Spring doesn't always show up on time at 9,000 feet.

Ahh spring, you gotta love it … and we do!  Truth be told spring is actually a great time of year in Crested Butte.  Temps start rising, snow starts melting and everyone has SPRING FEVER!

Essentially the fence between winter and summer, spring is the only season where you can partake in just about any activity your heart desires.  Want to stick with bc skiing or transition into spring ski mountaineering?  No problem, the big lines you’ve been wistfully longing for all winter are finally yours for the taking thanks to the stable spring snow-pack.  Want to break the bike out of the garage and go for a spin? You betcha, the sweet single track at Hartman Rocks is ready to go.  Craving a paddling fix or a fishing session?  The spring melt-off is working it’s way into the Taylor and Gunnison rivers all the way down to Blue Mesa Reservoir.  Looking to work those atrophied arm muscles with some early season rock climbing?  Well, get after it then cause the sun-warmed rock walls of Taylor Canyon and the Black Canyon are waiting for you.

Earning spring season turns, ski mountaineering-style, in the Crested Butte backcountry.

Early season bike condtioning at Hartman Rocks.

Sun warmed walls of the Black Canyon.

At Crested Butte Mountain Guides we’ve got some awesome camps & clinics lined up for the spring season.  If ski mountaineering is your fancy you can choose from 4 different spring courses; April 2 – 6 and April 8 – 12 in the Chugach Mountains of Valdez, Alaska or April 18 – 21 and April 25 – 28 in our very own backyard, the Elk Mountains of Crested Butte, CO.  A skills intensive ski mountaineering course with CBMG is the very best way to take your skiing to the next level!

Ski mountaineering, Thompson Pass, Chugach Mountain Range, AK.

Ski mountaineering in the Elk Mountains, Crested Butte, CO.

If climbing is more your scene then join CBMG for desert rock climbing this spring.    The infamous towers of the Utah desert are a favorite among CBMG guides and we know the best of the best that Utah has to offer.  If you’re up for a little longer drive join us in Red Rocks, NV for some sweet climbing … and just outside of Las Vegas, who would have thought?!

Doesn't just looking at this make you feel warmer?

With spring comes a whole host of fun and quintessentially Crested Butte events.  It seems this time of year there’s an event just about every weekend!  The Red Lady Ball, which helps raise awareness and money for the on going Save Red Lady Campaign, was this past weekend, Mar 16.  This Sunday, Mar 24, we’re all looking forward to the 38th annual Al Johnson Telemark Race; a fundraiser for everyone’s favorite non-profit, the Crested Butte Avalanche Center. The following weekend, Mar 29, The Elk Mountain Grand Traverse  gets underway as teams battle it out in a ski race from Crested Butte to Aspen. Mar 31 brings the 22nd annual Extreme Free-skiing competition to town.  This is a 4-star qualifier stop on the Subaru Free-skiing Tour.  The resort closes on April 7, which as anyone knows is a party not to be missed.  Last but not least is a new event coming to Crested Butte, the Crested Butte Pole Pedal Paddle (CB3P), Apr 28.  The CB3P is a multi-sport race (ski leg, bike leg, kayak leg) that will span the length of Gunnison Valley, starting in Mt. Crested Butte and finishing in Gunnison.  Wow.

The best part about the events we mentioned above?  Well, in true Crested Butte fashion you can expect to see competitors and spectators alike in full-on costume for 4 of the 6 events (can you guess which ones?).  What can we say, Crested Buttians LOVE their costumes!

CB locals at the Al Johnson Tele Race, one of the many Crested Butte spring events that require costumes.

We hope you’ll join us this spring to partake in all the outdoor recreation fun that Crested Butte has to offer.  If you won’t be joining us for an adventure this spring we’ll look forward to seeing you at any number of the unique Crested Butte events … we’ll be in the ones dressed in tutus ; )

-CBMG Staff

Quintessential Colorado Backcountry....bluebird sunny skies, and cold dry powder

It’s no secret that the West, and especially Colorado, are again having another dry winter. In fact, until recently our overall snowfall totals were unbelievably less then even last year. However…..despite the lack of snow, the backcountry skiing & riding has actually been really darn good. Like really good. Worlds better then last year, even if overall snowfall is basically the same.

