Winter starts now! In the blink of an eye winter has evolved from sparse snowfall across the western states to an abundance of wonderful powder everywhere. Welcome to my annual reminder about Backcountry Avalanche Awareness. I am no expert on the subject, but my wife and I are aways eager to traverse wilderness terrain in … Continue reading Backcountry Avalanche Awareness 2021/2022
Winter Gear: Are You Ready? With thoughts of sugarplums and snow flurries dancing in our heads, Base Camp @ Grand Lake eagerly prepares for winter. In order to be comfortable and enjoy winter activities, having good gear is essential. A large component of Base Camp @ Grand Lake is aimed at helping people make informed … Continue reading Winter Gear: Are You Ready?
By Stella J. Raasch What comes to mind when you think of the great outdoors? Initially, you may think of the classic John Candy movie, "The Great Outdoors." Next, your thoughts will likely gravitate toward notions of open space, fresh air, beautiful surroundings…and trash! Since the advent of COVID, flocks of people have migrated to … Continue reading Responsible Outdoor Recreation: Leave No Trace
Stella and I raced up to the mountains the weekend of the Great Blizzard of 2021 to get in some snowshoeing and/or nordic skiing. On our way to Grand Lake, we had made a pitstop in Winter Park to see Stella's cousin who has been working at the Winter Park Resort for the season. We … Continue reading The Great Blizzard of 2021
Stella and I snowshoed the Monarch Lake Loop and ventured up the Crater Lake Trail in the Indian Peaks Wilderness just before the big snowstorm took hold over the weekend of March 13th.
Well everyone… we came back. I whined, moaned, pouted, and bargained to extend our Jackson Hole: Winter Paradise Take II. But Larry said we had to come home. Actually, what he said was, "Stella, someone has to be the adult around here." Hmmm… Sometimes I wonder what it would be like to just leave everything … Continue reading JACKSON HOLE: WINTER PARADISE TAKE II
Earlier this winter, we set our sights on skiing up to Fairview Curve inside of Rocky Mountain National Park. Fairview Curve is a lookout point along Trail Ridge Road, which is the main road inside of the park leading up to the Alpine Center. Last winter, we snowshoed up to Fairview Curve, and it had … Continue reading Fairview Curve Nordic Adventure