12" of Fresh at JHMR

After an angry snowstorm wailed all night on Tuesday, we woke up to a foot of fresh powder that had fallen exclusively overnight. The sun was out for a bit in the morning so I was able to get a few shots in before the clouds took over again. Here's to more powder days!

David stomps a 20+-footer in Bernie's Bowl.

Off Trail Sightseeing

Honestly, I don't really want to say much about where this precious area of the Tetons is, but I need to post some photos just so everyone can see where I spent my morning today. I ♥ this place.

Our final destination. I'm down in the left corner.

Fun scrambling.

The Grand Teton!!

Looking back towards the valley.

Cairns lead the way...

Blue skies and fluffy clouds.

Taggart & Bradley Lakes.

Fourth of July Weekend

With the unfortunate knowledge that I had to work at 5pm on the Fourth of July, I decided to get an early celebration in with some friends on the 3rd. I had heard about what a fun day trip it can be going up to Phelps Lake in Grand Teton National Park, and I hoped that it would cure my need for a day at the lake like we used to have in Washington.

Death Canyon Trailhead

A few miles down the worst dirt road ever and a quick hike in led us to some spectacular views of Phelps Lake from the Death Canyon trailhead. If you're not much of a hiker, this one's for you. The trail is easy, there are lots of people around, and you still get rewarded with an amazing view.

Phelps Lake & Death Canyon.

We hiked down to the water's edge and over to a large boulder on the north side of the lake. This is the perfect jumping rock. The water was ice cold, so Julie & I opted to watch the boys. Alex took the plunge first and the rest followed suit.

Alex taking the plunge.

Robin's stoked.

Since it was super cold and windy on the top of the rock, we moved over to a sandy area on the west side of the lake. We spent the rest of the day soaking up some rays, playing horseshoes, and taking pictures. Not a bad way to spend a beautiful summer day.

Late afternoon on Phelps Lake.

That night, David and I headed over to Teton Village to catch the fireworks. Yes, they were on the 3rd and the 4th. Highly beneficial for locals like me who are keeping this town alive on the holiday. Thanks Jackson Hole!

Teton Village fireworks.

On a side note, I took all of my photos this weekend with my film camera. I'm anxiously waiting for the results. More photos to come...

Just when I thought it was over...

Never underestimate the power of mother nature...really. Two weeks ago I was driving over Teton Pass to Seattle on a bright sunny day, wearing a sundress, observing somebody riding their bicycle. Fast forward to today. At 7 am this morning, I was driving up Teton Pass trying to avoid black ice, dodging layers of fog, only to break through the clouds and see tons of fresh snow, my snowboard in the back of the truck. Oh and to top it off, there was this beautiful inversion so we were actually hiking and riding above the clouds. It really did feel like we were in heaven! I don't really think there is much more to say other than happy early birthday to me :)

Famous sign at the top of the Pass. "Howdy Stranger, Yonder is Jackson Hole. The last of the Old West!"

Driving up the Pass, just after breaking through clouds.

I'd been hiking almost an hour here. I'm rejoicing because the end is near!

David looking into a sea of clouds just before our descent.

Fresh snow to shred...in May!

Photo Show...Finally!

Photographs are fantastic, but there is just something about seeing a finished product that puts them all together that really gets me excited. When I was at High Cascade Photo Workshop last year, all of the photographers teaching (Tim Zimmerman, Andy Wright, Christy Chaloux, Cole Barash, & Bud Fawcett) showcased their photographs from the previous season in a slideshow set to music. Each photographer had chosen just the right music for their show and it gave me the chills to watch them. Inspired by that, I decided to make a slideshow of all of my favorite photos from this season in Jackson Hole. I made the show on PhotoDex ProShow Gold. It was a blast putting it together and it really gave me something to do (and obsess over waaayyy too much) during my vacation in Seattle. Let me know what you think and most of all, enjoy!

Side Note: If you want to view it in HD (it's much cooler) then just click on the photo's title and it will take you straight to my Vimeo site.

Jackson Hole 09-10 Photo Show from Amy Galbraith on Vimeo.

