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Montana in High Def

Montana in High Def is the HD companion to the Ziehl’s excellent Montana Lodge Life and my own Glacier Revisited series of posts.  All video and photo by Andrew Ziehl, Kelly Howie, and yours truly.

Gear List:

GoPro HERO4 Black Edition One Color, One Size GoPro HERO4 Black Edition One Color, One Size

If you take a look at the tech specs of the new GoPro Hero4 Black Edition camera, and then give us a call to point out some mistakes we made in the numbers, because you simply don’t believe them, we won’t be entirely shocked. The new Hero4 Black is the most advanced camera GoPro has made, and it boasts capture capabilities that rival cameras that cost ten times as much. The 4 is an eye-popping evolution of the already-impressive Hero3+ camera, and that’s where engineers started when they really wanted to knock it out of the park, and then some. The Hero3 and the 3+ were incredibly capable cameras, indeed, but the new Hero4 generation takes things to the next level. A lot has changed, but some basics haven’t, such as the overall dimensions of the camera. Exterior dimensions of the camera itself and its cases are all virtually unchanged. The Hero’s fantastic, wide-angle, six-element aspherical lens (f/2. 8-6. 0) also remains unchanged, ensuring the same stunning clarity and scope of your photos and videos, at virtually any light level, as we came to expect from the 3. Three field of view settings — ultra-wide, medium, and narrow — grant you an unmatched selection of perspectives. And for those lower light conditions, GoPro introduces new Night Photo and Night Lapse long-exposure imaging modes. Those mesmerizing time-lapse pictures of the stars trailing through a dark sky, or the rivers of headlights and taillights that form when capturing an urban scene at night? They’re yours to take now. Customizable settings for exposures of up to 30 seconds — whether taken individually or in Time Lapse mode for successive hours or exposures — mean you can capture an almost unlimited range of time-lapse events with the utmost precision. Also new to the Hero4 is its sound-capturing abilities. GoPro fielded feedback from audiophiles and everyday users alike to fine-tune the Hero’s microphone, which now captures far greater fidelity and boasts almost double the dynamic range of ..






Black Diamond Verdict Ski One Color, 172cm Black Diamond Verdict Ski One Color, 172cm

Before they sentence you to two years’ hard labor for excessive funtimes, make sure the Black Diamond Verdict Ski is safely hidden away so it’ll be ready to ride when you get released early for good behavior. It’s certainly a ski worth protecting, with its amazing combo of high-speed stability, low-speed comfort, and all-snow performance. Black Diamond designed it with traditional camber underfoot and a rockered tip and tail, so you can hold an edge on hardpack but float easily through powder, and built the ski up around the 3D CNC-machined paulownia wood core for a light, maneuverable feel that’s quick and nimble when you’re skiing tight tree lines or chutes. The Verdict’s inspired by easy-turning “fun-shape” skis, so it’s a breeze to handle at low speeds, but has been hooked up with a pre-preg fiberglass laminate, Titanal stringers, and a triple-ribbed Formula One design to keep it stiff, solid, and torsionally rigid when you’re mobbing through chop and chunder. All together, this creates a ski that’s more playful than Black Diamond’s bigger Zealot, but narrower and more directional than the Amperage; a solid do-it-all board for east- and west-coast rippers alike. It’s tough, too, with 8mm ABS sidewalls, Power edges, an ABS tail protector, and rocks a P-Tex 4000 sintered base that’s crosshatched for better wax retention and higher speeds, because who doesn’t like to go fast?






The North Face Patrol 24L ABS Winter Backpack - 1465cu in Graphite Grey/Zinc Grey, M/L The North Face Patrol 24L ABS Winter Backpack – 1465cu in Graphite Grey/Zinc Grey, M/L

When you’re getting into more high consequence terrain, it’s nice to have the peace of mind that if something should go wrong The North Face Patrol 24L ABS Winter Backpack will be there to help keep you on top. Taking The North Face’s athlete-tested Patrol backpack and outfitting it with one of the industry’s most trusted avalanche air bag systems yields a winning combination of proven technology in an athlete-approved package that will perform well in the backcountry.The bag comes equipped with the ABS compressed nitrogen system, which activates with a quick pull of the handle located at the left shoulder strap. Two Bombastic auto-airbags deploy at either side of the bag and are high-vis to make your more visible in the event of a rescue. The pack is a fully functional backcountry backpack with a large avy tool pocket for your shovel and probe, and it features The North Face’s simple and straight-forward tuck-away ski or snowboard carry system for quick attachment of your planks or board for that final bootpack to the top. The Patrol 24 is hydration system compatible,and the it features dual hip belt pockets to keep your small essentials close at hand on the skin track.






Overkill!

For everyone who has ever asked, “Didn’t you just go [hiking|skiing|biking|rafting|kayaking|insert outdoors sport of choice here]?”  Well here is my response.  And you may (in fact I encourage you to) quote me on this.