Slashing backcountry powder under the majestic shadow of Mt Crested Butte

Maybe it has been the consistent nature of the small storms and occasional winds dropping enough new snow in the backcountry to add a ‘refresh’ every couple of days, that has made it so good. Maybe, the few big, and uncharacteristically wet storms we’ve had have made the snow stick and form more of a solid base. Crested Butte Mountain Resort has most all of it’s Extreme Limits terrain open. Last year at this time it had none. I guess statistics really don’t mean much, especially when it comes to measuring the quality of powder skiing it seems.

Earning some turns amongst the solitude of the aspen trees

February has been a very, very busy month for Crested Butte Mountain Guides. Most all of our staff has been working constantly guiding a mix of Backcountry Ski & Splitboard Tours; Ice Climbing; Hut Trips; and teaching AIARE Avalanche Courses. However, it has been the backcountry tours that have kept us the busiest, and that have delivered the most amount of smiles, and “we’ll be back” comments on a consistent and daily basis.

Deep, deep, deep backcountry powder to start off March 2013 in Crested Butte

Backcountry Ski Touring and Splitboarding has been exploding in popularity over the past few years, as the gear gets lighter, stronger, easier to use, and has more of a familiar feel. We are seeing this enthusiasm and trend in spades here in Crested Butte this year. Crested Butte Mountain Resort has set an industry first, by allowing a designated ‘up-hill travel route’ in-bounds during operating hours for folks to skin on the resort. And at CBMG, we’ve been going gangbusters guiding daily backcountry ski tours and repeatedly delivering the goods to folks !

A break in the storm over the West Elk Wilderness

Now as we break into March, historically one of the wettest months of the year for precipitation in Colorado, and Spring is just around the corner, we are gearing up for a strong finish to what has turned out to be a sleeper season of great powder skiing and riding despite the statistics. And to start us off on the right foot, Ullr has brought in March in Crested Butte with 16″ of fresh snow to help welcome in the arrival of Spring.

Going for another lap below the imposing East Face of Gothic Mountain

So as we come into the final month of the ‘official ski season’ in Crested Butte we are excited to continue the trend of good snow and being out and about in it all in the backcountry with our guests. Finding great turns, enjoying the scenery, and being deep in the Colorado mountains in the magic of the winter environment. Soon, the powder will give way to great corn skiing and we will transition into one of our favorite seasons of all: Spring Ski Mountaineering Season.

Split-boarders have the most fun !

Warm temps, longer days, sunny corn skiing on big peaks……and our exciting finish to our ski season with our popular Alaska Ski Mountaineering Programs in the Chugach Mountains of Thompson Pass and closer to home our 4-Day Colorado Spring Ski Mountaineering Camps in mid-April. Stay tuned…..or better yet…..join us !

A few of our happy backcountry ski guests from the past month

—- CBMG Staff

Climbing cold blue ice under beautiful blue winter skies

Colorado is quite the ideal place to be based if you are a climber. First off, there is all types of climbing here in this great Rocky Mountain state. There are thousands of mountains throughout, offering all types of mountaineering and climbing objectives to a worthy summit. Some, suited best for trail running shoes and a light pack, others overnight, wilderness, technical objectives, and everything else in between.

Alpine winter summit climbing on Mt Crested Butte

Beneath all the lofty heights of the state’s great peaks, and for those more interested in technical difficulty over sizeable altitude and mileage, the state is littered with rocky hillsides, outcroppings, gorges, and cliff walls. And almost as varied as the type of climbing is the type of rock to climb on: granite, gneiss, alpine granite, sandstone (Eldo Canyon sandstone; Escalante Canyon wingate; Garden of the Gods soft sandstone; etc….)and more then my limited geology can understand.

Leading ice in the Ouray Ice Park

On par with all this variety is the stellar weather. 300+ days of sunshine a year, and enough climate variation that even in the dead, frozen cold of winter, within a day’s drive you can be climbing sunny warm rock somewhere. With that being said…the most important thing a Colorado climber needs to possess is a love of seasonal changes, and being willing to hunt for your preferred objective and medium. After all, Colorado is known for mountains, and skiing as well as climbing. And where those things reside, generally means a long, cold winter climbing season.

