Skip to content
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Email
Confessions Of A Ski Bum
Primary Menu
  • Go Skiing!
    • Guidebooks
    • Ski Zones
  • Trip Reports
  • Learn
    • How To
  • Gear Reviews
    • Gear Kits
    • Skis
    • Boots
    • Bindings
    • Skins
    • Safety
    • Clothing
    • Camping
    • Trash
  • Press
  • Videos
  • About
  • Home
  • Trip Reports

Trip Reports

Trip Reports

Plum Oazo with Brake/Stopper

March 13, 2023March 13, 2023
Marcus Baranow
0

The Oazo binding from Plum has been my go-to backcountry binding over the last few years, and recently Plum released an updated version. The design was refined rather than overhauled, and I’m grateful they didn’t change too much. This review […]

Trip Reports

Castle Mountain Traverse/North Bowl

January 31, 2021February 1, 2021
Marcus Baranow
0

For whatever reason I haven’t been posting trip reports this year, maybe because I feel like what I was skiing wasn’t worth noting or maybe I’m just lazy, either way neither seem to be the case after this last trip. […]

Trip Reports

Consolation Col

July 14, 2020July 15, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

Brandon and I’s original plan this week was to ski Bell Couloir starting from Moraine Lake, heading over Consolation Col, climbing the south aspect of Bell and then looping back down through Taylor Pass. We headed out from Moraine Lake […]

Trip Reports

Wapta Summer Skiing

June 29, 2020July 3, 2020
Marcus Baranow
1

It’s officially summer but it sure doesn’t feel like it. Most days around Lake Louise have highs of 15C and there is still snow at treeline in many places and deep snow in the alpine. Leading up to our weekend […]

Trip Reports

Canoskimo

June 22, 2020July 3, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

A week prior Brandon messaged me looking to get some turns and I had just the adventure to fit the bill. I had been watching the snow levels above Bow Lake for a couple of weeks and I wanted to […]

Trip Reports

Helena Ridge

June 8, 2020July 3, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

Everyone had been hitting up the Icefields but Nick and I kept getting bad weather windows on our days off so this week we decided to check out the Castle Mountain area. I often go to this zone when the […]

Trip Reports

Eisenhower Couloir

March 13, 2020June 16, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

On March 13 2020 Nick and I went back to Rockbound Lake in hopes of skiing the full Eisenhower Couloir. There is a chockstone in this run but you can’t ski under it so we brought a small rock rack […]

Trip Reports

Rockbound Lake Couloirs

February 28, 2020June 16, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

It’s been several months since I did a trip report and I was surprised I never made one for this day as it was sweet. On Feb 28 2020 Nick, Brandon, Nathan and I went up to Rockbound Lake to […]

Trip Reports

Natalko (Talc) Peak FWA

February 22, 2020February 25, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

Earlier this month Nick and I attempted to get up Natalko (Talc) Peak but were turned away for a few reasons during our 3 day trip to Egypt Lake. After looking at more pictures and satellite imagery we decided to […]

Trip Reports

The Needle

February 9, 2020February 23, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

For about 10 years I’ve been looking at the east aspect of Natalko (Talc) Peak and wondering what goes and what doesn’t. A few times I have attempted to ski some of the lines by booting up them but always […]

Trip Reports

Plum Family Rockies Week

January 31, 2020February 23, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

Last year I was able to test the Plum Oazo binding thanks to SkiUphill and I loved them and in the summer I contacted Plum to see if they would be interested in working together to promote their product in […]

Trip Reports

The Mind Shaft

January 25, 2020
Marcus Baranow
1

I believe the first time I saw this run was 11 years ago (2009) on a trip to Egypt Lake, (or maybe in Lost Horse Creek, where you can actually see the whole run). The line was huge with massive […]

Trip Reports

December Pow

January 6, 2020
Marcus Baranow
0

Today as I looked at my website I realized that I forgot to post anything in December, maybe it was all the fresh pow clogging my brain that made me forget to post? In early December the Rockies got hit […]

Trip Reports

Terrain Trap Weekend

December 1, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

I usually avoid skiing the terrain trap gully/drainage features found on Observation Peak but with the sun out, inversion strong, danger rating low and having skied close by several times this month, we decided to have a go at them. […]

Trip Reports

Cobra Couloir

November 29, 2019December 1, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

I love skiing Cobra Couloir and when Kevin Hjertass told me they skied it in powder conditions I knew it was on the short list for the day. Cobra Couloir is found on the north aspect of Temple in Paradise […]

Trip Reports

Bell Couloir

November 22, 2019November 22, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

For the last week I had heard of lots of steep skiing going down in the Bow Range and finally decided to get on something myself. After a short group chat Nick, Taylor, Scotty and I decided to head up […]

