Monte Montepare

So I set up four identical tents, wall to wall, like a nylon apartment building in the wild. And that night, Elizabeth cooked dinner and I entertained, and their first night out was like an REI ad come to life. The goal of this weekend was to have a relaxing trip, maybe take a couple day hikes, so the next day we set out to hike to this area of Alpine on the other side of the valley.

And it was a beautiful, sunny summer day, but after a couple hours of rocky walking, morale was low. This was the end of their whirlwind, let's go everywhere in Alaska trip, and they were kind of over it. And I'm pulling out all the stops too. I'm doing interp on geomorphology, pointing out the patterns glacial output streams carve, telling lichen jokes. Fun stuff. None of it is landing.

And it was a beautiful, sunny summer day, but after a couple hours of rocky walking, morale was low. This was the end of their whirlwind, let's go everywhere in Alaska trip, and they were kind of over it. And I'm pulling out all the stops too. I'm doing interp on geomorphology, pointing out the patterns glacial output streams carve, telling lichen jokes. Fun stuff. None of it is landing.

And it was a beautiful, sunny summer day, but after a couple hours of rocky walking, morale was low. This was the end of their whirlwind, let's go everywhere in Alaska trip, and they were kind of over it. And I'm pulling out all the stops too. I'm doing interp on geomorphology, pointing out the patterns glacial output streams carve, telling lichen jokes. Fun stuff. None of it is landing.

We get to the head of the valley and we see that the easiest way into the Alpine is over this glacier. And Elizabeth and I take people hiking on glaciers all summer long. We don't have our full kit, but it's good weather, good hikers, we're good to go. And when we get up on the ice, everything changes. Summer glaciers are alive. The ice is sparkling.

We get to the head of the valley and we see that the easiest way into the Alpine is over this glacier. And Elizabeth and I take people hiking on glaciers all summer long. We don't have our full kit, but it's good weather, good hikers, we're good to go. And when we get up on the ice, everything changes. Summer glaciers are alive. The ice is sparkling.

We get to the head of the valley and we see that the easiest way into the Alpine is over this glacier. And Elizabeth and I take people hiking on glaciers all summer long. We don't have our full kit, but it's good weather, good hikers, we're good to go. And when we get up on the ice, everything changes. Summer glaciers are alive. The ice is sparkling.

There's these creeks carving these beautiful channels. There's these blue pools of water that are reflecting that glacier blue from the inside. It's stunning. And our clients start enjoying themselves. They're engaging with the environment. They're taking selfies. Doing yoga poses. This is what they're here for. And then we encounter a little bit of snow and then a little bit more snow.

There's these creeks carving these beautiful channels. There's these blue pools of water that are reflecting that glacier blue from the inside. It's stunning. And our clients start enjoying themselves. They're engaging with the environment. They're taking selfies. Doing yoga poses. This is what they're here for. And then we encounter a little bit of snow and then a little bit more snow.

There's these creeks carving these beautiful channels. There's these blue pools of water that are reflecting that glacier blue from the inside. It's stunning. And our clients start enjoying themselves. They're engaging with the environment. They're taking selfies. Doing yoga poses. This is what they're here for. And then we encounter a little bit of snow and then a little bit more snow.

And when you are on a winter glacier that's covered in snow, it's customary to rope yourself to each other in case somebody unexpectedly breaks through the snow and falls into a crevasse. In the summer, the snow is gone and you can see all the crevasses and just walk around them. This is a summer glacier, but there's some patches of winter left over.

And when you are on a winter glacier that's covered in snow, it's customary to rope yourself to each other in case somebody unexpectedly breaks through the snow and falls into a crevasse. In the summer, the snow is gone and you can see all the crevasses and just walk around them. This is a summer glacier, but there's some patches of winter left over.

And when you are on a winter glacier that's covered in snow, it's customary to rope yourself to each other in case somebody unexpectedly breaks through the snow and falls into a crevasse. In the summer, the snow is gone and you can see all the crevasses and just walk around them. This is a summer glacier, but there's some patches of winter left over.

So Elizabeth goes ahead to scout our way off of the ice, which can be problematic. And I stay behind guiding our clients. And I've got them behind me in a single file line, and I'm making sure to stay as much as we can on the exposed ice. And if we have to step on snow at all, I use my ski pole to probe it first to make sure that it's snow over ice, not snow over air.

So Elizabeth goes ahead to scout our way off of the ice, which can be problematic. And I stay behind guiding our clients. And I've got them behind me in a single file line, and I'm making sure to stay as much as we can on the exposed ice. And if we have to step on snow at all, I use my ski pole to probe it first to make sure that it's snow over ice, not snow over air.

So Elizabeth goes ahead to scout our way off of the ice, which can be problematic. And I stay behind guiding our clients. And I've got them behind me in a single file line, and I'm making sure to stay as much as we can on the exposed ice. And if we have to step on snow at all, I use my ski pole to probe it first to make sure that it's snow over ice, not snow over air.

And now I'm having a good time. I'm moving my clients through terrain, I'm picking lines that are mostly ice. If I gotta deal with a little bit of snow, I probe, I step, I probe, I step. I'm thinking, I am a good guide. Then the next step I take is just in front of my probe pole. And the snow beneath me disintegrates instantly. And I begin to free fall into the glacier. Immediately.

And now I'm having a good time. I'm moving my clients through terrain, I'm picking lines that are mostly ice. If I gotta deal with a little bit of snow, I probe, I step, I probe, I step. I'm thinking, I am a good guide. Then the next step I take is just in front of my probe pole. And the snow beneath me disintegrates instantly. And I begin to free fall into the glacier. Immediately.

And now I'm having a good time. I'm moving my clients through terrain, I'm picking lines that are mostly ice. If I gotta deal with a little bit of snow, I probe, I step, I probe, I step. I'm thinking, I am a good guide. Then the next step I take is just in front of my probe pole. And the snow beneath me disintegrates instantly. And I begin to free fall into the glacier. Immediately.

And for long enough to think a few things. First, I'm gonna die. Followed by, what an embarrassing way for a glacier guide to die. And then, hey, let's try and not die. And I put my arms and legs and ski pole out to try and slow me down. And I come to a stop on this rotten pile of snow. I'm 20 feet below the surface of the glacier. It is dark and cold.