Ski Mountaineering on Mt Crested Butte's 'Guides Ridge' Route

So here in Crested Butte, Colorado, where winter can easily last 8 months a year, to be a climber one must learn to embrace winter climbing. Or, have a very flexible job and put a lot of miles in of windshield time. We prefer the former, and embrace the winter climbing season. One that brings different challenges, but with it more space for reward and more opportunities for the moments of grace and beauty that the mountain environment provides us with.

fresh ice

Alas, it is now Mid-February, and we have every so imperceptibly crested the heart of winter’s darkness. The days are becoming slightly longer, the sun’s angle slightly higher, and the temps slightly (and I mean slightly) warmer. Spring is slowly beginning to take shape on the horizon and plans are beginning to infiltrate our minds of warm, sunny, granite rock or desert sandstone to be climbed.

Winter mixed alpine climbing in Crested Butte, CO

However, we are in no rush to get there, as the one thing that always holds true will no doubt take effect again….change will inevitably come. In the meantime though, we will thoroughly be enjoying the depths of winter, climbing on frozen snowy peaks, watching the sun rise and fall from the sides of a mountain and taking joy in the way it’s light plays differently amongst a landscape coated with the sharpness of rock, ice, and snow, then it does with the softer, subtler colors of the warmer months.

Colorado Ice Climbing

We will continue to seek out freezing pre-dawn starts on snowy, rock strewn ridges, and will relish the joy of going to work and the challenge of sublime and quiet winter ascents of Mt Crested Butte’s ‘Guides Ridge’ Route, and more beyond. We will continue to seek out the frozen blue waterfall ice of the surrounding mountains and in the farmed ice of the Lake City and Ouray Ice Parks. Taking joy in introducing rockclimbers to the somewhat awkward but supremely focusing and enjoyable sport of ice climbing, and the feeling that comes with being half-way up a turquoise or fluorescent blue waterfall, looking down through your crampon frontpoints, and wondering how it can all be so beautiful and inspiring while also all being so intimidating and challenging.

Ski Mountaineering Crested Butte, CO

And of course, when not searching out every nook and cranny of the surrounding mountains for that ultimate, unfound, ephemeral flow of ice to climb, or winter ridge ascent to be had, we’ll be looking for that perfect, and ever-elusive, ‘ultimate powder run’, just out of our back door in the wonderful, Crested Butte Backcountry.

-Cheers, Jayson @ CBMG

Crested Butte Mountain Guides humble 'Guide Shack' & World HQ's during the first snow of the season

The Winter Season of 2012/2013 has been off to a great start here in Crested Butte, with Crested Butte Mountain Guides having a guide calendar full of the variety of activities that we offer in the winter environment: AIARE Avalanche Education Courses; Backcountry Ski & Splitboard Tours; & Ice Climbing; as well as our short-format Intro To The Backcountry & Avalanche Refresher Courses.

Backcountry Skiing in Crested Butte, CO

The start to the Winter here in the Colorado Rockies was eerily similar to last year, with minimal snowfall, and fairly mild, sunny, and warm days. More akin to a late late Fall then early Winter. However, being located in the heart of the Elk Mountains at 9,000′ offers plenty of opportunities for the adventurous mountain athlete type, so in the absence of deep powder turns, we went in search of elusive and picturesque high country ice climbs.

Early season ice climbing in the Crested Butte backcountry

Early season ice Climbing in the Lake City Ice Park

And….although there were reports of lack of snow in the high country, there was enough. And we were able to get off and running on our full schedule or AIARE Avalanche Courses for the season, by running three Level 1 Courses, a Level 2 Course, and 2 Refresher Courses, as there was just enough snow to pull off a high-quality learning environment, see what a shallow snowpack means in terms of snow stability and avalanche assessment, and due to our guides intimate nature of our backyard…pull off some pretty darn worthy backcountry powder skiing and riding as well.

Students heading into the field for the touring day of an AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Course

Students evaluating snow on an AIARE Level 1 Avalanche Course

And then…..just in time for the holidays…..and just after we were getting accustomed to skiing off the big peaks to start the season……the big snows came. And by the start of the New Year, almost 5 feet of fresh powder had piled up in the Crested Butte backcountry making for some memorable powder turns to celebrate the holiday season with !

An early season ski descent off Gothic Mountain

Shredding the pow, toe-side down and knuckles draggin'

Great early season powder skiing in Crested Butte's backcountry !

Deep, deep holiday season backcountry turns

Sunrise from the skintrack while backcountry ski touring

With town and the surrounding mountains now covered in a thick blanket of white, and another forecasted major winter storm just taking shape outside now in Mid-January, we are well set-up to continue offering our busy calendar of events throughout the remainder of the winter season. 2013 has already started off with a plethora of sold out AIARE Level 1, Level 1 Hut Courses, Level 2, & Avalanche Refresher Courses…..