This represents the first ‘lengthy’ video I’ve done in quite a while.  After roughly a year of considerable slacking, and the associated accumulation of interesting footage, I decided enough was enough.  No point in owning two GoPros and two expensive point-and-shoots without ever doing anything cool with the footage.  In the end, this video uses on the the Hero 3 Black and HD Hero footage – the rest of the stills I’m saving for subsequent projects.

One of my goals for this project was to collect up all of the clips which were cool but did not really warrant a standalone treatment.  Additionally, I really wanted to focus on quality over quantity.  I settled on a thematically appropriate soundtrack which was only moderately long and lent itself to the ‘story’ being told.  With the intent of producing what is essentially a mashup of miscellaneous old footage, a moderately long soundtrack should let me cram in a lot of random stuff without feeling the need to add filler or fade out the music after I’ve run our of exciting footage.  The numerous ‘false endings’ provide the ability to naturally segment the clips and offer some periodic changes in tempo.  Also, it’s Motorhead.  Seriously, there is not enough classic heavy metal in action sports or pop culture, or really anywhere…

Pemi Loop

Summer 2014 came and went with nary a rugged mile hiked the entire season! Not really sure what happened, but Kelly and I managed to get roped into everything aside from hiking. No regrets really – just no mountain climbing in 2014.

In May of 2105 we uncorked our bottled up zeal for arduous mountain adventure by doing what we do best: biting off way more than we can chew and getting ourselves good and committed. Of course we invited everyone we could think of (the final roster included Deb, Ruthie, Ben, myself and Kelly) and sallied forth into the Pemigewasset Wilderness armed with a smorgasbord of untested backpacks, unbroken boots, and ill-conditions legs.

Our original plan as proposed by Deb was to go summit Katahdin, but we learned at the last minute that Memorial day in Baxter closely resembles winter. Thusly, we aborted that plan and pivoted back to a known quantity: the Pemi Loop. We opted for a more ‘leisurely’ pace by splitting the circuit across 3 days and 2 nights. In hindsight I’m dubious that the 3 day pace is any easier than the overnight, simply due to the spectacular amount of gear that must be hauled to make multiple overnights comfortable. Anyway the hike was ultimately fun, if not a rude awakening for a first-outing-of-the-season.

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The Crew

Day one was the longest and most difficult day: we walked from Lincoln Woods Campground, over Franconia Ridge, all the way to the base of Garfield where we camped for the night. Franconia Ridge was hallmarked by spectacular winds and beautiful, clear skies. On day two we dragged our achy selves over Garfield (I’d say we all had some choice words for that mountain – both up and down), and then up and down a whole bunch more gnarly mountains which finally taper into the plateau-ish Bond Range where we were able to skulk into camp at Guyot Tentsite. We were among the last to arrive that night and were relegated to the lean-to shelter. Tents were uncalled for, but earplugs might have been nice. Day three was by far the easiest. You ease into the day with a gentle traverse of the Bonds featuring spectacular views of the Pemi and Franconia Ridge and eventually begin the long slow descent back toward Lincoln Woods. The hike from the bottom of the Bonds along an abandoned logging railway feels simply interminable and the monotony steadily builds toward a bursting point when suddenly you waltz out of the woods and into the parking lot. We wasted virtually no time in trading our boots for flip flops and hastily made our way back to town for some non-freeze-dried victuals. The Woodstock Inn Brewery, pre-ordained about 3 miles after we started hiking on Day One satiated our respective hungers and thirsts as well as ever, after which we sleepily traipsed back toward home, leaving behind a Memorial Weekend well spent.

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Classic White Mountain scramble

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High on the ridge, the winds howl

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Garfield Pond

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Camp 1

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Home sweet home!

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So wait, what are we supposed to do here?

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Seriously?

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Spikes would have been nice…Garfield, grrrrrrr…

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Camp 2
Photo Credit: Deb

 

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Sunrise

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This picture pretty much sums up everything about backcountry travel…

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Photo Credit: Deb

Good Karma

Over the weekend Karma payed dividends in the form of the ol’ white gold!  It all started with getting Xterrible stuck in a ditch on a snowy roadside somewhere in Vermont…

…As we arrived at the trail head, as described by a friend of a friend, we attempted to pull onto the shoulder and out of the road.  I flipped on the 4WD and crept into the half foot or so of fluff on the edge of the road…only to be promptly pulled into a ditch immediately beside the road.  Strongly suspecting I’d just sabotaged our day, Kelly and I exchanged dubious glances as I threw it into reverse and vainly tried to pull out of the snow.  No dice.  We shoveled a bit.  Also not helpful.  In a last-ditch effort, Kelly took the wheel while I pushed.  The notion of me pushing a 5000 lb car is pretty ridiculous, but the idea of three of me pushing a 5000 lb car  begins to sound plausible.   If only there were two more of me…

Right on cue, two burly snowmobilers emerged at the trail and took notice of our plight.  They strolled over and with one big heave between the bunch of us, we had the car back on the road.  We thanked them profusely, cleared out a proper parking area, and started getting our gear ready for the tour.

