First Autumn vibes!

So I just squeezed in an extra Mont Blanc ascent by the Cosmiques 3 summits route last week and have now finally finished working up in the peaks for a while (or so I think). The conditions are pretty mixed at the moment (as they have been all summer), it's either really hot or really cold which makes for some pretty unstable conditions up high.

Last weekend saw another massive rock fall on the West face of the Dru, a fine example of the changes taking place!

The access arrete at the top of the Aiguille du Midi is the thinnest I've ever seen it, barely enough room for you to stand with 2 feet side by side, slack line practice essential! I descended it in gusting gale force winds the other day with my Mont Blanc guys, very exciting! This shot was taken a week ago, it's actually narrower than this now at the top and the bottom half after the steep section is even thinner!

A great way to wake up in the morning!!

I'm starting to get excited about the coming winter already. I just ordered my new Jones boards, a 160 Hovercraft, the Flaship 168W, Solution 168W and the All Mtn Twin 164W will be under my feet this winter!

You might have also read that Mr Jones has recently linked up with Karakoram for splitboard bindings so I'll be trying a pair of those out soon. Jeremy rates them so its a good sign and I'll let you know what I think after I've given them a test. Good Splitboard bindings really make a massive difference when it comes to the performance of a splitboard so hopefully these new bindings will improve things even more!!

Here's hoping!

Can't hardly wait to get out riding the new splits this winter, come on early snow!!

I'll also be updating some of my McNab Snowboarding splitboard fleet and so will selling off some of last years Splits and some of my old boards pre or early season so watch this space!

The winter courses are booking up super fast now with many courses full or nearly full so if you're looking to get out this season don't leave it too long.

I also have a few Private/bespoke bookings coming in and it looks like my seasons guiding will now start towards the end of November and any gaps between then and New Year are filling in fast!

I now have 2 weeks riding with GPM10, starting this Thursday and will be out on my bike most of the Autumn. I rode the col du Saisses the other day and felt surprisingly good keeping a high cadence and good speed all the way to knock over 5 mins off my previous best time (yep I must have been shit before or the altitude training has really paid off!!)

It's beautiful out here in the Autumn, crisp fresh air, clear skies, beautiful colours and quiet roads so I'm looking forward to getting in some great riding and bringing on some proper riding form!

Mr Andy Cook, get yourself out here I need a training partner!!

No other news really at the moment except that our new kitten (which was apparently meant to stay indoors) now perfectly matches the freshly varnished decking out the back of the house!

Ruth was only out for a couple of minutes, I fear she won't be too pleased...

Maybe she won't notice that the white and grey cat now has new brown patches all over... It was funny at the time though!!

until next time take it easy!

Neil.

Summer News!

I've been pretty busy working up in the mountains this past Month or so. After working as a cycling guide for GPM10 through May and June, July and August have been all about climbing and I haven't had time to ride my bike much at all these past 3 weeks. Not to worry though as the climbing has been good and I have good altitude acclimatisation so once I get my cycling legs back my Aerobic capacity should be pretty good. I have just finished Guiding in the mountains this morning and now have a week off to ride my bike before I start working for a few weeks with GPM10 again, although it seems I might have so squeeze another Mont Blanc ascent in at the end of this week as the demand is there!

The last 3 weeks have been pretty good up in the hills, I spent a week climbing with a Private client Roger Birch, who is a good snowboarder and who has snowboarded Mont Blanc with me in 2010. We did some great climbing, mainly rock climbing with some high altitude mixed mountaineering thrown in and then at the end of the week had a relaxing day where we went rafting in the Aosta Valley. Pro Snowboarder Will Hughes, who has been staying at our house on and off this summer, came along and we had a great laugh throwing each other out of the boat as soon as we saw any rapids or the rafting guy said, 'please stay in the boat here as its a bit dangerous!' which was obviously my cue to throw Will into the water again!!

