Fawn Pass

Fawn Pass = 8 friends = 22 miles = 5,861 calories burned = 13 hours of skiing

This is our story. . .

It's 6:30 am -- we talked ourselves out of getting out of our nice warm vehicles . . . Waiting for day break so we can begin. Yes, it's still snowing on us at this point.

First obstacle, to get over the Gallatin River. Our first attempt we went left . . . after 1/2 hour in the wrong direction and no natural snow bridges to cross we turned around and found the correct crossing - about 10 minutes from where we started. :)

There is nothing more beautiful than skin tracks, eery silence and a cold morning.

The day is beginning.... We have skied for about 2 hours at this point (i think).

Oh look - it's the rare and elusive "Snow Bob." Seen only in the deepest parts of the Northern Rockies Wilderness.

Up, up and up... about 2-3 hours from the half way point - Fawn Pass - this is the terrain where we got a bit higher and were on some steeper slopes with the very scary "whumping" sounds - that means the snow was quite unstable and settling beneath us. This often results in the snow layers "sliding" underneath you - i.e. an avalanche.

We were fine however. . .

Lookin good ladies!

This is Peter consulting "his unit" -- GPS people! Not the other kind. It was a handy tool when we needed a little comparison to our maps. The trail was marked most of the way, but as trails go, you often need to improvise and do a little re-routing.

Still Climbing. We are about 1.5 hours from Fawn Pass at this point. Just up this slope we stopped for "lunch" - 10 minutes of inhaling calories really.

FAWN PASS!!! 1:00pm - We had been skiing for 6 hours at this point . At the pass the wind was blowing pretty hard, it was a bit chilly and we realized we were almost 1/2 way with about 11 miles to go. You'd think that once you hit the pass (the highest point) that it would be "downhill" - not so much. Somehow it felt like we were going "up" for the next 7 hours.

yay! A fun downhill stretch with very deep powder. Those tiny cross country skis are REALLY tricky on a downhill (especially with not tracks). Matt got some pretty good air, Peter "hucked" a cliff, Wolf didn't fall at all, Jeannette went all out and went as fast as she could (head plant), Laurie "grannied it most of the way down," Brooke did a 1/2 sit 1/2 granny maneuver, Bob made actual tele turns (amazing) and Mike woosed out and took the girly way down.

Jeannette's after shot

We had dropped back down to a lower elevation at this point. We are following the low valley where Fawn Creek runs through. We are zig zagging back and forth over the creek for the next bizillion miles. We took turns breaking trail and stayed in the this happy little line for a few hours.


So, at this point, a LOT of time has gone by and everyone is really whooped. What you missed in pictures is alot more uphill, trees, snow, no animals, more open meadows, side slopes, and really pretty weather!

This is Bunsen Peak in Yellowstone National Park - and our token Marmot Model Mike.
Quite sure Mike was feeling the love at this point. . .

"Oh, we are almost there!" "Just through this meadow and around to the right . . .

2 Hours Later. . . 7:45 pm

We reach the Terraces at Mammoth. These are the cool thermal features you always see in Yellowstone postcards and books. We are a few, cold winding slopes away from our cars.

Uh, are we tired yet?
This picture just about sums up the way everyone felt after 13 hours, 6,000 calories, and 22 miles. There were a number of wobbly-legged crashes, falls and incidents that last 2 hours.

HAPPY!!! We are in the car, sunburned, blistered and drinking an ice cold beer....

The End.