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Skiing off the backside of Sunday River (Video)

Conrad

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Not saying this was a good idea, but here is footage I got skiing off the backside of Sunday River on April 4, 2014. Was it worth it from a skier's perspective? No. Was it worth it from an adventurer's perspective? Possibly. I admit there were several moments near the top where I almost turned around and hiked back. I'm not going to recommend anyone do it, but if you do do it, please ski with at least one other person (unlike me), and carefully study maps of the area beforehand. There's some very large cliffs back there in some spots.

Unfortunately the conditions combined with my bindings being a bit loose made the run more difficult than necessary. I also erred on the side of caution several times to avoid the possibility of cliffs. The run took 40-45 minutes, but I cut it down to 23 minutes.

Hope you enjoy!

YouTube video page link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YaPiJigLoG8
 
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skiNEwhere

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Yikes. Didn't watch the whole thing but I'd say that was 10% skiing, 40% bushwhacking, and 50% hiking/traversing
 

dlague

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Probably was not a good idea being alone - hope you had good signal there in case anything happened. Looked pretty thick in spots.
 

bigbog

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......I'd say that was 10% skiing, 40% bushwhacking, and 50% hiking/traversing

Conrad,
Really not too bad an effort...nice video, given that you waited way too late in the season to do it buddy! If you like hiking outtabounds, and enjoy getting a little lost for a little while it can be fun, but fwiw, when you do it again...is always good to tote a pack with the necessities...fwiw.
As the sun gets higher, the snow gets thinner and stickier and things warm up, underneath the snow...things(roots, even the ground itself) that take on the heading of snowsnakes rise making life difficult for nice, efficient skiing. Of course the problem is that we rarely have the snowcover in January, February or March..but any dryness in some pow makes it worthwhile. It takes more than a few times though...and the more one knows the territory, the better skiing...cuz with new territory there can often be bushwacking and rockgardens..... $.01
*A bit of slalom armor helps a bunch. Knee/Shin(hockey), forearm, spine and knuckle guards are terrific!..cuz you often need to punch through the short, tight stuff...and AT bindings/skins help too.
 
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octopus

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we tried that once and it wasn't as much fun as i thought it would be. ended up hiking back around to the trail in some pretty deep snow, thought i was gonna have a heart attack. also put a pretty good gouge in a brand new snowboard, it was powder with no base. bummer.
 

elks

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Jan 28, 2009
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The payoff didn't seem worth the risk if this was truly an isolated area out of cellphone range ...
 

skiNEwhere

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Since I doubt anyone else has or would even want to ski that "line", you've earned naming rights

"Conrad's misery" has a cool ring to it lol
 

Conrad

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To answer some questions:
I only saw the tracks of one other person (a snowboarder I think). I was expecting at least a few tracks, but I guess not. I'm not sure if I am going to do it next year. If I do, I will probably find someone to do it with. And I don't want to give anyone ideas, but I went in between White Cap and Locke.
 

octopus

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where did you end up and how long did it take you to get back to the lift?
 

EPB

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This reminds me of my adventures into the bowl between Attitash and Bear Peak. It was definitely worth the adventure, but I only explored each side of the bowl once.
 
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