Well after my friends funeral on saturday my and 3 friends decided to go to the avy cabin up on georgia pass. Since we were down south a bit, we decided to take the jefferson way in. I should've known right off the bat we should've turned around when the drifting over the road was 10' deep in countless places before we even got to the trail head. We got there a little late (after dark) and got the truck stuck immediately. So we unhooked the trailers and spent over an hour strapping the jeep to the half ton truck over and over again til we finally got out.
6 miles up the trail we started busting thru even bigger drifts on the sleds, and my buddy with his little fan cooled 550 RMK kept getting stuck. We should've turned around. I then realize the only gloves i have with me are my MX gloves, as i forgot my heavy gloves back at the truck. Well since the cabin is so full of bedding we didn't bring our sleeping bags with us this time up. So we loaded our packs with firewood and food for the first trip up. THANK GOD!!! the drifts were over 20' deep and was like sugar. slow down whatsoever and you sink. This new track i have likes to dig to china when it decides to get stuck. after about 4 hours of trying to make it to the top of georgia pass, we finally make it. Completely exhausted mind you. We had already dug out at least 10 times each just to get to the top of the pass. Things DID NOT GET ANY BETTER.
I tried to bust a trail down to the avy cabin thru these 20' tall drifts, and if you know busting drifts, it's very hard to stay on a straight path. You go thru one then once you land, whichever your weight is leaning to your sled goes that direction. Well i was sidehilling to the left, and i have no mountain bar on my sled and no lefty throttle. I could not stay on trail and ended up downhill from the trail, stuck in a dense grouping of trees with the snow seriously over my head when i came to a crashing stop. NO WAY OUT. the snow was so sugary i could not get back up from where i was at, and i was stuck with no option going down (at this time). I busted out my handy voile shovel/saw and started hacking away. At this time my friends were at the top of the pass, and out of 2 way radio range. I'm by myself. I finally get unstuck, remember i still only have my MX gloves, and now they're soaking wet and starting to freeze. 3 hours go by, and i make it back to my crew. They're all asleep on the snow, and their fire has gone out. I hurry and try to get them up, as i know what your chances are of living when you fall asleep on the snow. at this time i decide to go to the ski lift cabin down on middle fork.
All this diggin out and such was all around 11,000 to 12,000 feet in elevation, so every little movement took all the energy you had. that mixed with digging out a 600 lb. snowmobile that digs to china, and sugary snow, i felt like i could not move even a finger. The worst part of this is, the snow was blowing around and we could not find our tracks that we made when we came in. I'm seriously getting worried now.
We make it almost to the ski lift cabin still in the pitch black dark, and end up in a tree grouping that does not look familiar whatsoever. I know this area very well, and know there is a creek off to the right of us, and also know what it's like to end up upside down in a creek. NOT FUN. I made the decision to stop and do another fire. We were out on the mountainside with no shelter all night long. I now have frostbite setting in on my fingers and toes. At this time i did not have enough energy to even move an arm, and this is when i started getting scared. Not that i didn't know how to get out, but that i did not have enough energy to get out.
I decided we were going to slowly suffer there fighting the wind and our fire going out, or i had to use the last bit of eneergy i had to find the ski lift cabin (this cabin is right by SOB hill). Thank god i did this. we were within a half mile of the ski lift cabin. so i bust a trail thru all these drifts (now roughly 10' tall) and get a trail packed for the smaller sled. I got everybody awake and out of the cold blowing wind, and made it to the ski lift cabin by roughly 9 or 10 the next morning. We got some quick sleep, and once we felt we could make the travel back we got the hell out of there.
THE WORST NIGHT OF MY LIFE.
Go Prepared.
6 miles up the trail we started busting thru even bigger drifts on the sleds, and my buddy with his little fan cooled 550 RMK kept getting stuck. We should've turned around. I then realize the only gloves i have with me are my MX gloves, as i forgot my heavy gloves back at the truck. Well since the cabin is so full of bedding we didn't bring our sleeping bags with us this time up. So we loaded our packs with firewood and food for the first trip up. THANK GOD!!! the drifts were over 20' deep and was like sugar. slow down whatsoever and you sink. This new track i have likes to dig to china when it decides to get stuck. after about 4 hours of trying to make it to the top of georgia pass, we finally make it. Completely exhausted mind you. We had already dug out at least 10 times each just to get to the top of the pass. Things DID NOT GET ANY BETTER.
I tried to bust a trail down to the avy cabin thru these 20' tall drifts, and if you know busting drifts, it's very hard to stay on a straight path. You go thru one then once you land, whichever your weight is leaning to your sled goes that direction. Well i was sidehilling to the left, and i have no mountain bar on my sled and no lefty throttle. I could not stay on trail and ended up downhill from the trail, stuck in a dense grouping of trees with the snow seriously over my head when i came to a crashing stop. NO WAY OUT. the snow was so sugary i could not get back up from where i was at, and i was stuck with no option going down (at this time). I busted out my handy voile shovel/saw and started hacking away. At this time my friends were at the top of the pass, and out of 2 way radio range. I'm by myself. I finally get unstuck, remember i still only have my MX gloves, and now they're soaking wet and starting to freeze. 3 hours go by, and i make it back to my crew. They're all asleep on the snow, and their fire has gone out. I hurry and try to get them up, as i know what your chances are of living when you fall asleep on the snow. at this time i decide to go to the ski lift cabin down on middle fork.
All this diggin out and such was all around 11,000 to 12,000 feet in elevation, so every little movement took all the energy you had. that mixed with digging out a 600 lb. snowmobile that digs to china, and sugary snow, i felt like i could not move even a finger. The worst part of this is, the snow was blowing around and we could not find our tracks that we made when we came in. I'm seriously getting worried now.
We make it almost to the ski lift cabin still in the pitch black dark, and end up in a tree grouping that does not look familiar whatsoever. I know this area very well, and know there is a creek off to the right of us, and also know what it's like to end up upside down in a creek. NOT FUN. I made the decision to stop and do another fire. We were out on the mountainside with no shelter all night long. I now have frostbite setting in on my fingers and toes. At this time i did not have enough energy to even move an arm, and this is when i started getting scared. Not that i didn't know how to get out, but that i did not have enough energy to get out.
I decided we were going to slowly suffer there fighting the wind and our fire going out, or i had to use the last bit of eneergy i had to find the ski lift cabin (this cabin is right by SOB hill). Thank god i did this. we were within a half mile of the ski lift cabin. so i bust a trail thru all these drifts (now roughly 10' tall) and get a trail packed for the smaller sled. I got everybody awake and out of the cold blowing wind, and made it to the ski lift cabin by roughly 9 or 10 the next morning. We got some quick sleep, and once we felt we could make the travel back we got the hell out of there.
THE WORST NIGHT OF MY LIFE.
Go Prepared.