Following this I had a Mont Blanc via the Gouter route to do for Mont Blanc Guides. The Grand Couloir has been a bit dry recently and showering rocks down so its been pretty dangerous and so myself and 2 other Guides left our clients in the Tete Rousse refuge whilst we wandered up to check it out. No sooner had we donned our helmets and started to walk up the rapidly receeding Tete Rousse glacier when a massive rock fall started way above us at the top of the Couloir. We stopped were we where and watched in amazement as massive blocks began to shower down the Couloir in what was rapidly turning into one of the biggest Rock falls I've ever seen. It seemed like ages but must have been seconds before we realised that even were we where, a long way down the Glacier, we were going to be in the firing line and so we turned and legged it as fast as we could. It seemed like as soon as we started running massive blocks started slamming into the Ice all around us, I reckon I did a pretty descent 100m sprint time over some pretty technical Glaciated terrain to get out of the way! One of our guiding team wasn't so lucky, (or wasn't fast enough) and got hit on the leg by an exploding block which resulted in him being heli'ed out of there once we'd carried him down to safety at the refuge.

We had a lucky escape, if we'd been further up we'd have been in the thick of it and maybe not so lucky, the rock fall scattered right across the full face either side of the Grand Couloir but amazingly 6 people high on the face survived un hurt (although I imagine it was a pretty frightening experience)

Needles to say we called off the attempt and the Local Gendarmerie pretty much closed the Gouter Route until conditions cool down and stabilize. This meant anopther couple of days rock climbing for me and so in the end happy days!

I've now just finished a week of climbing with 2 really fit Greman clients, which started out with 3 days climbing up above the Le Tour and Trient Glaciers followed by a traverse of the Aiguille d'Entreve from the Helbronner, which is always fun to do and then a great days rock climbing in the Aiguille Rouge (due to strong winds high up) and today a quick Arete des Cosmiques, which was great fun again.

I'm really enjoying the rock climbing again after taking a year off due to tendonitis in my elbows. This seems to have cleared up now so I'm quite fired up to get back on it and I'm way lighter now than I was due to cycling and working so much so it could be good! I've a lot of cycling coming up though so I might just get addicted to that again?

So many things to do, so little time!

I'm definitely thinking of running some rock/Alpine rock climbing courses out here next summer as its so much fun and there's just tonnes to do! Also thinking about a South of France Rock climbing and canyoning week next summer, so if anyone interested in either of these let me know and I'll get the ball rolling!

This winters courses are filling up fast, 50% full already! I'm holding off on a Chile trip next year for the moment as I'll be concentrating on the Splitboard trip to Norway's Lyngen Alps as my 2012 trip.

Science in Sport have created a 25% off deal for all McNab Snowboarding clients booked on 2012 courses which is open for a year! I fully recommend SIS products for Backcountry hiking and as fuel for any big day up the hill and I use them year round as part of my fitness training regime. Anyone interested should get the details from Ruth in the office. SiS also do a specific Snowpack which has been put together specifically for my BC courses, essential stuff!

The Jones/TSA Snowboard deal is also running again this winter so again, if you're looking for a new set up get on a Jones board and get in touch with Ruth for details!

My winter season is going to kick off early this year with some private pre season courses at the end of November running into December followed by my scheduled pre season tech clinic mid December. All these courses will be running in Tignes.

I'm pretty excited about riding again this winter, the Splitboard thing is just going off and the possibilities are endless, plus the Jones boards are like a breath of fresh air so I feel reborn for riding and am looking forward big time to the coming winters riding.

Not to rush things along though as I'm hoping we're in for a bit of a delayed indian summer over here after such mixed weather up until now. I've also got the possibility of guiding work over in Nepal this Autumn if I want it so I'll have to see how the cycling is going and how things stand with the finances! It'll make things pretty full on timing wise as I'd be returning and straight into a Snowboarding course so I'll have to see how things pan out.

Anyway, all good over here in Chamonix, hope you're all enjoying your summer time!

Until next time, take it easy,

Neil.

Lyngen Alps 2009 a preview for the 2012 Splitboard safari.

You can tell its going to be a bit of a special experience when a pod of about 30 porpoise breal the silky black surface of the deep fjord beside you and you're still on the bus en-route to your destination, your adventure hasn't even begun and the mystique of the magical landscape surrounding you has already started to present itself.