Trip Reports

93N…

November 21, 2019November 21, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Last few days I’ve been skiing and doing some AST style skills days on the 93N. Sunday I tagged along on an actual AST 1 course with MTN Guiding. Monday skied some laps and did a quick snow profile on […]

Trip Reports

Observation Avalanche

November 5, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Went back up Observation today with Kyla to have a look around and it turned out to be a good learning day that ended in a remotely triggered avalanche. We parked a little south of Bow Summit and followed a […]

Trip Reports

Jimmy Jr Bowl

November 4, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Today Anna and I decided to check out Jimmy Jr Bowl. I was seeing a fair amount of tracks in the upper bowl and figure might as well see what was up. Access up the creek was thin but it […]

Trip Reports

Fairview Mountain

October 29, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

After yesterdays “better than expected” snow at Observation Peak we decided to give Fairview Mountain a shot. I had seen some IG stories from the summer trail and it looked pretty good for ski coverage. Only one way to find […]

Trip Reports

Observation, Better than Expected!

October 28, 2019
Marcus Baranow
2

Anna and I headed out to Observation Peak after seeing some posts of “better than expected” snow for the area. I was still skeptic about what we would find but sure enough “better than expected” was still what we found. […]

Trip Reports

Bow Summit, One and Done

October 14, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Anna and I got up late, forgetting to message anyone the day before and slowly made our way up the Icefields Parkway on icy roads stuck behind rental cars with no winter tires. We arrived at the closed access for […]

Trip Reports

Highwood Pass

October 12, 2019October 13, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

A week ago or so now the first big snowfall came into the area and I started seeing plenty of ski shots from the Highwood Pass area. After arranging some time off work I was able to get out that […]

Trip Reports

Bow Summit

June 17, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Ah it’s summer, mostly… in Lake Louise at least it feels that way with all the tourists (and construction). Anna and I had the day off so we decided to get out for a quick, pain free ski at Bow […]

Trip Reports

Mount Temple Attempt

May 20, 2019May 20, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Chris messaged me a couple of days ago about trying to ski the south west aspect of Temple. I haven’t been skiing all month and figured I’d give it a shot due to what looked to be good weather for […]

Trip Reports

Cathedral South East Glacier

April 21, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Just got back from spending about 28 hours on Cathedral Mountain that was filled with outstanding weather, amazing skiing and an avalanche to top it off. On Friday Chris, Scott and I decided that there might be a short window […]

Trip Reports

Heather Ridge

April 16, 2019
Marcus Baranow
2

Anna and I headed up to the ski hill today with our sights on Heather Ridge. The sky was clear and the wind calm, the sort of weather that makes a ridge skin a great choice. After skiing up and […]

Trip Reports

Collier North Glacier

April 15, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Chris, Kieran and I decided to go up Collier North Glacier today due to a forecast that hinted at a clear sky. There was a ton of reports of great north face skiing but on the downside my last recon […]

Trip Reports

Popes Peak, North Glacier

April 12, 2019April 12, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Today Mike, Chris and I decided to try to catch a weather window and ski the north glacier of Popes Peak. North aspects have been holding great snow and out of all the glaciers in the area Popes has looked […]

Trip Reports

Niblock Solo

April 9, 2019April 9, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Today I woke up fairly early with no plans outside of a lazy ski day, maybe at the resort? As I ate breakfast I realized the weather forecast was probably going to be wrong and suddenly decided to head off […]

Trip Reports

Mount Aberdeen

March 10, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

A few days ago Anna, Joel and I went for a long walk up Paradise Valley. I’ve been looking to ski a few of the lines further up the valley and they looked in shape so I talked to Chris, […]

Trip Reports

Cathedral Mountain

March 4, 2019
Marcus Baranow
1

Last week Luke sent me a message, he was in the Rockies and wanted to get after something. Of course the snow has been a little sub-par lately but I suggested Cathedral Mountain as it was suppose to be sunny […]

Trip Reports

Pope’s Col

February 23, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

A few days ago Laura messaged me about getting out with her and Adam, we were looking to get after something more than another tree run but yesterday the forecast was calling for clouds. Yesterday’s forecast had been way off, […]

Trip Reports

Sherbrooke Lake Avalanche Paths

February 17, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

The last two days I’ve been out skiing the Sherbrooke Lake Avalanche Paths on Paget Peak’s west aspect and found some great snow. On Saturday went up with Chris, Brandon and Dan to ski the 3rd path. There was an […]

Trip Reports

Paget Runout

February 15, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Headed to the Kicking Horse Pass area today with Sonia and Anna without a set plan and ended up at Great Divide Lodge heading for the south facing runout off Paget Peak. We got up to about 2150m, did a […]

Trip Reports

Ogden Wall

February 14, 2019February 14, 2019
Marcus Baranow
1

It was back to the Kicking Horse Pass area for me today. This time Kieran, Chris and I were looking to skin up the south shoulder of Ogden and at the very least have a look down some of the […]

