COMP - The Sastrugi Boogie on Mt. Brennan

The bottomless mid-December 2012 storm cycle in the Kootenays seemed like a distant memory. It had not snowed in a painfully long time and unrelenting winds had pounded nearly all aspects and ski-able surfaces into crusty submission. Undeterred, two Nelson hair farmers decided to take advantage of sunny and stable conditions to head to the Goat Range to ski up Mt. Brennan, a classic Kootenay tour that they had not done before. Things were mighty quiet that morning in Retallack save for one lonely local who pleaded for smokes and grass and warned of a killer wolverine up the valley. Was this interaction a cautionary foreshadowing, or was the guy just weird? The protoganists were pretty sure it was the latter. After a few kilometres of logging road slogging, they climbed above the first headwall and above the valley clouds. The rest of the climb was spectacular, as they marveled at the great skiing and big mountains in all directions. Firm snow made for quick travel as they boogied up the sastrugi to the top. The summit provided gorgeous views of the Goat Range, Purcells, Kokanee Park and the Valhallas. The long descent included a wonderful diversity of snow types from ice crust to wind slab to sastrugi and back. Tacky mantras or clichés like“no bad snow - only bad skiers” were not even necessary, as the quality of terrain and scenery more than compensated. With gorgeous mountains, sunny weather and good friends, the lack of powder didn’t even matter and they hope to return soon.