Keith Garvey
Marmot Athlete Teams
Adrian Ballinger Squaw Valley, CA
Ruedi Beglinger Revelstoke, BC, Canada
Zahan Billimoria Jackson, WY
Armin Fisher Algana, Italy
Angela Hawse Ridgway, CO
Dick Jackson Aspen, CO
Mark Newcomb Jackson, WY
Mike Poborsky Jackson, WY
Brenton Reagan Jackson, WY
Christian Santelices Victor, ID
Miles Smart Chamonix, France
Liz Smart Chamonix, France- Jim Williams Jackson, WY
If you’re on the market for avalanche safety equipment, look no further. Backcountry Access has developed two new items that will greatly reduce the time it takes to find someone and more importantly your risk of avalanche burial. Though education and avoidance is number one, having the right equipment and being prepared can save you and your friends lives.
BCA has long been the leading company in beacon development. With the new Tracker 2, they just got better! The Tracker 2 offers the industry’s fastest, most precise pinpointing, with triple receive antenna, instantaneous real–time display, and same easy–to–use interface. An intuitive mechanical search/transmit switch makes it even easier to use right “out of the box.” Thinner profile and harness than Tracker DTS and also includes the “Special mode” and multiple burial indicator lights.
Check out this video of the new Tracker 2…
Avalanche air bags are, hands down, the best piece of equipment to have while traveling in avalanche terrain. Of course the beacon, probe and shovel are all necessary pieces of equipment, but by not getting buried in the first place, your three steps ahead. Excavation time is by far the biggest contributing factor in avalanche fatalities. By reducing or eliminating burial depth you substantially increase your chances of survival. The Float 30 is the first airbag that is both affordable and easily reusable. We use a smaller cylinder, single–chamber 150–liter airbag, and super–efficient venturi system to reduce cost and weight. The airbag itself not only helps prevent burial, but protects the head, neck and upper body from trauma. With its location behind the head and away from the hips and arms, it preserves the user’s peripheral vision and his or her ability to escape the avalanche before it picks up speed.
Check out the features of the Float 30 pack in this video:
The Matterhorn (German), Monte Cervino (Italian) or Mont Cervin (French), is a mountain in the Pennine Alps on the border between Switzerland and Italy. Its summit is 4,478 metres (14,692 ft) high, making the Matterhorn one of the highest peaks in the Alps. The Matterhorn was the last great Alpine peak to be climbed and its first ascent, up the Hörnli ridge, marked the end of the golden age of alpinism. It was made in 1865 by a party led by Edward Whymper and ended tragically when four of its members fell to their deaths on the descent. To read more about the first ascent click here.
After a week of sport climbing and mountain biking in Arco, Italy, Krista and I were nose deep in guidebooks planning our week long trip to the Dolomites. And out-of-nowhere, I received an email from a good friend and fellow guide Amos Whiting stating he and his girlfriend Ali had an extra room for a week in their apartment in Mallorca, Spain… So we immediately looked into cheap flights and a day later we were flying Easy Jet to Palma de Mallorca and deep water soloing soon after! What an amazing place and rush of adrenalin! Below are some of the photos from our trip and I am sure I will be returning…
Amos spent a month guiding here last year, so he was chalked full of beta. He offers DWS (deep water soloing camps) at his website www.mallorcaclimbingcamps.com.
Ecuador has four major volcanoes, all glaciated and sit anywhere between 18,900 and 20,700 feet. We picked three that looked the most interesting; Cotopaxi, Antisana, and Chimborzao and were fortunate to summit all three. Here are a few photos from our highly successful and super fun adventure through the high plains of Ecuador.
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A day with Helitrax on Feb. 7, 2012. An old college buddy, Hunter LeGear, came to town for some riding in the San Juans. With a foot of new snow and a blue bird day we decided to do a day of heli-skiing in Telluride. With no wind, the Colorado champaign powder lived up to it’s name. It was fun to see Warner Miller shooting that day and all of us experience some runs of a lifetime. The photos below don’t to it justice, but you can get the idea and there’s a link to Hunter’s GoPro video.
