Met up with SheRa at 5:30 AM this morning to make some sunrise turns at Berthoud. It didn't take much for her to convince me yesterday that the conditions were worth it. 3 hours of sleep and I found myself stumbling around in the dark searching for my ski gear. The drive up I-70 and through Empire on HWY 40 was peaceful. Not another vehicle in sight. As I approached the first switchback up to Berthoud, the trees were draped with a nice coating of fresh snow.
It was still pitch black when we arrived at the pass. The moonlit sky was our only light as we got geared up. We bootpacked up the west side of the pass to the sound of the crunching snow beneath our steps. We arrived near the top of the old lift drop-off and the first rays of light for the morning illuminated the clouds in the distance.
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We booted up in shin to knee deep wind buffed pow. Every now and then I could hear SheRa giggling behind me in response to the quality and deepness of the snow. You could feel the stoke in the air, it was electrifying.
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SheRa:
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We quickly put on our skis and made fresh tracks through low angled trees. I think I wore a perma grin the entire way down. It felt great to be riding fresh snow again. It was refreshing and satisfying. I'll let the pics tell the rest of the morning:
First Turns:
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Lovin' it:
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SheRa:
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Left the parking lot at 8 AM and found myself sitting at my desk at work by 9:00. I wish the new snow would stick around, but it will more than likely be melted off by this weekend.Not a bad way to start a friday morning at all
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