Back to the Rain

It started raining today. Thunder and everything. I figure that it's fitting considering that we are going to do a trip back to Seattle tonight. We have been house-sitting for two weeks and decided that it was time to head home. It's going to be a long and boring drive to a classy Comfort Inn in Spokane, then powering back to the city tomorrow. You can tell I'm excited...Now that I have the security of a job when I get back, I can go on this trip worry-free! We've been pretty busy getting cleaned up and stuff today, but I just thought of a video that I wanted to share. David's Jackson Hole 09-10 Season Edit! He compiled this video using all of the clips that we shot randomly throughout the year. I love the ending. So here it is! Enjoy!

Jackson Hole 2009/10 from David Duffy on Vimeo.

Kicker Sesh on Teton Pass

The off-season has officially begun here in Jackson Hole. I've heard horror stories about this time of year, also referred to as "The Mud Season". The snow begins to melt away, people leave, and the town is lifeless. Lucky for me, I picked up a house-sitting gig for local portrait photographer Flo McCall out in South Park. It's not too far from town, but it's private with a dog and lots of room to play. It's also convenient in the sense that it's a straight shot up to Teton Pass where I can get those last few turns out of the way before I put my snowboard in the closet and pull out my bicycle.

In order to take advantage of the snow still left in the mountains, we packed up the truck with some friends and headed up to Teton Pass. We decided to make a run on an area of the south side of the pass called "The Claw". (Sounds scary, I know.) The Claw is a face made up of lots of trees, chutes, and cliffs. Super fun. The first day out, the snow was amazing. Still soft and fluffy due to the north-facing slope aspect. On our ride down we spied a spot that would be perfect to build a backcountry kicker. We've talked about doing that all season and decided that it was time to finally get it done.

Saturday, we piled up in the truck again, shovels ready to go. It took David, Trevor, & Russ (I was moral support) over an hour to build the beast. I'd say they did a pretty nice job though.

Finishing touches.

It was time to hit it. I busted out my camera and got some shots of the boys sessioning. The jump had a pretty steep landing and they got some big air off of it.

David backflipping over the valley.

View from below.

Everyone started getting tired and we decided to head out around 3:30 pm. It was a nice long day on the Pass. Of course, there was still another day in the weekend, meaning another day to ride. I was feeling pretty sick when I woke up (not sure if it's allergies or a cold) but nevertheless, I dragged myself out of bed to go hike up to the Claw. Fresh air always helps when I'm sick anyway. We had a crew: David, Trevor, Russ, Cyrus, Justin, and our Seattle friends Robin Pitt (a fellow photog) and his girlfriend Julie (used to work at Café Ladro in lower Queen Anne!). Everyone sessioned all day and we had the best time.

Cyrus, frontside 360.

Russ sends it.

Cyrus & David hiking the jump.

Trevor rocks his pickle.

David, backside 5.

David gets that backcountry method shot he's wanted all season!

Unfortunately, that might have been one of the last days we get to ride this season. The snow was so heavy and sticky when we came down through the chutes that it was almost unbearable. Needless to say, it was one of the best days we've had out on the Pass with good friends, good riders, and lots of laughs.

More Pictures from the JH Backcountry

Thought I'd post up a few more photos from the weekend that David took with his camera. Sweet shots for sure. It's also cool to show that I snowboard too :)

Me gettin stoked to hike Cody!

On the hike to Cody, looking back at the Grand Teton.

Getting ready to shred Powder 8's.

Me, standing at the top of our line down Granite Canyon.

Some of the deepest snow I've ridden this season!

David's view from the top of a pillow line.

Conor's shapin' up to get rad.

Me on the peaceful part of the hike out of Granite Canyon.

Dirt is the new powder...didn't ya hear?

Powder Blues

We haven't gotten any snow in a while. The sun has been out, creating temperatures in the 50s that are deteriorating our snowpack at a rapid rate. A melt freeze cycle is occurring daily and the early morning snow is this awful, bulletproof crust. I find it hard to actually get motivated about snowboarding. Spring snow is fun, but it's just the beginning of March. I feel like there are so many more lines that I wanted to hit this season and I haven't been able to due to lack of snowfall and bad timing with work. Yesterday we hit up the resort for some park riding. Here's a quick video of David's newest feat, backside rodeo five. At least somebody is progressing :)