Snow capped summits frame and surround the deep dark waters, sheer cliffs rise steeply from the inly blacknesss and Age old Glaciers hang precariously from the jagged peaks that stretch endlessly into the distance.

It’s late in the evening but the hazy skies are lit by the faded 24 hour sunlight as the sun circles over head, never quite dipping below the horizon reminding me of the Robin Williams/Al pacino movie ‘Insomnia’. 24 hour sunlight I can handle but the 24 hour darkness of the winter months up here must be something else.

We’re far to the North of Norway, deep inside the Arctic circle, visiting the mystical region of the Lyngen Alps. The deep Lyngen Fjord splits the Alpine like mountains and Islands offering both boat and land accessed dream like Freeriding terrain. It is my first visit to the area and my first impressions are already getting me very excited about the week ahead.

The Lyngen Lodge, our base for the trip sits on the east side of the Lyngen Fjord, a beautiful oasis of Scandanavian style, luxury and calm surrounded by one of Europes most isolated and wildest landscapes.

The view from the Lodge is fantastic, the peaks opposite and behind look amazing and within minutes of us arriving I’m already planning lines and looking at the endless possibilities on offer. Right behind the lodge there are peaks that can be hiked and ridden door to door and up and down the Fjord the peaks stretch endlessly in every dirrection. We unload our kit and settle in to the lodge, an excited buzz fills the air as we all imagine the week to come.

It seems strange to go to bed in full daylight, sunlight filters through the tiny gaps surrounding the heavy blackout curtain and sleep is not easy coming when confronted by the excitement at the prospects of what is to come.

Along with Graham, the master mind behind the whole operation, I have spent much of the evening studying the local maps and planning out possible routes. Tomorrow I have planned a boat accessed assault on a steep peak on a small island to the North. The full Lyngen experience, boat access, steep climb up and a very good looking ride back down to finish for a pick up on the beach!

The next day dawns bright and clear, well the sun has been up all night but its definitely brighter in the day time so at least there is some distinction between night and day. After an amazing breakfast at the lodge we head down to the small harbour on the sea front and bord the Lyngen Lodge boat, ‘the spirit of Lyngen’ which has been specially adapted for the transport of skiers and Snowboarders in cold conditions up and down the fjord and inbetween the Islands. Once abord our journey begins and we head up the fjord n search of mountains to hike and ride.

The views are exceptional as we power up the coastline surrounded by white peaks that rise majestically out of the inky black depths. Puffins cannon ball past, their fat round bodies and tiny wings make flight seem unprobable. We motor around a headland and there in front if us lies our target, a beautiful snowy peak that rises dramaticaly out of the water. There are two obvious lines for ascent and descent, up one side and down the other and it looks great.

A small jetty in a quiet fishing village allows us an easy initial desembarkment. It seems strange to be donning snowshoes and carrying snowboards to hike through this village (a couple of houses) whilst the fishermen go about preparing their day, but soon we’re working our way up a narrow trail through dense woodland in dirrection of the open slopes above.

It feels different hiking at sea level after being in the high mountains all season and our pace reflects the extra oxygen that the air carries and soon we’re movig out of the tree line and zig zagging our way up a steep open snowface punctuated with rocky outcrops here and there. The views were incredible in every direction as we drove onwards and upwards towards the peak above, excited in anticipation of the ride to come.

We’d hiked some 800m vertical from the village and now stood on a sharp crested ridge that rolled over the summit and allowed us a 360 degree view of the island and the deep mountain capped fjords surrounding us. The terrain dropped away steeply on all sides, a large cornice overhung the Eastern slopes and straight below us lay an 800m vertical, steep, perfectly shaped Snowboarders playground.

I call on the radio to the boat to announce our descent to the pre arranged pick up and from our vantage point we can watch it power out of the small harbour, its white wake a sharp contrast to the dark waters as it heads towards the mooring off the beach below us.

Our line is very simple, the slopes are wide and open, the snow pack seems very stable, the terrain shape supportive of the snowpack and it is pretty much a straight line to the beach. On top of all that there is some fresh snow, from a storm previous to our arrival, on the upper slopes. All is good and we cruise big carves towards the steep slopes below and play our way towards the woodland tht lines the coastline above the beach.