Trip Reports

Dolomite Circuit Highline

February 13, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Headed out early this morning with Anna and Josee to do the Dolomite Circuit. We ended up doing a highline through the Dolomite Glacier area instead of taking the regular lowline route. After parking the second car we bumped up […]

Trip Reports

Phantom Couloir

February 11, 2019February 11, 2019
Marcus Baranow
1

I woke up wanting to stay in bed today but had already made plans to ski Phantom Couloir with Chris Moneypenny. Had no real excuses to bail so it was another cold day for the books. Got to the parking […]

Trip Reports

Chain Up Trees

February 10, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Skied a single lap in the Chain Up Trees and into Trucker’s Drainage with Anna, Sonia and Vince behind the Great Divide Lodge today. We followed my previous skin track to the start of Weather Station Ridge and skied down […]

Trip Reports

Weather Station Peak

February 9, 2019February 9, 2019
Marcus Baranow
1

Today was one of the more mentally challenging days of the season for me. I decided to attempt to top out on Weather Station Peak (unofficial name) after bailing midway yesterday. Today I packed boot crampons and an ice axe, […]

Trip Reports

Weather Station Ridge

February 8, 2019February 8, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Did a little solo walkabout today up behind the Great Divide Lodge. Originally I had planned to do some tree skiing but after arriving at the ridge leading to the Upper Bosworth Weather Station I decided to keep going up […]

Trip Reports

Paget Peak

February 5, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Woke up to -35C this morning in Lake Louise, packed the van and drove over to ski resort to pick up @Chris. Shortly after @Anna decided that it was just a tad too cold for her and we drove her […]

Trip Reports

Bosworth Border Bowl & Drainage

February 4, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Chris Moneypenny messaged me last night and wanted to go skiing but to be honest the temps weren’t getting me too excited to head out. Regardless he showed up just after 10am and we headed to Great Divide Lodge. We […]

Trip Reports

Lake Louise to Johnston Canyon

February 2, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

On Jan 31st Chris Moneypenny and I planned to start a take on the Ski Big 3 Loop I did back in 2013, we had planned to do the second half (SSV to LL) with Kaitlin Paris and Kieran Crimeen. […]

Trip Reports

Dolomite Shoulder

January 28, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Spent the day on Dolomite Shoulder with Mark Amos and Maria Eriksson where we found some great snow in the alpine. The recent short storm has refreshed the shoulder area and loaded up the lee zones. We stuck to the […]

Trip Reports

Massive Mountain

January 27, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Went to the summit of Massive Mountain with Laura Kos and Adam Campbell today. The day started out with a whiteout storm on the way to the trailhead but as we started skinning up the forest we saw hints of […]

Trip Reports

Hector South Peak, South Shoulder Looker’s Left Path

January 25, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
1

Skied the looker’s left avalanche path of Hector South Peak’s South Shoulder with Anna Elkins and Sonia Foucault today from 2400m. Skinned up the left side of the drainage until reaching where all the runouts meet. We climbed up the […]

Trip Reports

Hector South Ridge

January 24, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Skied in the Hector South Ridge zone today with Vince Goyette, Michelle Brazier and Denny Neufeld. We skinned up to the high alpine ridge and skied back down to the road. Alpine was all sorts of messed up wind blasted, […]

Trip Reports

Sunshine Sidecountry Loop

January 21, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Did a big lap of Sunshine Sidecountry today where I met up with Chris Moneypenny along the route! Went up Goats Eye first thing for a couple of laps before heading to Divide for another two laps and skied down […]

Trip Reports

Egypt Lake

January 20, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Spent the last 3 days at Egypt Lake with Anna Elkins, Ally Watson, Josiane Simard, Beth Turcotte, Tristan Kimmerle, Fredrik Bengtsson and Dookie Dukes. On Friday we skied into the shelter via Healy Pass. We started our run down to […]

Trip Reports

Hidden Lake Camping

January 10, 2019February 6, 2019
Marcus Baranow
0

Spent Jan 9 & 10 teaching Kaitlin Paris some winter camping skills at Hidden Lake Campground in Lake Louise backcountry. Going from Talus Lodge to winter camping in less than 24 hours was interesting… We took the gondola up and […]

Posts navigation

1 2 Next
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Email
Copyright All rights reserved Theme: News Base by Themematic
  • Go Skiing!
  • Trip Reports
  • Learn
  • Gear Reviews
  • Press
  • Videos
  • About
  • Go Skiing!
    • Guidebooks
    • Ski Zones
  • Trip Reports
  • Learn
    • How To
  • Gear Reviews
    • Gear Kits
    • Skis
    • Boots
    • Bindings
    • Skins
    • Safety
    • Clothing
    • Camping
    • Trash
  • Press
  • Videos
  • About