A close up of the Aspen area form the summit. Not only are Pyramid and the Bells looking large, but Aspen Highlands can be seen in a unique perspective.
Route: North Ridge
Team: Ted, Christy, Dirk Bockelmann
Trying to keep the momentum going, we headed down to Holy Cross. The three of us headed up the road on snowmobile, all the way to the Halfmoon Pass summer trailhead.
Earlier we had discussed the options, and knowing the avy risk was higher than we usually like, we decided we should stick to the more mellow North Ridge of the mountain, and forgo the more exciting Cross Couloir for another time. Sure enough, there was a good amount of settling as we made our way over the pass and a small pocket of snow pulled out as we descended to Cross Creek.
The North Ridge proved to be OK though. It’s pretty wind scoured and thin which isn’t necessarily good for skiing, but what makes for good skiing is often very slide-prone, so we were happy with the safer option. The weather was overcast, and the wind knocked the enjoy-ability factor down a few notches, but we made it to the summit and down safely. Someday we’ll have to return to get Christy a Cross Couloir descent.
Halfmoon Pass. The long North Ridge can be seen leading to the summit.
Christy near the summit. The Aspen-area peaks can be seen out in the distance.
Skiing the thin snow off the top.
Lower down the North Ridge.
A close up of the Aspen area form the summit. Not only are Pyramid and the Bells looking large, but Aspen Highlands can be seen in a unique perspective.
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