Wa Stoke Valley of the Titans

**Kyle Miller** · 03-23-2008, 11:32 PM

Our plans were to skin out to a area that I had scoped out for years but had never skied because the distance was too far. We decided to do a multiday tour setting up a basecamp halfway out.

A early mourning start

A early mourning start with Mt Rainier in the Distance

Up on the ridge

Some Skiers in the distance

Getting ready for the warm up run

Looking down the run

Scott getting ready for his run

After the first run we dropped off our overnight gear and started heading for are destination

That colouir may go through

Skinning across valleys

Summiting the ridge

Our View Across the valley

Our Destination

To keep up with the Norse theme since it is Norse Peak Wilderness we called it Valley of the Titans.

Our First run in the Valley

Nice Dry Pow

Scott ripping down the slope

It was a steep skin

Back on the ridge

The View on Rainier

Scotts Next run

Some of the runs you have to drop in blindly

My next run

A photo scott took of me looking down my line

steep and deep

We started heading back toward our basecamp with a few hours of sunlight left. As we made it to the first run the wind was blasting right up though the valley. We rode into the wind scoured bowl and started skinning to the next high peak.

The sunset on some opposing ridges

Rainier

Getting ready for the last run of the day

We went to bed under a clear sky but that didnt last long. The wind was so strong that it was pushing the walls around. The next mourning when we woke up and looked outside to find all our tracks had dissapeared and the wind was going up to 60 mph. It took us a while to pack up almost loosing our tent that flew up the valley 100 feet. Conditions were sketch so we decided to head back to the car.

Skinning up the ridge

It looked so amazing I tried to persuade scott to take one more run. We agreed that if it past a pit test we would ride it.

Digging the pit

It passed so here is our run

The pow was DEEP
When we started our skin track it was all flat except for a steep section at the top of a gully. As I started skinning across the 20 foot steep section it fractured 1 foot deep and took me for a ride. I slid about 100 feet and stopped about 20 feet short of a group of trees.

Looking up at the fracture

The Debris

The crown

We carefully wrapped around the basin and back onto the old skin track as the storm was heavy

Getting ready for the final run

Dropping in

Its fresh

The weather was Bipolar Saturday was bluebird while Sunday was gale force winds. Enjoy.

**mobygrape** · 03-23-2008, 11:59 PM

cool pictures. Glad you guys made it out OK. Scary conditions to be out in.

**Kyle Miller** · 03-24-2008, 06:46 AM

Im just glad that the gully was only on the bottom 150 feet of the slope if I slid another 500 vert there would have been a good chance I wouldn't be here right now..

**encore** · 03-24-2008, 09:20 AM

Those lines look mighty tasty! Thanks for sharing.

"Nice Dry Pow" - that's funny!

**Squirrel99** · 03-24-2008, 09:25 AM

Great trip man! Glad to hear you made it out alright.

I could swear I was in this basin back in Early December with much less snow.
Northway would be able to confirm ~