Winter Readiness: Preventive Epoxy

There’s already snow on the peaks here in Seattle, but I’ve been biding my time getting to know the area so far, aka watching ski flicks. From all accounts it seems there’s a least a month or more until ski areas open, though I’m sure there are backcountry turns to be found.

My first order of business is to take some preventive measures. During my last day touring this year, my Blizzard Bonafides caught some air, resulting in a ski-to-rock collision. It skied fine the rest of the day, but I’m concerned the damage could lead to a delam or damage the core.

Damaged tip, with a tiny bit of core showing.

The plan is to clean up and seal the tip with epoxy-but what type to use? Luckily the TGR forums had some handy previous discussion, if you read around the flaming. I chose JB Weld, a slow 24-hr setting steel based epoxy. Apparently it used to boast claims of holding together 10-ton tractor axles, and has been used for radiator crack welds.

Mixing it up. I added slightly more resin after this, and perhaps had a little less hardener than resin. Overall it was easy to work with. If you’re going to mess up, I hear it’s better to have a bit more resin, than not enough, which can cause a more brittle bond.

Sealing up the ski was easy enough, though I almost wish the epoxy cured faster so it held a better form.

I wanted to apply as little as possible to properly seal off the core, without adding too much weight to the tip. Once applied, I set the ski aside for a day.

Once dry, I did a pass each of rough and smooth grit sanding, to clean it up and remove some excess.

Lastly, I colored the work, so it’d look like base material.

Rain and Cascades

…are two things that I’m hoping don’t always go together, This past weekend Catherine and I went for a jaunt on the edge of the Northern Cascades, in search of “Lake 22”. Similar to several previous fall hikes, we knew we were in for a bit of wet weather, and this time we made the day more about exploring old growth than bee-lining for a high alpine ridge.

Before embarking we discovered a swollen Creek 22, right next to the road.

As we ascended through fantastical, and dripping, forests, I contemplated bringing mylar umbrellas on the next rainy hike, something that Ray Jardine considers essential.

The moderate ascent was enjoyable, although the trail was quickly becoming it’s own cascade in sections, but before too long, we had reached the lake.

Imagine a glassy surface with the towering shoulder of Mt. Pilchuck on the right, and bald steep faces all around. Still, even on a rainy day, it was a hidden gem, and we hung around long enough to snack before turning around.

The photos were limited to quick shots from my phone, as we deemed it too risky to soak anything else. We’ll see what next weekend brings!

Seeking Serene Scenery enroute to Seattle

The road-trip reached a successful completion and Catherine and I are settling in to our new Seattle home, prepping for further northwestern adventures and the looming ski season!

We took lots of great photos, the best of which I’ll reproduce here. Though I’ve cut it down a lot there are far too many for a single post. I’ll keep it sparse worded and photo heavy, just for you, but I’ll also throw in some notes on our trip.

Here we go!

Grand Teton National Park

Yellowstone National Park

Glacier National Park

We drove straight to Chicago the first day to make sure we had more time for National Parks. I could do a whole section on the Badlands as well, but we spent less time there than anywhere else.

Our first look into the Badlands

Catherine and I upon entering Badlands NP.

Just a few days later, we woke up in Montana, which I’ve come to learn is the fly fishing capital of the world.

Catherine made a short video of the trip, found here:

Boston to Seattle from Catherine Roach on Vimeo.

Thanks for our friends, Darren for putting us up, Cathy & Phil for their hospitality, and our families for their support!

2013 Roadtrip: Grand Teton NP

We made it to Wyoming and the Tetons by Tuesday afternoon (Day 4), and I was definitely not prepared for the gorgeous views.

The Tetons, which seem to pierce the sky, have no foothills blocking them.

The first ‘view’ at Oxbow Bend.

Heading into Jackson, we stopped to catch the sunset. After experiencing the town a bit, the next day we went for a long hike along Jenny and it’s neighboring lakes.