As we concluded our gear harmonizing, a jovial ski-bum looking fellow rolled up in an old Toyota T-100 truck and introduced himself.  Turns out this guy was also here to explore  the unknown stashes that were thought to lay somewhere in the woods beyond.  We teamed up with out new touring partner Zach, and the blind led the blind into the woods.

We followed the snowmobile trail into the forest; an easy skin after maybe a dozen snow machines packed it out for us.  After 30 minutes or so we came around a corner to find a couple of sledders trying to drag a their machine back onto the trail, where it had apparently slid off.  Sympathetic to their plight, Zach and I put our backs into it, and between the four of us had the sled back on the trail in a jiffy.

Having balanced our pool of Karma we traveled deeper into the woods in search of the elusive powder stashes.  After a series of fortuitous educated guesses we happened across the elicit goods!  We set a skin track up one of the best looking pitches and indulged in several laps of powdery euphoria.

Update: video now available here.

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Gear List

 

Marker Lord SP Ski Binding Black/White/Teal, 110mm Marker Lord SP Ski Binding Black/White/Teal, 110mm

Marker is the only manufacturer that makes a non-touring binding that accommodates AT and alpine boots safely: the Lord SP Ski Binding. The burly, made-for-ripping Triple Pivot Elite toe features a pin system that you adjust for AT or alpine boots. Finer adjustment is made with the AFD plate. Because some people don’t like their touring bindings unless, well, they’re touring. These designated downhill bindings are lighter than the AT bindings, and most time burlier for harder-charging descents. So when you can handle specialized bindings, rather than making a compromise when inbounds, you do.






POC Synapsis 2.0 Helmet White, S POC Synapsis 2.0 Helmet White, S

POC engineers backed up with ultralight shell of the Synapsis XP Helmet with APB technology that provides supreme protection in a feathery 13oz package. A new turnring adjustment system allows you to dial the fit of the 2. 0 to your liking quickly and easily. Two oversized vents allow fresh air to enter and circulate your lid so hot-headed shredders can send cliffs or throw down in the park in cool comfort. Ballistic APB places a layer of pentration-proof Aramid between the molded shell and liner, allowing for a thin outer shell that’s both ultralight and protectiveAn EPS liner provides single-impact protection that keeps your head safe without weighing you downOptional visor is included for keeping the sun out of your eyes or looking wicked gnarly






Black Diamond GlideLite Mohair Mix STS Climbing Skin One Color, 125mm Black Diamond GlideLite Mohair Mix STS Climbing Skin One Color, 125mm

A mix of fast, natural mohair material and durable nylon make the GlideLite Mohair Mix STS Climbing Skin Black Diamond’s most versatile long-haul GlideLite system. This skin is up to 60g lighter than similar Ascension models, and both front and back are adjustable so it’s easy to swap between your touring skis. Who wouldn’t want the best balance of efficient glide, reliable traction, and weight for their buck?






GoPro HERO4 Black Edition One Color, One Size GoPro HERO4 Black Edition One Color, One Size

If you take a look at the tech specs of the new GoPro Hero4 Black Edition camera, and then give us a call to point out some mistakes we made in the numbers, because you simply don’t believe them, we won’t be entirely shocked. The new Hero4 Black is the most advanced camera GoPro has made, and it boasts capture capabilities that rival cameras that cost ten times as much. The 4 is an eye-popping evolution of the already-impressive Hero3+ camera, and that’s where engineers started when they really wanted to knock it out of the park, and then some. The Hero3 and the 3+ were incredibly capable cameras, indeed, but the new Hero4 generation takes things to the next level. A lot has changed, but some basics haven’t, such as the overall dimensions of the camera. Exterior dimensions of the camera itself and its cases are all virtually unchanged. The Hero’s fantastic, wide-angle, six-element aspherical lens (f/2. 8-6. 0) also remains unchanged, ensuring the same stunning clarity and scope of your photos and videos, at virtually any light level, as we came to expect from the 3. Three field of view settings — ultra-wide, medium, and narrow — grant you an unmatched selection of perspectives. And for those lower light conditions, GoPro introduces new Night Photo and Night Lapse long-exposure imaging modes. Those mesmerizing time-lapse pictures of the stars trailing through a dark sky, or the rivers of headlights and taillights that form when capturing an urban scene at night? They’re yours to take now. Customizable settings for exposures of up to 30 seconds — whether taken individually or in Time Lapse mode for successive hours or exposures — mean you can capture an almost unlimited range of time-lapse events with the utmost precision. Also new to the Hero4 is its sound-capturing abilities. GoPro fielded feedback from audiophiles and everyday users alike to fine-tune the Hero’s microphone, which now captures far greater fidelity and boasts almost double the dynamic range of ..