idaho off of my list.

Today was much nicer. We hung out with Dish (Tim is his official name) who is conveniently the dish washer that was promoted to grounds keeper at The Lost Creek Ranch & Spa about 30 minutes north of Jackson. With spectacular views of the Grand Teton from just about anywhere out there, it's no wonder there's a lame, small contemporary house with a view next to the property that is mostly glass going for $6.7 milliion. We creeped it and it was impressive, but not that impressive. Anyway.

The important part of today is that in addition to conditioning ourselves to the altitude here (6,200'+) and making some cash, we got tons of free wood. I inquired if they had any wood they wanted to get rid of and the boss-man said most def. We ended up bringing back enough to fill the back of the F-250 and then split most of it with the newest member of our household, Ax. Here's what Ax brings to the table these days here at 536 No Name Alley: Carnage!

Even though one of the last things I need is more chest hair, I was glad to be able to act so manly and chop my own wood after work today with some fellow bros. With the cold starting to settle in (dipping into the upper 20s at night) and our budgets not caring for heat, our wood stove is going to get plenty of use this winter. And I think we're going to like it here.

Yellowstone: not bad, Mother Earth, not bad

Wanting to take advantage of the 7 day pass that we already had, we decided to go to Yellowstone and see what it had to offer us this past Friday. On the way out, we got the view we all missed on our ride in to Jackson a week ago (2 weeks for our roommates) as it was too dark to see The Grand and its sidekicks. Being so close to mountains like this is still taking some getting used to.

Once in Yellowstone, it would still be a little while before we got to the impressive sights. It was hard to resist stopping for every little thing that grabbed our attention, but we did our best. This is the Yellowstone River. Being late summer, it was rather tame, but I can only imagine its fury early spring when the up to 50 feet of snow starts to melt and work its way out.

For my amusement, thankfully Ryan got to get his feet wet when he accidentally threw the frisbee into the frigid river. It couldn't have been much over 40 degrees. He got there just in the nick of time.

On our road trip out here through The Badlands, Ryan and I were lucky enough to see several herds of bison and literally cross paths with many of them as well. In Yellowstone, our luck continued.

Our first official pit stop came at The Dragon's Mouth Spring.

Seeing mud pots, geysers, and thermal/hot springs on BBC's 3 part series - Yellowstone is one thing, but seeing all this in person made me feel like a kid on Christmas morning running from one thing to the next. Unlike Christmas morning, the putrid smell of sulfur was blasting away at our senses, making it difficult to get too close to some of the springs.

Regardless, we got as close as we could trying to avoid this kid's mistake (booty shorts and tube socks in a National Park).

It amazed me how comfortable the bison were with their proximity to the thermal springs. But being that this is their way of survival in the frigid winters where it routinely hovers around zero degrees during the day and plummets down to a record low of -66 F (2/9/1933) at night, I would guess they are used to it.

Continuing on our journey through Yellowstone, we finally arrived at Uncle Tom's trail head just before Canyon Country. Our search for his cabin ended in disappointment, but we were able to see the Lower Falls, which at 308 feet, are almost twice as high as Niagara Falls.

On our way to THE geyser, Old Faithful, we hit a traffic jam. Even with a cop flagrantly waving me on and yelling at me to "Keep driving!" past the bison in the middle of the road, I opted to yield to the two beasts in our 2,910 pound Camry. According to the Sooth Sayer of all Truths, Wikipedia states that "Bison can reach up to 6 feet 6 inches (2 m) tall, 10 feet (3 m) long, and weigh 900 to 2,200 pounds (410 to 1,000 kg)"... with the largest recorded at 2,500 pounds! They are the largest land animal in North America.

Old Faithful was impressive although I think it should look into some Viagra, as it only lasted about a minute. Nonetheless, it was amazing to know that Old Faithful is more regular than a house full of guys eating chili (thanks to Ryan's crockpot) and granola (thanks to Ryan's baking skills) several days a week. I took a video of it which I wont post, as it's a little boring, but it was cool to stick our hands in the warm, sulfur smelling water that rushed to us after from the mouth of the geyser.

All in all, not a bad day. On the ride home, for which it was total darkness, we were startled by a massive male elk in the middle of the road. Sitting shotgun, I was glad we didn't test the Camry's durability. Next time I think we should probably get on the road before 12:30 in the afternoon, but being so close to Yellowstone National Park, it wasn't like it was a one and done. I'll be back there for sure in the spring to check on all of our wildlife brethren and hopefully catch more glimpses of a bald eagle, a coyote, elk, bison, and maybe glimpses of wolves and bears.