„Powder in the South“ – Hospental and Bedretto (12. – 13. Januar 2018)
„Powder in the South“ is the title I picked to publish this tour in our newsletter… that was no lie! I wish I could write more often for tours like that 🙂 In one word: *u*n*i*q*u*e*
Friday: we agreed to stop in Furka valley on our way to Bedretto, direction Winterhorn (aka Pizza d’Orsino), a long open ridge along the (closed) Gotthard road. Today it’s only the two of us with Marco. The quality of the snow is remarkable from the first hundred meters! After a quiet ascent, we decide to ski the short E face below the summit (encouraged by a single track and the stability of the snow even behind the ridge). As we reach the flatter part of the ridge, we head to the N flank where we enjoy 700m of „first track“ in dream powder. 100m before the end, we can’t stop it, we head back up! We soon meet others (looks like our tracks were inspirational) and reascent 400m that we’ll enjoy riding as much as the first time.
ascending to Pizzo d’Orsino
heading to the N flank
endless first track in dream powder
more powder 🙂
not enough powder yet, it looks like…
we’ve a few happy followers
after doing my first somersault with skis!
at night, we head to quiet Bedretto after picking up Claire…
Saturday: unexpectedly the avalanche forecast has decreased to risk 2 even in Cristallina area. Early start from Ossasco (where we meet Sebastian who started so early from Basel!) in the blue morning cold. We rapidly reach Alp Cristallina where the valley opens. At the pass, we head to Passo della Cima di Lago (stunning view on the Bernese Oberland peaks… and on the dozens of people at Poncione Val Piana!). We drive defensively to the glacier (2 recent plaque avalanches warn us). The snow is up to our expectations. We can’t refrain a detour to the pass next to Poncione Cavagnolo for the very protected 300m descent if promises. We skin up a third time to Poncione Val Piana (now for us alone, the crowd is gone). Follows the last dream descent of the weekend through Val Cavagnolo. Of course, there are 150m in the forest in the end to remind us what a normal ski tour is like.
tree workers among trees
ascent in the blue morning cold
at Passo della Cima del Lago
first descent tracks
to Poncione di Cavagnolo
finally reaching Poncione Val Piana
on the ridge
pow! pow!! pow!!!
almost there…
Route Friday: Hospental (1452m) – Winterhorn (2661m) – Zumdorf (1496m) + second ascent, WS+, 1600hm
Route Saturday: Ossasco (1313m) – Capanna Cristallina – Passo della Cima di Lago (2690m) – Ghiacciaio di Valleggia (2450m) – Btta between Poncione Cavagnolo & P. di Valeggia (2800m) – Poncione Val Piana (2660m) – All’Acqua (1614m), WS+, 1950hm
TN: Claire, Marco, Sebastian, Thomas