CBMG Guides & AIARE Instructors, Scott Krankkala & Ross Matlock, demonstrating snowpit evaluation to students on a Level 1 Avalanche Course

While we continue to introduce new folks to the thrill of winter ski touring in the backcountry through our 2-Day Intro To The Backcountry Courses. As well, as showing more seasoned vets great backcountry powder turns amidst the surrounding peaks.

Learning how to make turns in the backcountry

As we move into the heart of January, our popular guided backcountry ski & splitboard tours and hut trips are going out almost daily, and the conditions on the ‘Guides Ridge Route’ on Mt Crested Butte are in prime for an unforgettable winter ascent of our town’s namesake and iconic peak. A mix of rock, snow, and ice, this is an alpine climbing challenge, minutes from the lift and not to be missed.

Training for an ascent of Aconcogua on Mt CB's 'Guides Ridge Route' in full winter conditions

And….along with the heart of winter right around the corner, comes the heart of ice climbing season! This weekend is the world-famous Ouray Ice Festival, and we will of course be down there in Ouray with our tools, along with other ice climbers from around the world, looking forward to sharing this magnificent resource with those that are interested, as well as the lesser known, more adventurous, and way less crowded ice closer to our home in Lake City and The Black Canyon.

Practicing ice climbing technique in the Lake City Ice Park

Climbing Chipeta Falls in the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Looking forward to the remainder of the winter season being just as filled with joyous and memorable moments as it has started with…..whether on the skintrack, waist deep in backcountry powder, amidst the green and blue ice of area waterfalls, or cozying up in a backcountry hut around the wood stove….life is good right now…..but don’t take our word for it….come see for yourself.

-CBMG Staff

Knox Frank loved the mountains.  The love he had for these wild, high places was more than an infatuation, it was a need. This passion, combined with his charismatic wit, was simply contagious. The only thing that made the mountains better for Knox was sharing them with friends, of which he had many.

Knox moved to the Colorado Rockies after college and surrounded himself with others who shared his deep appreciation of their beauty, challenges, and magic. Whether skiing laps at the resort or the Grand Traverse, Knox was up for it. His love of snow and winter took him to Canada, the Cascades, Wyoming, Montana, and Utah. He loved adventures, was a hard worker, and reaped the unique rewards that come only in the mountains. Knox was everyone’s companion. He built bridges and community, shared his knowledge with his partners, and mentored many into accomplished backcountry skiers and mountaineers. What we all know best about Knox was his ability to continuously find time for others, always keep an easy smile, and his uncanny sense of when to deliver an encouraging word.

Knox died skiing with a group of friends in a spring avalanche, 2012. This scholarship honors Knox’s memory as a skier, community member, mentor and friend. It provides an opportunity for a backcountry enthusiast to take an avalanche course in Crested Butte, CO. This scholarship is unique in that it offers the chosen participant to walk in Knox’s shoes, in his beloved backcountry community of Crested Butte, where his memory is still strong and alive. This is an incredible opportunity for someone to further his/her backcountry education while experiencing a memorable time in a true ski town community. The chosen winner will receive a FREE avalanche education package in Crested Butte, CO which includes:

• Enrollment in any scheduled AIARE Level 1, Level 2, or Refresher Course with Crested Butte Mountain Guides

• Lodging from Irwin Outfitting

• Daily breakfast/lunch supplied by Izzy’s Deli

• Daily dinner and beverages provided by the Brick Oven Pizzeria and Pub

For scholarship qualifications/requirements or to apply please visit our website.  Application deadline is Jan 15, 2013.  The winner will be announced on Knox Frank Day in Crested Butte, CO Jan 26th.  You can help to preserve Knox’s memrory by passing this info along to folks you feel might benefit from the scholarship.

To read more about Knox and 8 others who were lost in avlanches last winter pick up the 2013 Backcountry Edition of Freeskier Magizine (pages 58 – 62).  To read more about the Knox Frank Memorial Scholarship check out this article in Mountain Magazine Online.

We miss you, Knox …

-CBMG Staff

Well it’s no surprise by now that Colorado is again off to another very dry and slow start to the winter season. However, that doesn’t mean that there is nothing to do out in the mountains. In fact, with the sunny and mild days right now, things would be downright perfect for outdoor enthusiasts if we weren’t all impatiently awaiting the arrival of Ullr and winter to sustain us through the cold and dark season for the next few months.