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With such easy access, great anchors on top, and no avalanche danger the Ouray Ice Park is hands down the greatest training ground for ice and mixed climbing in the lower 48. On this particular day, I had about two hours to get after some climbing. I headed to the park with a rope, mini-traxion and ice gear setting off to climb five pitches of ice. Below are some photos a women took while I was climbing the Culminator, a route rated WI 5. With nearly 200 routes to climb the opportunities are endless for all abilities…
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Video put together by Pete Muszi… nice job Pete, and looking forward to some skiing in La Grave this year!
Team Aussie came back to the alps this year, but this time for two weeks! After a great ski tour on the Ortler last year, Tony, James and Matthew wanted to check out La Grave, Chamonix and ski off the summit of Mont Blanc. Below are some images from our trip in La Grave. The Chamonix section can be seen here.
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Due to icy conditions on Mont Blanc, we were unable to ski off the summit this year. Instead we did a grand ski tour amongst the impressive peaks just below the Massif du Mont Blanc. We started off the Aiguille du Midi and had a long day climbing up and over the Breche du Pussieux, skiing the Leschaux glacier and arriving at the refuge du Couvercel just before sunset. The following day we headed up to Point Isabela and had a great corn run back to the Montenvers train. Below are a few photos from our trip thanks to David Hewett.
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The Ortler ski circuit is a six day hut to hut ski tour in Northern Italy. We had the same crew from our 2010 Haute Route team and once again were blessed with great conditions. Below are a few images taken from Izzy and Aaron. Thanks everyone for a great trip and looking forward to Norway in 2013!
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AMA’s newsletter for the winter/spring of 2011…
Winter ice climbing in Ouray. Backcountry skiing on Red Mountain Pass and Telluride, Colorado. Ski tours in the Alps; Haute Route, Berner Oberland, Ski Mont Blanc, Tour de la Meije, and the Ortler. Lift access skiing in La Grave.
Ice Climbing season is here!
Recent climbs:
Powder skiing in the Alps
Upcoming Trips
Colorado
- Ouray Ice Park
- Skiing the San Juans
Alps Ski Trips
IFMGA/UIAGM licensed and AMGA certified guidesBerner Oberland
Mont Blanc Massif
Happy Thanksgiving!I have a lot to be thankful for this past year and am looking forward to new adventures in 2011! This Fall, I spent most of my time rock guiding in the desert and preparing for big changes this winter. AMA recently relocated to Ridgway, Colorado, the gateway to the majestic San Juan Mountains, and launched a new, improved website (check it out here).
The new location offers quick access to winter destinations like the Ouray Ice Park, the slopes in Telluride, and backcountry skiing on Red Mountain Pass. As you’re planning your winter getaways, consider the San Juan’s. I’ll be here from now through February!
If Colorado isn’t in the cards for 2011, I’ll be returning to the Alps this spring. The month of March will be lift access off-piste skiing in La Grave, and come April I am guiding ski tours along the Haute Route, Ortler Ski Circuit, Berner Oberland, and Ski Mont Blanc.
I hope you are enjoying the change of season and getting fired up for ice climbing and powder skiing. Please keep me posted on your whereabouts and your upcoming adventures!
Keith Garvey
Owner/Head Guide
Ouray, Colorado
Ouray is home to some of the best ice climbing and mixed climbing in the lower 48! We’re here until the end of February, working with San Juan Mountain Guides to guide ice and backcountry ski descents throughout the Southwest… read more.
Dates Available: December- February
La Grave, France
With over 7,000′ of vertical ski terrain, no boundaries, few people, and one cable car…..La Grave is the best ‘off-piste’ ski area in the world! Join us for a full week or just a few days, as there is a plethora of moderate to challenging terrain… read more.
