But one area of backcountry skiing in the Wasatch that is overlooked by many is the amazing ski mountaineering opportunities that are so accessible. They get skied plenty, but there remain a lot of backcountry skiers that haven't even touched these lines. They don't know what they are missing.
Steep skiing has a rating scale that is pretty easy to understand upon first glance: the higher the number gets - the steeper, more technical, scarier, etc. the line is. S1 is like a green run at a ski resort. S2 is a blue run. S3 is black. S4 begins to have dangerous fall potential. You'd be lucky to live through an S5 fall. A painful death will occur upon a fall in S6 territory. S7 is "just plain ol' steep as hell" (A. Mclean). And S8 is supposedly the future of steep skiing. Allow me to show this scale in a more illustrative manner:
I would like to now show you my progression in steep skiing, but in order to do so I feel as though you need a physical marker that will give you a sense of time. My beard. Those of you who know me are aware that I have had a beard to some degree or another ever since I have been allowed to have one depending on my place of employment. Again, I think a graphic will help illustrate the different stages of my beard (all self-portraits):
The last several years have been very good to me as I have been able to ski some great lines with great snow conditions and some great skiers. Here is a little breakdown of how my skiing (and beard growing) has evolved over the years:
Over the next several blog posts, I plan to share with you some photos and experiences I have had as I have skied some of the classic lines here in the Wasatch this season. Stay tuned. Here's a little teaser photo for you (you can see a few more over at www.dbutcherphotography.com):
Brook Golling - Looking down the NW Couloir of the Pfeifferhorn
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