Bear Trap 2023

Jim Quinley and I have returned-wind battered but not bruised-from our Bear Trap 2023 adventure. As always, the cabin never disappoints. Pictures are here: https://app.box.com/s/o6edhytizhxmamsazmocmxbybsyrj992

We departed on Sunday from the Manteca Hampton Inn & Suites about 8AM. The drive to Bear Valley was unencumbered from snow, though the snow berm had to be 10-12'. The snow blower created quite a luge run.

We parked below the resort Maintenance Station and hiked up to the equipment ramp. It was here we ran into two BV Ski Patrollers. Though they, too, were backcountry skiers and were sympathetic to our cause, they were quite adamant about our approach to the top of Bear Valley Ski Resort. No uphill skiing which is understandable. But... Even at the top, they warned we were not to ski DOWN the groomed slopes. We were to remain out-of-bounds the entire way. Which we tried our best to comply. We did drop into Bear Boogie briefly.

Once out-of-bounds again, we skinned up and headed to the top of Corral Hollow Hill. We passed the rib Gery and I have taken in the past, passed a landmark tree, then onto the large bowl just to the ENE of the cabin. We dropped in and crossed the meadow. From a distance, it was clear we were in for some deep shoveling. Arriving, the snow was at the top window-or about 13' of shoveling! Gery and I have shoveled when the snow was at the roof ridge.

It was at this point my detailed memory of the cabin failed us. If we could access the second story window egress, we would not have to dig. I was able to get one nail which retains the window frame open, but thought the second nail was on the opposite side. In fact, there are on the same side. I could have gained access to the cabin through the second story. A tough lesson.

After a bit over an hour, we have a shoulder-width ramp to the door. It was recalcitrant. Likely frozen from the intense storms and snows. It finally yielded. To find, to our expected dismay, no wood for fire. Typically, Gery and I head into Bear Trap early November to re-stock the cabin with supplies and we cut, split and stack about a cord and half of wood. We then have a toasty cabin as the temperatures drop or the weather is not pleasant. We can sit comfortably by the fire and have a true fireside chat. That was not going to happen this time as Gery and my schedules did not align with the stars. It was 23 deg F when we departed the Maintenance Station and the cabin was considerably cooler. And dark.

The cabin looked in decent repair. Yes, there was the typical residue from human stupidity (really, you can bring in a mattress, a generator, and other debris and leave it??). There even was a brand-new FRS radio. Always a weird assortment meets us.

We found some candles and used the Luci light to provide some form of ambiance. We would not even think about digging out the windows. And it was not just the depth. There was a huge chance of an enormous roof avalanche collapsing on us. Think dark-cave dark without the windows or other light.

Even if there was wood, it would have been meaningless. Look again at the cabin pictures. What do you NOT see? Hint: Smoke from a fire has to go somewhere. We could not have cleared the chimney if we had wanted to. It was too steep and too deep to approach.

We made dinner and settled in. Not much to do in an environment like this-but it was far superior to snow camping. The winds were beginning to make their presence known. As Jim slept downstairs, he was well insulated from the tumult hailing outside. I, sleeping upstairs, was not so protected. The winds increased their intensity throughout the night.

Waking in the cold morning, the sun provided a hint of warmth. Breakfast was upstairs to capture the light. The winds were whipping snow throughout the entire meadows-which sits below two protective ridges. As we ate and discussed the day's adventure, it was finally decided to stay off the ridges and just do a simple tour. This turned out to be prescient, as Bear Valley had an active wind closure all Monday.

We skinned up and headed to the area just East of the cabin. We found a nice low angle bowl and some tree-protected zones of powder. Jim, as always, was so graceful in his telemark turns. He will be put to the test, though, next month as he heads to the Selkirks!! Think 3,000' elevation gain (and for some, that is just the morning).

Arriving somewhat in the mid-afternoon, we basically hung out and relaxed. It is amazing how well the body can adjust to the cool temperatures-especially with good gear. We were comfortable if not cozy.

More winds followed that night-though it was hoped the sun would provide sufficient solar radiation to cool the localized wind patterns. Morning came with the increasing temperatures-but only slight decrease in winds. After an easy, relaxing breakfast, we skinned up and headed to the large bowl. Ascending was not too bad. We had a quick snack break near Corral Hollow Hill and then headed down to the out-of-bounds BV gate. Jim decided to de-skin, and i decided to keep my skins on. Even though it is. personal choice, I find keeping the skins on easier to deal with all the roly-poly terrain.

We headed up to the top of Bear Valley Ski Resort. Initially, it was not too bad. Until we got to the section next to mid-Bear Boogie. There, the snow changed conditions. Up till now, we had either reasonable powder, wind crust or maybe even a wind slab. But here?? Oh my!! Here, we ran into the dreaded Sierra Cement. Each step seemed to have an additional ten pounds. Snow sometimes stuck to the skins-making the problem even more pronounced. The snow was painfully wet. This slowed us and exhausted us. We arrived at about 8400' grateful to be almost done.

A quick traverse to the groomed run and we were finally able to have the wind to our backs. Another patroller, Camille, was pleasant and we had a fine chat. I asked about Matlty (the pro mountain manager-whom I had asked to support my avalanche class),but this was his day off.

A few more turns and we skidded across the icy Maintenace ramp. The local dogs kinda greeted us, threatened us and were wary of us. All this to say: Another grand adventure completed.

Best,

Keith 

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