If one looks beyond the general lack of the fluffy white stuff in Colorado, they find that in fact it is prime time for downright anything outdoor enthusiast oriented. The mountain biking at local Hartman Rocks is still good and dry; sunny days are bringing comfortable rock-climbing conditions in local Taylor Canyon for a few hours mid-day; there is groomed skiing under bright blue skies to be had at local Crested Butte Mountain Resort; some adventurous and fit locals have been finding “pretty darn good” powder turns up high deep in the Crested Butte back-country; the ice skating on Long Lake is “all-time”, and of course the ice climbing in IN !

Colorado is home to great ice climbing. After all it is home to the world-famous Ouray Ice Park. Crested Butte, however, has never been known as an ice climbing haven, as the usual early season storms, copious back-country snowfall, and surrounding terrain make for one of the best back-country ski touring venues on the planet….not so with ice climbing. However, the rare cold, dry starts to winter around here, do in fact bring about some rare and ephemeral early-season alpine ice climbs that are scattered throughout the surroundings mountains.

And although not world-class or destination worthy, they are none-the-less, high quality climbs in a gorgeous mountain/wilderness setting with little to no one else around. So while, everyone else is on-line with various social media networks posting their grumblings about a lackluster start to the winter season here in Colorado, we’ve been out enjoying some pretty darn good ice climbing conditions in our backyard, and are equally as excited by the actual good quality of the ice we have, coupled with the enjoyment we get in experiencing a rare and fleeting thing in the Crested Butte back-country…ice climbing season.

And when winter finally arrives for good, which it always does and will for sure do, we’ll head back to our favorite and dependable climbing venues a bit farther from home in Lake City, CO and the Ouray Ice Park, but until then you will find us just out the backdoor.

And by the way…..believe it or not, despite what it may seem, the back-country skiing and riding is actually pretty good right now; if you know where to go and have an extra lung to bring along to help get there. It’s just not the world-class, right out the backdoor type conditions we are used to…..that has been given temporary status to the area’s ice climbing.

— Jayson Simons-Jones (Owner/Guide)

Whether you’re a novice or a seasoned winter backcountry traveler you can never be too practiced when it comes to your avalanche beacon skills.  Understanding how your specific beacon functions is a MUST – just carrying one isn’t enough.

Join Crested Butte Mountain Guides, the Crested Butte Avalanche Center, and The Alpineer this Saturday, Dec 1, 2012 for a FREE beacon clinic in the Crested Butte Town Park.  From 11am to 3pm you can take advantage of the beacon park and FREE instruction, demo new gear, update your current beacon and sign up for AIARE avalanche safety courses.  Industry reps from Ortovox, BCA, Mammut, The North Face, and Pieps as well as AIARE certified instructors and avalanche forecasters will be on hand to answer your questions and help you run through practice drills with your beacon.  Don’t have a beacon?  No problem!  FREE demos will be available so you can find out which one works best for you.  We’ll move into The Alpineer from 3pm to 6pm for discounts on avalanche safety gear along with FREE BEER and FOOD!

Call the Crested Butte Mountain Guides office with any questions regarding the Beacon Brush-Up Clinic, 970.349.5430

Show the snow gods that you’re ready for winter to start by attending this awesome community event … maybe we can even rally a little snow dance?  We hope to see you at the CB Town Park this Saturday!

-Tiff, CBMG Staff

It’s mid-November, the temperature outside is hovering in the high teens, and it is snowing and blowing, and has been all weekend. I think it is official, winter is finally here. Change is difficult though. The warm sunny days of mountain biking in the high alpine, sunrise trail runs, and evening sessions on the familiar granite walls of local Taylor Canyon high above the river are now all but gone.

In the Colorado high country this is a time filled with melancholy and at times an identity crises, where with alarming swiftness it can change from a late lazy autumn day of 60 and sunny, to a burly frigid winter day of snow, cold, and biting winds, and yet the old cliched saying still holds true….”as one door closes, another shall open.”

With the seeming flick of Mother Nature’s switch, all these just recent experiences have now been reduced to mere memories of another Summer/Fall season in the high country gone by. And the warm days of t-shirt and flip-flops now seem like a long, long ways away, and for this I am saddened.

