Deeper: Shredding Steeps in the Southern Sierra. Feb, '09
By Chris Edmands | July 11th, 2009
Finding the right objectives in the Sierra is tough. There are so many great spots which are known, but there are more unknown waiting to be discovered. Our trip south began reading Backcountry Skiing California’s Eastern Sierra, a great new guide book for the area. A couple of couloirs that Jeremy and Ryland saw in the book were enough to convince us to pack our bags in hopes we would see new lines as well as shred the ones described. There are obvious lines that get hit all the time, but it takes a really trained eye to discover new ones. Jeremy happens to have two such eyes and that's why he's constantly breaking new ground. Our hike begins by moonlight and my mind wanders. I've never been here before and I really have no idea where I'm going except up. It's a cool feeling really - being in the middle of nowhere at night. We're about 20 miles west of Bishop and 40 miles east of the central valley of California.
**Jeremy and Seth Lightcap lead the way long into the night on our approach to the steep stuff.**
**The creepy, Halloween version of night skinning.**
**The next morning we head for a couple of classic Southern Sierra couloirs; Zebra and the North.**
**Jeremy takes the first run of the day when the light finally pops in the North.**
**Ryland takes his turn in the Zebra. He had been bootpacking up this line when a couple of other snowboarders overtook him on the hike. Because they were wearing Verts they beat him to the top, but were kind enough to let him drop first - for the shot. Thanks guys.**
**Taking a break on the way back to camp the guys search the face for tomorrows lines.**
**Base camp. My bivy is just out of the frame on the left. I slept under the stars trying out a new Black Diamond bivy sack and slept great. You don't have to worry about rogue storms too much in the Sierra, so sleeping without a tent is mellow, and really lightweight.**
**Sunrise lights the way to the Pinner couloir the next morning.**
**Jeremy chases his shadow on the approach.**
**That little dot toward the top is Jones on his way up. The climb was a bit gripping and I couldn't stop filming it. Sometimes the way up is as interesting as the way down.**
**The skiers left side of this line just kind of drops away, so Jones makes every turn count.**
**Ryland picks a line that's a little wider and opens it up.**
**On the way back to base camp the second day Jeremy and Ryland chose to ride this run together. The Buttermilks are somewhere off in the distance. Maybe we'll go for a climb when we get out.**
**Looking south the hills seemingly go on forever. Jones heading deeper.**
**Did you know that the three of us are farmers? Hair farmers! Jeremy, Ryland, and myself rest back at the truck.**
In this post: Jeremy Jones Chris Edmands Ryland Bell Location: California Film: Deeper Keywords: Big Mountain Backcountry Line Couloir Trip Report scenic Premium Content Teton Gravity Research Featured Snowboard
