Bluebird day for open tele slopes

Up from the deep bottom

Jim Heckel completes turns in large Deadman bowls

First off, we need more snow.
Ironic that I should say this after having one of the best backcountry telemark ski days I've had in years on Sunday.
We hit the large snow bowls above Deadman Creek in the Little Belts.
While there was a pretty good wind on the ridge line that had hammered the snow into a frozen ice skating run, there were vast areas of great powder to enjoy.
The bowls are about half-way into the Deadman trip east of Kings Hill Pass. They are just beyond the first set of open telemark slopes.
I can't remember a better day for yo-yo-ing up and down a backcountry stretch.
What made things even better was the bluebird sky and bright sun.
With all the exercise there is no doubt we'll pay the price on Monday.
Although the snow was great in these bowls in many spots, the snow is starting to crust and slab from all the wind.
There are open hillsides in the Little Belts that have been sandblasted by the wind.