Ski Bum Poet

This is an offer that’s direct from Patagonia.com, and I quote “Till December 22 we are offering free 2-Day Shipping on any order over $100″…

(Patagonia promo featured in the ski gear deals category)

People who read Ski Bum Poet generally know all about Alta and Little Cottonwood Canyon. Yep. But some don’t. And for you folks, here’s a cool little write up on the area quoted direct from the Town of Alta website. It’s pretty much my dream to live up there full time one day…not own a place to only enjoy a few times a year. <--For those in that category.. That there's a shame.

The Town of Alta is a small mountain community located at the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon in the Wasatch-Cache National Forest.

Little Cottonwood Canyon is a west-facing break in the Wasatch mountain range which rises from an elevation of 5,000 feet above sea level at the mouth of the canyon to over 11,000 feet at the top of the watershed.

State Highway 210, a designated Scenic Byway, provides access to Alta from the Salt Lake Valley. The Town itself ranges in elevation from 7,500 ft to 9,500 ft. above sea level.

The Town harbors aspen, spruce, high alpine meadows and lakes, long-lasting snowfields and rocky tundra on granite cliffs. The vast display of over 170 varieties of wildflowers offer a colorful sight between July and September. There are over 40 varieties of birds in the canyon. Deer, moose, coyotes, and a rare mountain lion are the largest of the animals that roam the high country during the year.

An annual average of 500 inches snowfall provides for enthusiastic powder pigs and spectacular downhill skiing extending from November into May. Cross country skiers enjoy an even longer season. Hikers and bikers use the extensive network of trails, snowfields, mountaintops and over passes.

And she already has her Alta pass, so WATCH OUT!

When I first got to know my wife I was introduced to a world of rocks and ages that I never even considered up until that point. Danette studied Geology at USU and her passion for that science was contagious. I still always bug her with silly questions about Geologic time scales and rock formations. So anyways I was checking out the Alta Historical Society website earlier, and how freakin’ cool is this…

During the Wisconsin Glaciation the Wasatch Mountains trapped precipitation in such quantities in the winter that snow remained throughout the year and glaciers formed. These glaciers carved Alta’s distinctive terrain, broad U-shaped valleys, dramatic headwalls, hanging valleys, and steep gulleys. Today the Wasatch Mountains are the first major barrier to storms east of the Sierra Nevada Range. As Pacific storms cross the high desert of Nevada they grow colder and release their moisture as light, fluffy powder on the glacier-groomed slopes of Alta Ski Area, producing some of the finest skiing in the world. The geometry of Little Cottonwood Canyon with Alta at the mountain divide captures every possible flake of snow from passing storms and the “lake effect” of the Great Salt Lake adds to snow totals. The steep north-facing glacial headwalls of Mt. Baldy, Devils Castle and Sugarloaf Peak shade much of the area from sunshine preserving snow quality through much of the winter. All of these features combine to make the foundation of the totally unique Alta experience.

Read more from “Geology & Skiing Experience” and “A Geologist Describes 20 Favorite Runs at Alta” for cool tidbits like…

As you stand above the limestone outcrops at the top of Alf’s High Rustler, take a minute to imagine this place 16,000 years ago. The ice was 1500’ thick, almost up to your skis, two miles across, fifteen miles long and moving an average of about 10’/day.

My lab/shepherd mix Chip passed away today. I had him put down by our vet, as he was in his last hours and in obvious pain. It was a quick turn for the worst, but I’m glad it went down that way. Last Sunday with friends we went on a several mile hike at Dutch Hollow, and he was having a blast. Less than three days ago he was romping with Adah in the snow. He had really good doggy quality of life right up until the end, and for that I’m thankful on this Thanksgiving day…

Below are details, if you’re interested. I don’t blame you if you don’t want to read through all this, but it was helpful for me to put down….

About six weeks ago Chip started hacking and coughing quite a lot. It was a hard, unproductive cough and right away I thought that it sounded scary and bad. I waited a couple of weeks to see if it would clear up, but eventually decided to take him to the vet to see what they had to say. He had a couple of old dog ailments including a pretty bad gum infection, and a tapeworm.

The doggy doc explained nicely that although the infection needed antibiotics, and that he needed to be de-wormed, he did not think the cough was related. He suggested some blood work to take a look at a few things, and it wasn’t encouraging. Chipper had a high elevated white blood cell count, and a very high calcium reading. With that high calcium reading the doc said that it was likely that he had some sort of malignant tumor, after all he was an 11 year old dog (or even older, as far as I know).

