Crust Sprints

Great morning to sprint along the solid Spring crust around Dry Lake Campground!

Perfect crust as I glide along behind fast running Jack & Rudy!

There is still about 40 inches of snowpack at Dry Lake and the temperatures have been perfect (warm days then cold nights) to create a great crust to support Jack, Rudy and myself on skis. Our outing found us alternating between open meadows and groves of trees.

Open meadow - wheeee! But, look out for the cluster of trees ahead!

Each time we exited a meadow into the trees, my partner slowed perfectly to gently guide me through!

Slow to a trot so the clumsy human doesn't hit a tree :)

As soon as we exited any tree grove into a new meadow, it was pedal to the metal!

Open meadow again. Floor it!

The crust was absolutely perfect to hold 42 lb Jack, 46 lb Rudy and me on skis. But, there is one thing a crust can never support... MOOSE!

"Sniff, sniff - moose was here!" says track inspecting Rudy.
"Yes, and the moose went THIS WAY!" declares Jack staring in the direction
his nose told him the moose went.

Despite Jack's suggestion, we did NOT follow the moose tracks the direction he proposed :)

Back to the trailhead for a fun 'end of run' treat photo with retired mentor Zorro. Dry Lake is the starting point for the snowcat tours that take people up Buffalo Pass for deep powder backcountry touring. While the snowcat tours are done for the season, the cats themselves are still waiting for the snow to melt before leaving the area. Fun to get our treats along with the cats! 

"Remember, me first!" says Zorro raising his hand.
"The cats may not be able to still go, but we can!" declares happy Jack & Rudy.

A fun day sprinting on the crust through open meadows and then weaving through trees between meadows: 6.8 miles traveled with 500 feet of elevation climbed and a top speed of 22 MPH.

2021/2022 Season to Date: 139 days on the trails covering 1176.5 miles with 110,300 feet of elevation climbed.