A fantastic descent and we’re soon standing with our boards on a sandy beach, a little strange but definitely something I could get used to if the riding is of this quality.

We make a quick transfer in the dingy to get back onto the boat and power off back down the Fjord to relax in the Sauna and Jaccuzi and do some whale watching back at the lodge.

The next day we opt for a land based tour and drive around the coast to a drop off on the other side of the mountains behind the lodge. The drop off is in the middle of knowhere and from here we hike up a spectacular and very isolated valley before turning up into the mountains heading towards a distant col.

From the top we descend into another isolated valley, a great ride down with some fun features to play around on, before another hike up to a 2^nd col on the other side which with a little climb following Lynx tracks along the summit ridge line, brings us to the top of the peak overlooking the lodge.

From here the views are amazing and we gaze out onto the Lyngen Fjord and the peaks that stretch out as far as the eye can see. There are some big glaciated peaks to the North which look very interesting and I make a mental note to check out their location on the map for later in the week.

The descent down to the lodge is fantastic, open snow fields lead down to sparse woodland where we see lots of very recent evidence of Elk with massive hoof prints and fresh droppings everywhere. Considering the size of Elk and the sparseness of the trees it seems quite strange that we don’t actually see any. We eventually drop onto a track that leads us all the way back to the Lodge for some well earned hot tub activity. Its been a big day of trail breaking through very deep snow but the rewards have been plenty.

The next few days are spent exploring the peaks up and down the Fjord from the Lyngen lodge boat except for a day were we hiked right from the door up the peak behind but instead of returning by the descent we had ridden before, this time we crossed over into a huge snow bowl a bit further along the summit ridge.

The descent was excellent taking us all the way to a pick up further along the coastal road and showing us that even with out the use of the boat there is some epic riding to do here and much of it is still pretty much undiscovered, especially in terms of Snowboarding.

All to soon the trip was coming to its conclusion but I’d kept the best until last having checked out the location and the lay of the land in order to access and ride the huge Glaciated peak that we’d spied earlier in the week.

A good hours long boat journey took us far up the coast from where an exciting transfer got us onto the mainland at the foot of a long isolated valley. From here we toured up following the river into the mountains. After a while it became obvious that we needed to be on the other side of the wide fast flowing and cold looking river.

A short while later we were all safely on the other side, mostly with dry feet! From here we trekked up a ridge to a hidden col between two peaks which had up until now hidden the Glacier and the high snowy peaks behind. We crossed through the col to discover the amazing landscape behind and dropped down a short slope to set foot on the bottom of the Glacier.

We hiked up the Glacier for a couple of hours until it steepened towards a heavily corniced ridge above which we climbed up to and tunnelled through in order to acces the ridge which we followed up to the high peak above.

After 6 hours of climbing we were now deep in the heart of the Lyngen Alps with nothing but Amazing looking peaks, big descents and deep fjords surrounding us and completely on our own with no tracks anywhere except those from our ascent. The plan was now to descend the other side of the mountain to a pick up by boat in the narrow fjord on the other side of the peak.

I radioed the boat to say we were about to start our descent and we dropped into the huge steep slopes below following a steep narrow couloir through rocky terrain until it openned out into a huge and perfect powder bowl. From here we channelled into a series of halfpipe like gullies that led us down towards the tree line.

We could now see the boat coming around the headland and powering down the fjord below, tiny against the huge landscape surrounding us. We slashed and carved the banks of the steep gullies which led us into the trees and eventually down to the icy looking water and the boat now moored below.

We relaxed on board enjoying the views as we motored home after a fantastic day of touring and riding amongst some of the most isolated and exciting high mountain terrain to be found in civilized Europe and looked forward to enjoying the comforts of the lodge for one final night before departure home.

Upon departure I swore that one day soon I’d be back to further explore this amazing landscape which, although was very accessible on snowshoes, is perfectly suited to splitboarding and so after last years Splitboarding success which gained some fantastic touring and riding around the Mont Blanc massif and further afield, (including an amazing Splitboard touring expedition to the east coast of Greenland) I knew that the 2012 was the right time to plan a return trip back to the land of the Lyngen Alps.