Rather than spend a ton of money on x-rays and other “hunt for tumor” procedures, I decided to take him home with the antibiotics and hope for the best. And in fact, the pills did seem to work. We killed off that worm and cleared up his gum infection, and he was pretty much back to himself. Within a few days he had more energy, was eating better again, but still didn’t completely lose that hacking deep cough.

We went on doing what we’ve always done together. Long walks around Timberlakes, and in the woods. He was romping around in the mornings and playing with Adah, rolling in the snow and all around being a happy dog.

Two nights ago, however, something triggered a turn for the worst. And I spent the next 24 hours preparing to say goodbye. I just knew it was bad. Being rescued from an abusive rancher, he’s been my shadow for nearly a decade. I guess I was his security blanket, so to speak. I was really in tune with the old boy, and I could just see it in his eyes. He was dying…

In the early morning hours of Wednesday, November 25th he vomited all over himself in his bed. And when I walked out and turned on the light, he was still just laying there in it. I did get him to go out but he was very slow and weak and staggering about, so we went back in. He laid back down on his side, and when I got up in the morning he was in the same position and seemed to be laboring to breath.

Over the next 24 hours he kept getting worse. Breathing became harder and harder, and he had that “deer in the headlights” look in his eyes. It was a frightened look, one of pain, and it broke my heart. During dinner Wednesday night he tried to get up and ended up falling backwards during the process, slamming his head on a piece of furniture. I really didn’t think he was going to make it through the night, but he did…just barely.

At first light Thanksgiving morning 2009 I dialed the doc on call, and had him meet me at the clinic at 7am. While looking him over the doc actually found a mass just under the base of his tail bone, which he said he was 99% sure was a tumor located pretty close to his hind lymph node. The doc said the cancer had likely spread to the lymph node and metastasized before the mass was even visible. And that Chip was probably living with pain and distress from the cancer for 6 months or longer, not that he ever showed it.

It was a quick and painless end for my buddy. When it was all over, he laid there still, and I closed his eyes. He looked just like a dog that had a beautiful and content life. R.I.P boy…

Actually, it’s all my fault. I crashed her sled. But don’t worry no how because she was laughing just after D shut off the camera. After all, she has to be able to teach her brother how to be rough and tough. In Ellie’s two.4 years she’s skied from Germ pass at Alta, sledded (to mean, “shredded”) other extreme lines and sessioned dirt jumps. All in a toddler’s days work

BTW, Ellie has an Alta ski pass this season. So maybe we’ll get some more crash footage archived here

When Patagonia has the deals, I’m in the know. And now you’re in the know as well. I like to feature deals direct from these guys. The last free shipping offer was in September. At any rate, from now through Dec 14th free ground shipping available on any order of $100 or more.

Note these two helpful links, if you’re going to holiday shop direct from Patagonia:

• Holiday Favorites Collection
• Web Specials Page

Official word just came down via Alta.com. Lifts will be running Wednesday morning, so gear up hippies!

With the nice 10” weekend storm and the good snowmaking weather we will be ready to open this Wednesday at 9:15.

We will open with our Collins detachable quad, offering top (10,400′) to bottom (8,530′) intermediate and expert skiing, and our Sunnyside detachable triple, opening up nice beginner and intermediate skiing. Other lifts will open as conditions allow.

The mountain is closed to uphill traffic. The summer road, Grizzly Gulch, and Supreme will remain accessible.

Can’t resist highlighting a comment from this news article. Feel free to belittle this post. I expect it’s coming. Apparently since I support this health reform I’m a wimpy “Dem” or “Lib”. People of the opposition throw those abbreviated terms around like they’re suppose to be an insult…

Pussa Singh: November 20th, 2009 4:44 pm ET
I am a wealthy Arab. I invest heavly with American health insurance companies. This DEM proposal on health care insurance will undermine my portfolio in that the Health insurance companies will not make sizable profits and pay me the will deserved dividents that I deserve. I ask all Americans to rise up and stop this insane proposal dead in its tracks.

This guy wants more money from a corrupt system! Nice. To think the GOP is threatening to filibuster a Senate debate on this issue is comical. Wasn’t it the GOP who wanted to outlaw the filibuster when the Democrats took control in 2006? How can any Senator not justify a debate on this issue?

So we installed Wordpress at AltaCam recently, but it’s not linked up from the site yet. I found the Panorama Theme by Themocracy from Underground Parent…and I think it’s damn sweet. I just customized the header graphic that came with the theme by using an array of ski photo contest winners over the last few years. Let me know what you think! Hint hint, I might just update Ski Bum Poet with this theme soon as well. Jah knows it’s over due.

Please check out The Daily POW and let me know what you think…