I've spent the morning cooking up a delicious breakfast of honey-glazed bacon, veggie egg scramble, and jelly toast. Then I decided to experiment with some Photoshop techniques and try out some borders for my images. Here's the result:

Fun in Four Pines

A few days off left lots of opportunity for hikes into the backcountry. On Friday, I headed out to Four Pines with David, his buddy Conner, and Halina. It was kind of a foggy day but I took the camera out anyway just in case. After the two hikes, we dropped into the north side of the ridge and were greeted with really deep powder turns. It wasn't long before Conner, David and Halina were scoping out some gnarly pillow/cliff lines. I, of course, tried to veer around such courses. As much as I am looking to drop more this winter, I think I'll hold off on the 20-footers for now. I carefully made my way around the first bunch of cliffs to see what my friends could do.

On the way down we came across several more outcroppings. Conner spotted a pretty crazy pillow drop and nailed it. He was a little fast for me to get a shot but I caught David following in his path. I was pretty glad I got at least one decent photo from the day because it was totally socked in and dumping snow, which made for pretty challenging shooting conditions.

Powder Pillows - David Duffy.

I'm sure we'll all get out together again for more photos. I always get stoked to shoot with talented skiers and riders, especially when they're girls :) Go Halina!

Next up was Saturday, another great day for venturing out of bounds. I was really excited to ride with my friend Laura from University of Washington. She works 9-5 so I haven't ridden with her all year. It was just lucky that I got a Saturday off of work. We started out the day with a hike up the Crags. They weren't open the day before so we thought it would be really good. It was totally deceiving from the top -- a field of untouched powder -- but when we dropped in we realized that it was sunbaked and heavy. Yuck. I still got a decent shot of David ripping down the heavy stuff.

A rare bluebird day in the Crags. Rider: David Duffy.

After that we decided it would be best to go out to Four Pines. We followed a parade of people out there and I felt like I really had to push myself on the hike so that nobody passed me. I'm definitely getting better at hiking at 8,000 - 10,000 feet!

We took a pretty mellow shot down the nose of the ridge in order to avoid avalanche danger on the steeper slopes. We were all stoked and tired by the end of the traverse so a trip to the Mangy Moose was in order.

I can't really think of more perfect days off. Lots of snowboarding, hiking, and spending time with friends...only the best :D

Big Days lead to Big Mountain Lines

Much to my dismay, the biggest snowfall of the year fell on a day that I was taking photos at the top of the kiddie lift. I woke up to a snow report of 12" overnight, 18" in the last 24 hours. I was super bummed. Luckily, the manager let us take some runs over on Apres Vous, and Jake and I tore it up in Saratoga Bowl. It was some of the deepest powder I've seen over there, and the traverse out was even mildly tame. Whew. Luckily, I had Tuesday off so I could at least get some leftovers from the huge day before.

David's friends Jesse & Chris are in town, so we started the day with a lap on the tram. It turned out to be a sunny day so we showed them the gorgeous view from the top. Jesse got really excited:

Jesse Atkins. Jumping for joy over Cody Peak.

We headed down to the bottom of Sublette and decided on our next plan of attack. David spotted a chute that looked ride-able and decided to go for it. Needless to say, he went a little bigger than I thought he would and I kind of freaked out on my side of the lens when I saw him do it. That's David though.

Rock drop to stomp 6 " from a rock...no big deal.

On the way to that line I had spotted a much gnarlier line that needed dropping. The sun was out and the snow was good so David decided to go for it. Let's just say that I was pretty stoked on David's riding today. I've seen him hit some pretty big drops and stuff in the park, but watching him do these big mountain lines got me really excited. Cody Peak is next.

Soon I had to get my hiking itch taken care of and I met up with my friend Steve to hike the Crags. It took about 45 minutes from the Apres Vous side, but we found one of the best lines. Trees and knee-waist deep powder. Steve hit a tree stump and ripped his pants, but other than that it was all good.

We spent the remainder of the day playing around in Saratoga Bowl. I took a few shots of the guys "jibbing" this big pillowy rock. It was too abrupt to hit and jump off of so a spray was the way to go.

David Duffy rock spray.

Back to work for the next two days, and then some more good riding. I must say that I'm getting awfully used to riding with my 25 lb. camera bag...and that's a good thing :)