On Saturday, I decided to kick off the season with a quality line. Kristian and I headed up to Brighton with our objective being "The Seagull" on Tuscarora. Tuscarora basically sits between Brighton and Alta in the backcountry kind of bridging Big and Little Cotttonwood Canyons. The Seagull is a chute that runs from the peak down toward Brighton. In the week prior to this adventure we'd had plenty of good snow in the mountains. With warm temperatures in the forecast we knew that good conditions would not last.
Because of the Salt Lake City Marathon we got a later than hoped start on the hill. Wet slides were a definite consideration with the rising temperatures. But, with good cloud cover, things were kind of being held in check. We rode up Millicent at Brighton and hiked up to the peak then rode to the saddle between Mt. Millicent and Mt. Wolverine. Then we switched our splitboards to ski mode, traversing around the Mt. Wolverine bowl and up to the top of Tuscarora. With no signs of natural wet avalanches and temperatures still hovering in what we felt to be the exceptable range, we converted back to board mode and dropped in. We were not disappointed. The snow proved creamy and carvable. I would describe conditions as being "Highly Rippable". Afterwards we crusied down to the Bikini Bash at Brighton for ice cold Natty Lights and babes in bikinis. Here are some photos from a great day.
Kristian switching to ski mode with Tuscarora in the background
Kristian kicks out his first turn
Pausing about halfway down while we let some sluffage pour down the hill.
Edge of the world.
Creamy turns.
Surfing the amber waves of mank. April 18, 2009
The last serious turns of 2008/2009 season.
Afterwards we hit up the Bikini Bash at Brighton.
