Backcountry Skiing Jumbo
My phone alarm went off at 5:00am. I jumped out of bed, quickly brushed my teeth and started packing. I couldn’t pack the night before because I had too many activities during the day and by the time I got home I was exhausted.
Somebody who had been to Jumbo recently mentioned he only hit snow on the trail about 3/4 of the way up before he put snowshoes on, so I decided to wear hiking shoes and carry my ski boots in my backpack. Stoked about going to this magical place again, I did not pay much attention to the weight of my pack.
Courtney, whom I met through the Kootenay Mountaineering Club’s facebook page, came to pick me up at 6:00am and we headed towards 6 Mile where my friend Tim was ready and waiting for us. We left his place in his right-hand drive, high-clearance vehicle at 6:30am, stopped in Kaslo only to put gas and managed to get to the Jumbo Pass parking lot at around 9:30am. There were no signs of snow on the trail, so we put our skins on, tied our skis to our backpacks and dived into our one-day adventure.
The forest was bathing in the warm glow of the sun. Тhe white tops of the mountains were peeking through the branches of the fir trees, contrasting the clear blue sky. As the trail went steeper my thighs started burning and I realized how heavy the load on my back was. It felt really good to put my skis on once the path got fully covered with snow.
Courtney and Tim were mesmerized by the views, which the big mountain kept presenting to us as we were going out of the trees and getting more into the alpine. It was their first time at Jumbo and I could see the excitement was building up.
We reached the hut at around 1:00pm and sat on the porch, all captivated by the breath-taking scenery. Soon after our quick lunch, Courtney and I were en route to the top of the ridge. Tim had not taken his avalanche safety gear thinking there wouldn’t be much snow, so he stayed at the hut.
The silence of the mountains was as pure as the white blanket of snow that was now covering the rugged hills. We skinned up, following the zigzagging tracks of whoever climbed that ridge before. A familiar sensation of peace and gratitude filled my whole self as we reached the top. I could have stayed up there forever, drinking it all. But we had to go back as it was going to get dark soon.
We took the skins off our skis and looked down, eagerly searching for some untouched powder. It was quite warm for the time of the year and the snow was heavy and sticky but we couldn’t care less. Skiing down felt like a blink.
Tim was waiting for us by the little lake near the hut, happy to have spent some time alone in the silence of the wilderness, savouring the last rays of sunshine.
It was already 3:00pm and we knew we would be walking in the dark, trying to reach Tim’s right-hand drive, high-clearance vehicle that was going to take us back to the human world, where now everyone was frantically waiting for the new president of the United States to be elected.
By Vanya Petkova