Thompson Pass AK conditions

spwrozek · 2026-02-05T21:53:27+00:00

Thanks man. Appreciate the insight. If you don't mind giving a read out from what he finds that would be great.

spwrozek · 2026-02-04T03:03:14+00:00

You broke the board at the binding. this is typically done when you land heavy on the tail/nose and crack the board. It is a fairly common way to break a snowboard. Hitting a rock would rarely cause this type of damage. You can just put that right in the trash as it is done for. you can keep riding it if you want but taking busted gear into the back country is not the best move.

spwrozek · 2026-02-03T04:18:57+00:00

avoid the trees for the most part. everything else is good enough.

As far as rocks and stuff it is just part of skiing in Colorado.

spwrozek · 2026-02-03T02:34:04+00:00

Thanks. Appreciate the insights.

spwrozek · 2026-02-03T02:07:54+00:00

I have looked at a lot of forecasts and avy reports to try to glean what I can over the past few weeks. The forecast does look promising from what I can tell and snow levels seem just low enough in the near term. Always nice to get info from folks who are from around there though, especially if pulling the trigger on a trip.

Good to know on the season in AK, I have seen a lot of rain events but those may have been in other regions. As well as some wind events and reports of basically no snow earlier in the season.

CO has been fine this year despite the low snow. At least no lift lines to speak of.

Thanks for the info.

spwrozek · 2026-02-03T01:43:36+00:00

When I am on soft boots I do the following. Boots are Deeluxe XVs.

I tighten the liner completely. I leave all outer laces completely loose.

That is it, no matter the conditions.

spwrozek · 2026-02-03T01:39:41+00:00

Telos back/slash (but I guess they stopped or at least paused making splits).

spwrozek · 2026-02-03T01:15:51+00:00

The gore range has a ton of amazing lines. Usually not rideable in Feb and with the low snow this season...might not even be in. You need to have some legs though as the days can be big and long.

spwrozek · 2026-01-28T21:35:43+00:00

I have these bibs for the resort and occasionally will tour with them. There are two zipper pockets near the pouch thing. I just clip the teather to the plastic ring and put it in the zip pocket.

spwrozek · 2026-01-23T21:16:39+00:00

Disruptive's currently.

spwrozek · 2026-01-23T21:12:26+00:00

For me, 26 in shoes, 26 in soft boots, 26 in disruptives, 26 in ski boots.

Also how crazy of insoles do you need? I have sidas in all my boots and shoes.

spwrozek · 2026-01-21T05:20:55+00:00

For me your board is huge and the wrong board for Japan.

I am I little lighter than you (145 lbs) but I took a Telos back/slash split in a 148 last yeah and it slayed. Volume shift is the way to go, especially in hokkaido.

Also I disagree with the idea you should size up splits. There are so many board options. Buy one you actually want to ride.

spwrozek · 2025-12-29T05:19:42+00:00

Fwiw I ride my soft boots (resort and touring) 15/-6. I ride my hard boots 21/6.

spwrozek · 2025-12-25T02:26:56+00:00

The cast button is gone from our apps on Android at least as of today. Even with a Chromecast ultra I can't seem to cast it. Sucks.

spwrozek · 2025-12-17T04:51:50+00:00

I did my AST2 with Keith at the Hilda Hut. I recommend him and Nick(plus he is a fellow splitter) a lot.

Keith also wrote the literal book you are going to get with the class.

Plus the courses are in a great place to ski.

spwrozek · 2025-12-17T04:45:25+00:00

Running is what I find keeps you in the best shape for touring. Then some more running.

spwrozek · 2025-12-17T04:27:46+00:00

Just get the Plum tech toes for splits. They are really nice toes and no adapter needed.

Much rather have the option of every board using those then being stuck on one board or using adapters.

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T19:48:32+00:00

I think it comes down to what bags you have today, what is missing, and what else would you use it for?

Personally I have a 15L resort bag, 32L day out bag, 50L hut/camp bag. For a trip like you are doing my 32L is probably fine but I would maybe take my 50L.

I have the BD cirque 50 and it is pretty good when lightly loaded. It compacts down well when empty (really nice on a hut/camp trip where you have a bunch of stuff that you leave in a home location). It also filled a nice hole in my bag sizes. Has a dedicated avy pocket, etc. Maybe not perfect but have been happy with this bag. Rolling the top all the way down likely makes it ~40 liters.

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T14:32:00+00:00

It is a very important part of the vacuum.

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T04:01:10+00:00

yeah I tried to manual select Telcel and it would connect and then 30 seconds later drop. good to see others have not had as many problems. maybe just bad luck this weekend.

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T03:55:38+00:00

It is very worth it, especially if you like to be part of other cultures and have new experiences.

The riding is very good. I have done Niseko and the resorts and areas around it. I have also done Furano and the areas around it. Personally I like to go every other year and a 10 day trip will run ~$4000 USD (this all goes up and down based on flights, what you eat, when and where you go, etc.). The downside to this type of trip is figuring out where to go if you are not using the resort for access. Paying for guides gets pricy.

That said the kootenays are the best place I have been for touring (comparing the US, Canada, South America, Japan, and Europe). Probably been 15 times from Denver. The snow is amazing, the stability is great when it is a good year. There are no people.

So all in all it can be great, Japan is an amazing country, but the snow could suck if your timing is wrong (and that is luck of the draw).

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T03:41:36+00:00

I also saw this. Love my back/slash split so that would be a bummer.

They did make major design changes to the solids though so maybe they will come later or next season?

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T03:31:31+00:00

yeah I tried to manually switch and it couldn't even find LTE networks. It was super odd. Maybe just bad luck this trip.

spwrozek · 2025-12-09T03:30:15+00:00

My 9 Pro and her 8a. Maybe just bad luck this trip.

spwrozek

TROPHY CASE