In the mountains death is ever-present, and not to be taken lightly. And the death of the short and fleeting season of warmth and long hours of daylight is rightly mourned. But this is no tragedy, and with all death comes re-birth and new life….this new life being one that is cold, sometimes harsh, but often beautiful, cleansing, serene, and in some ways mystical and transformative…..winter.

Because the death of warmth in the Colorado high country is not a tragic death, it is embraced and even longed-for in most circles. Those, like myself, that look forward to the endless blanket of gleaming white that cloaks our majestic mountains, framed under rich cobalt blue skies. Where powerful storms bring the enjoyment of skinning through the forests, tree limbs over-head weighted heavy under their snowy burdens, silence all around, as large flakes drift lazily down on our heads, the surrounding beauty made more dramatic by the imminent transience of it all.

Long, cold, dark nights are spent huddled around the warmth of a wood stove, nestled miles deep in the Colorado backcountry, with bellies full of good food, and hearts full of good cheer. All wrapped up and blanketed beneath the glow of the fire and by the company of good friends, with heads daydreaming and conversations spilling forth full of excitement and childlike wonder at the winter wonderland that lies just beyond the ancient log beams of the cabin’s walls, waiting to be explored again tomorrow.

A place being born where hours on the skin track, gliding through silent forests in an otherworldly calmness and serenity, are rewarded with endless untracked powder runs with friends. Where each run down is ultimately a necessary adventure to find that ever alluring ‘perfect run’, one that we know we will never have, but yet will also never stop searching for and striving after….again and again, lap after snowy backcountry powder filled lap.

And then slowly it will happen again. First so subtle it’s presence wont even be noticed, but then with an alarming clarity so intense it will shatter us all from our quiet, snowy bliss….deaths arrival again. And again, it will be both simultaneously mourned and embraced with enthusiasm. The days will last a bit longer, there will be a slight hint of warmth and the faintest smell of new-growth pervading the early morning breeze again, and slowly the mountains will begin to unfold, like the petals of a flower to the rising rays of dawn’s sun.

And just like that, winter will again be behind us, nothing more then memories of powder filled days in the backcountry of the surrounding wild mountains. Stories of these days will get deeper and more epic, the farther into our memory banks they slide, and new friendships, stories and bonds that were born, will be again but memories of another season gone past, as we are born with new excitement for the warmth of summer. Deep into the gear closet we will go in search of bikes, running shoes, and climbing gear….Change is hard, but lack of change is harder.

-Jayson Simons-Jones

Our days are numbered.  You can feel it in the air.  The warm sunny afternoons we’ve been hording like candy-greedy children at Halloween could be snatched away from us any minute, thrusting us straight into winter. We’re all on alert; any ride from here on out could potentially be the final ride of the season. It adds certain intensity to every outing.  Every ride becomes sacred.

This might be it.

This could be the last time.

Well, fear not fellow fanatics, there is hope for those of us who are starting to experience the early-onset separation anxiety that comes with having to put your bike away for the season. We can prolong the inevitable just a little longer thanks to Hartman Rocks!  Hartman’s will be our refuge. Located just 35 minutes south of Crested Butte and with enough single track trails to keep you occupied for days, Hartman’s is the place to be once the trails in Crested Butte are covered in snow and closed.  It’s true, in Crested Butte we’ve been spoiled all summer with riding our bikes directly to the trail head, but in an effort to prolong the riding season we’ll dutifully, and without complaint, pack up and drive to enjoy Hartman’s dry trails, in the company of sun warmed rocks that radiate heat because we can, because we want to, because we’re just not ready to stop yet …

If you’re looking to extend your mountain biking season just a little longer give us a shout; our guides know the best of the best that Hartman Rocks has to offer and would be stoked to get an extra few days in the saddle!

For those of you who are more than ready to hang up the summer gear and leap directly into winter it’s never to early to start planning your winter vacation to Crested Butte. Check out some of our awesome winter offerings – backcountry skiing, ice climbing, avalanche safety education, hut trips, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing, just to name a few.

Ride hard now (while you still can) and think snow!!!

Thanks to Chris Miller for the 3 fantastic photos above.  To see more of Chris’s work visit his website – http://MillerPerspectives.squarespace.com

-Tiff, CBMG Staff

First snow of the year dusting Whetstone Mountain above town

It’s hard to believe, but Summer in the Elk Mountains has definitely passed, and we are now deep in the heart of our favorite season…Fall ! The aspen leaves are currently at their peak of gold, yellow, and orange colors, the days are cool and crisp, and there is snow dusting the high peaks as we write this. Even more brief and fleeting then summer can be at 9,000′, Fall truly is the ‘secret season’ for those of us lucky enough to call Crested Butte home.