My 2012 winter trip, therefore will be a Splitboard fuelled safari to the Lyngen Lodge to further explore the amazing landscape of high peaks, steep faces and deep fjords to be found there. The last trip there, although amazing, barely scratched the surface of what is possible out there. I think this time with Splitboards for access the limits really will be unlimited!

Oh and yes, I did catch the biggest fish!

I can hardly wait, bring it on!!

The Past and the Future! what's in store for 2012!!

Well what a Winter!

Whilst most people seemed to be moaning and complaining about the lack of snow in the Alps last season, I seemed to be riding mostly untracked fresh lines most of the winter!

Admittedly it had its difficult moments, and I did, without a doubt, have to work a little harder than normal to find the good snow, but for the most part, find it I did and at the end of the season I can once again look back on another great winter of super progressive riding, excellent high mountain and backcountry adventure and seriously some of the best snow and lines I have ever ridden, notably with exceptional new lines in the ‘Val Ferret’, on ‘Mont Fortain’

and 'Mont Nix' in Courmayeur.

From the ‘Col du Tour Noire’ and ‘Col d’ Argentiere’ and obviously whilst on ‘expedition location’ on the remote East coast of Greenland with this seasons ‘McNab Splitboard expedition’ to explore hike and ride the fantastic Liverpool Land, Peninsula.

The biggest development for the winter 2011 was with out a doubt the introduction of my new Splitboard courses and a well-timed team up with Jeremy Jones’s new brand ‘Jones Snowboards’.

Having tried and failed to adapt to the compromise of Splitboarding on a couple of occasions in the past it would seem that the future has finally arrived and Splitboard technology has finally caught up and caught on!

After 15 years of lugging my board around on my back whilst snowshoeing into the Backcountry I can finally say that I am a true convert of Splitboarding and I’m very excited about the opportunities, possibilities and developments that this mode of Backcountry access can now bring about.

Already this past winter I have reached new heights, explored new areas and ridden new descents that, with out a Splitboard, would be nigh on impossible to accomplish within the time scale of a normal days riding!

Even here in my home mountain range of Chamonix were I have climbed, ridden and toured extensively, for the past 15 years, Splitboarding has opened up the mountains to me, inspiring within me a new sense of adventure and exploration, expanding my playground once again and opening up a whole heap of new areas and new possibilities.

As such, included in the winter calendar for 2012 you will not be surprised to find, along with all our regular ‘Technical clinics’, ‘Off Piste clinics’ and ‘Backcountry courses’ an extensive and progressive range of ‘Splitboard BC courses’.

Course profile for Winter 2012.

As usual, I shall begin the season with a technical progression, ‘exploring the ‘Science behind perfect Snowboard technique’ and introducing the ‘McNab Pressure control System’ with a pre season ‘Technical clinic’ in mid December on the glacier in Tignes, thus offering those with the need, the perfect start to their winter riding progression.

I’ll follow this with another ‘Technical clinic’ here in Chamonix after the festive season ‘Holiday’ rush has died down before progressing onto my first ‘Off Piste Technical clinic’ of the winter.

With a deepening winter snow-base mid January will see the progression continue with the first of my regular ‘BC Intro’ courses, opening up the world of Backcountry Freeriding to those with the need for the ‘steep and deep’ whilst riding their own ‘freeride set up’.

I’ll finish January off with the first of my tried and tested, ‘BC Splitboard intro’ courses of the 2012 season which will open the floodgates to a busy season of further ‘Technical progression’ and ‘Backcountry Freeride Exploration’.

Included in my winter ‘BC program’ you will find a whole range of courses designed for those looking to explore the incredible world of Backcountry Freeriding both with Splitboards and without.

For those that wish to explore the World of the Backcountry by regular means and ride their own set-ups on the way down, I have as always my infamous ‘BC Intro’ and popular ‘BC Freeride’ courses, focused on introducing and exploring the greatest BC Freeride terrain that Chamonix has to offer!