Ski Weeks Bookings available: January- April
Keith’s Available: March
Berner Oberland
This classic ski mountaineering tour travels amongst some of the most impressive 4000 meter peaks in the range. For six days we travel alongside (the Eiger, Monch, Jungfrau, and Finsterarrhorn); all of which are interconnected by Europe’s largest and longest glacier, the Aletsch. Read more….
Dates: April 28-May 3, 2011
Ski Mont Blanc
At 15,780′, Mont Blanc is the tallest peak in Western Europe and offers over 10,000′ of downhill bliss. This six day trip prepares you for the skiing, the climb and the demands of altitude… read more.
Dates: April 21-26, 2011
Chamonix to Zermatt Haute Route
Spend seven days on skis touring between the two biggest alpine centers in the world! The Haute Route offers spectacular views, a splash of culture and great skiing along the way… read more.
Dates: April 3-9, 2011
Our mailing address is:All Mountain Adventures
P.O. Box 945
Ridgway, CO 81432
climb@allmountainadventures.com
www.allmountainadventures.com
Copyright (C) 2010 All Mountain Adventures. All rights reserved.
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Clint Cook and I went to check out Bird Brain Boulevard this morning. Up on Camp Bird Mine Road; it’s notorious for long run outs and dicey protection with crampons and ice axes on your appendages . Sounds fun…?! With 6 inches of new snow covering the rock, we headed to South Mineral Creek to seek ice instead. We ended up climbing the Direct North Face. Of all the routes, it held the most ice and looked the most intriguing. Though a much different experience than climbing Bird Brain, it was nice to cruise on easy ice.
Climbed the 2nd Gully in Silverton today with Andres Marin. Since there isn’t much snow we could drive right to the base , put crampons on at the car and started climbing. The ice was thin in spots, but overall in great conditions. Below are a few photos from the day…
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Arriving in Las Vegas is always a sight for sore eyes. With the Cascades being so wet and miserable, I was relieved to be hitting the desert! For the next two weeks, I worked two AMGA rock guide exams; one with Dale Remsberg and the other with Mark Chauvin and Tom Hargis. We were fortunate to have great participants! I think all told, I was guided up 200 pitches of climbing in ten days………damn those guys work hard! And the good news; they all passed! The weird thing for me, is that being a guide, I’ve top-roped more pitches in Red Rock than I’ve lead…fancy that?! Anyhow, below are some photos from just two routes over those then ten days: Epinephrine IV 5.9 and Bird Hunter Buttress IV 5.9. Hope you enjoy!
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Early September Bean Bowers and I had a great season opener in the Black. We rapped down South Chasm View wall and climbed the classic Astro dog to Tague yer Time. Wow, what a phenomenal route!!! We were a little gun shy to do Tague yer Time in it’s entirety. With the cruxy 5.12 enduro corner to start we opted for the more casual 5.10+ semi wide start to Astro Dog. After about 3 pitches, we traversed a pitch below the “two boulder bivy” and got on Tague Yer Time at the 5.11b corner. Higher up there are still multiple pitches of 5.11 and three of 5.12. All protect well (just a bit of spice) and the crux’s are more boulder problems then an enduro fest. In the end, we definitely got our moneys worth!
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Over the last four years, I seem to find myself in the North Cascades teaching guiding training programs for the AMGA. This year I was co-teaching with Jeff Ward and despite some of the worst weather I’ve seen in the North Wet, we still managed to get a lot in over the ten days. On this particular day we climbed Mount Shuksan; one team climbed the North Ridge and down the South, while the other team climbed the Southwest Ridge and circumnavigated the peak. Both teams then met on the upper Curtis Glacier and practiced crevasse rescue. Below are some images of it and a movie of the North Ridge shot a few years ago.
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Stephen Chiang and I climbed for a week in the chamonix valley. Though we experienced some bad weather we still managed to climb 8 peaks in 8 days (Oh the beauty of lift served climbing!). Since it snowed almost a meter of new snow in the high peaks we started in the Aiguilles Rouge and climbed the Traverse des Crochues. This route traverse west to east across the Aiguilles Crochues (2840m).
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