Grouse Creek X-C Exploration

Hi All,

Let's ski up the Grouse Creek drainage, at Cumbres Pass.  This is an exploratory trip, to find a good way to get up to the Jarosa Peak plateau above the Grouse Creek Yurt.  (The exploration is to set up the next trip, a Grouse Creek/Red Lake Road loop ski).

The tour starts at the Red Lake Road trailhead, then crosses over to the Grouse Creek trail.  It is 4 miles and 1000' elevation gain to the Grouse Creek Yurt.  Then is is another 400 ft elevation gain, in 1/4 - 1/2 mile to get up to the Jarosa Peak Plateau.  If we have a strong and energetic party, we can continue the tour towards Red Lake.  We will return the way we came, to the cars.  

Backcountry skis are appropriate for this tour.  It will probably be helpful to have climbing skins for the climb above the yurt to the Jarosa Peak plateau.    Bring lunch, water, layers of clothing, radios if you have them, your own personal first aid items.

If you are interested, please send Jean an email at jdewart@q.com    It is most likely that I will actually be in Chama on Sunday night (at the wonderful Chama Chile Ski Classic!), and meet the trip participants in Chama to head up to the pass.  So, the first draft of the carpooling arrangements from Los Alamos will be to meet at Sullivan Field at 7 am on Monday.  This tour would also be great for folks coming home from the LAM trip to Wolf Creek over the MLK weekend.  

Please let me know of your interest by Friday January 13th, to make sure we have good communications!   Hope you can come.