A cold run down O'Brien Creek

Roger Pfeffer and Tammy Filiater ski past open waters in O'Brien Creek

Roger's facial hair reflected the cold

This is shaping up to be an intensely cold and snowy winter.
The New Year began by serving up more of the same we had in 2008.
A foursome skied O’Brien Creek Friday as an intense cold front and another dump of snow moved in.
Luckily for us, O’Brien Creek had been broken days before, and the new snow just prettied thing up for us as we easily negotiated the hardened base.
But when we stepped off-trail we sank down considerably and found getting around in untracked snow quite challenging. It was more of the same we had experienced Sunday on Deadman. The base still isn’t consolidated. It has been too cold for that to happen.
For that reason between Deadman and O’Brien runs we kept to the groomed and powder packed slopes of Showdown mid-week.
Owner George Willett has graciously left plenty of powder in wide swaths on both sides of most runs. Those powder runs have been like cutting through rich butter.
O’Brien is always a delight and is as changeable as the weather.
We started out the run with temperatures above zero. During the trip it plunged to minus 13 with high wind accompanied by driving snow for a period.
Snow bridges are always a concern on this 7-mile trip.
I don’t think I’ve ever found them to be in better shape.
Now if we could do something about that unconsolidated snow.