‘Gold Coins’ on the ground in Crested Butte…

And, although winter can makes its imminent arrival known at any point from now until Thanksgiving time, most Fall days are characterized by beautiful sunshine, stable clear weather, and perfect-perfect conditions for mountain biking or hiking amidst the golden aspen forests; rock-climbing in the warm sunshine; and mountaineering on Colorado’s high peaks. Town is also a bit quieter, as most of the main summer tourist traffic has gone away, and a much more mellow and laid-back vibe (more so then normal) begins to permeate the local atmosphere, as we all get to breathe a deep sigh of relief and pause to take in our place in the universe before the snow flies and we are thrust into the long, cold, dark, snowy days of winter.

However, until the snow flies for good to signal the start of the 2012/2013 ski season, we are furiously getting out and enjoying what we can of the magic of Fall, and sharing these great experiences with friends, and CBMG guests alike. Ever ride a single track so covered in yellow and gold aspen leaves it’s hard to tell where the trail is? Well, we have plenty of that right now, and the trails are tacky and dry to boot…with wide open vistas of forests of yellow, gold, and orange set amidst a backdrop of snow clad peaks, beautiful enough to make even the most grizzled Fall mountain biker take time away from behind their bars and get off their bike to snap a few pics.

Fall foliage below Ruby Mountain and ‘The Dyke’

For those more inclined to the vertical world, Fall rock-climbing season in the Colorado high country is as good as it gets. Incredible vistas of colors abound when viewed from high on the sides of local crags, and the cooler and crisp air allows for more pleasant climbing temperatures and a ‘grippier feeling rock’ for one’s shoes and hands. Local climbing zones Taylor Canyon, Lake City’s ‘God’s Crag’, and The Black Canyon of the Gunnison are all in perfect climbing condition right now, and as a staff we are stealing away every moment we can get to take advantage of a summer’s fitness of being on the rock for so long, to get out on those long sought after projects we’ve had on the radar all season.

 The tallest cliff in Colorado…The Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park’s ‘Painted Wall’.

And, the nice thing about our location on Colorado’s Western Slope, is once the temps get too cold, or the weather too bad for comfortable rock-climbing here…we are a half-day’s drive to the desert climbing mecca outside of Moab, UT, where desert cracks, and towers abound and offer a lifetime of climbing themselves. Come mid-October the Utah Desert and it’s Wingate sandstone cliffs will become many of our’s transient and temporary homes for the Fall climbing season, before we push on farther West at the end of the month for the Annual American Mountain Guides Association Conference and gathering of professional guides, followed by a week of guided multi-pitch climbing in the unique desert climbing venue of Red Rock Canyon, just outside Las Vegas.

The red sandstone walls of Red Rock Canyon outside Las Vegas, awash in morning alpenglow

However, during all these Fall adventures, we will all have brewing in the backs of our minds, and growing with each fleeting dusting of snow on the peaks, our stoke for the upcoming winter season and all the winter adventures that are awaiting us on the horizon. The main reason we have all chosen to call this place home in the first place….winter, skiing or snowboarding, and the joy of powder filled days in the mountains.

As good as it gets….the Crested Butte Backcountry

So as we pedal our bike through a carpet of aspen leaves on Crested Butte Singletrack, crank up a long and committing Black Canyon multi-pitch climb or desert splitter crack climb, or hike our favorite local mountain peak one last time…..our days will have some fleeting daydreams of: deep powder in the tranquil setting of backcountry skiing, skinning through the same aspen groves that months before were riots of yellow and gold; ice climbing on the frozen blue walls of the Lake City & Ouray ice parks.…..

Students on AIARE Level 2 Course dig snow profiles deep in the Elk Mountains

……and continuing to nurture, develop and foster our own learning, as well as that of our students, in another full season of AIARE Avalanche Education Courses in one of the best venues for learning snow science in the world….the Crested Butte Backcountry….rallying around in our heads as the seasons make their quick and abrubt transition before our eyes.

Bouldering on the banks of the Crystal River under the Fall glow of color

So, get on board and join us for some of these adventures and experience for yourself the beauty and transient magic that is Fall in the West.

—CBMG Staff

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