For those interested in trying a Splitboard for the first time you will find my tried and tested ‘BC Splitboard Intro course’.

For those already adept and converted to in the ‘Fine Art of Splitboarding’ the ‘BC Splitboard Freeride course’ will take you further and higher in search of the fresh and untracked steep and deep.

As usual and by popular demand I’ll be running my high level ‘Advanced BC’ course again, my lowest ratio (1:3) fastest moving and most demanding BC Freeride course which includes the option of Splitboard access were necessary.

The highly popular ‘BC Splitboard Touring course’ will again venture to new locations and with overnight stays in Mountain refuges creating fantastic multi-day touring opportunities.

After the success of ‘Greenland’ last season my ‘Expedition’ for this winter will return to the ‘Lyngen Fjords’ of Northern Norway, a region I’ve been longing to return to since first venturing there in 2009. With boat access, these mountains that rise straight out of the deep dark waters of the cold fjord provide some of the most picturesque and interesting terrain that I’ve ever ridden and a wilderness that is perfectly suited to the ‘Fine Art of Splitboarding’.

Finally, we will finish the winter with a ‘Splitboard Mont Blanc’ course, using Splitboards to climb and ride from the summit of Mont Blanc at 4810m.

If successful this will be our 5^th time riding off the summit of Mont Blanc, this is a very physically demanding course but the rewards are obvious to all!

This should bring us to a fitting conclusion for the 2012 winter season here in Europe but I’m also looking into the option of running a Southern hemisphere, ‘South America voyage of discovery’ to Chile, September 2012 so anyone interested in this type of trip should let Ruth know so I can start to build a plan of action.

Hope you find the 2012 preview as exciting as I do and I look forward to riding with you one day soon!

Greenland Splitboarding expedition 2011 (part 2)

McNab Snowboarding Greenland Splitboard Greenland Expedition continued....

Day 8: 29th April, 2011.

As evening falls on the 28th we start to get the first tell tale signs of an approaching storm as a cloud haze softens the midnight sun and further up the Glacier we can see the first signs of strong winds whipping the snow of the high peaks above.

As is forcast, the wind gets up during the night and another big storm blows in, our tents are buffeted by the wind and snow all night.

By morning the winds have dropped and the day is still and silent.

After the storm, the cross ridge of Alistair and Marks tent is just visible behind Matteo!

Large quanitites of snow have fallen over night and the small 2 man tent occupied by Alistair and Mark is almost completely buried and we have to dig them out!

Dave gets to work digging out the tent, we have to clear about half a meter of snow out from around the camp!

The weather isn't bad but the visibility isn't good as a low cloud hangs over the Glacier so the day become a recovery day for most, whilst Simon, Matteo and Mike decide to get to work on building a large communal Snow cave.

In the afternoon I run a Crevasse rescue session just beyond the camp and the weather begins to clear.

By the evening the midnight sun is back in business and as we sit and eat cheese and biscuits in our new extension 'sun lounge', complete with one of the best views I've ever seen, the mountains look amazing, cast in a golden glow and freshly cloaked in deep crystal light snow!

The 'Evening light faces' now look amazing and my one regret of the trip is not driving everyone out for a midnight assault of the 'Midnight Sun couloir' which was definitely beckoning.

Day 9: 30th April, 2011.

The light is a little flat in the morning but the sun is shining through the haze as we set off breaking a new trail back up the 'Morning Glory peak' to ride another new line from the summit.

We seem to be getting quicker every time we come up here and with no complications due to altitude, we now have the hike down to about an hour and a half.

Moody skies as we arrive at the summit and prepare for another big descent!

The weather is looking a bit moody with storm clouds out to sea so we don't hang around too long at the top and on arrival immediately get ready to ride.

There are some very nice looking chutes that descend from the top of the 'Morning glory peak' one of which is perfect at about 50 degrees and about 6 meters wide with parallel rock walls running throughout its length for about 200m before it opens out into a huge bowl, the walls to the left are very exposed but again there are some amazing future lines to be ridden here.

We're looking for something a little longer though and I've scouted out a super line from below, a huge steep chute about 20m wide, 45 degrees in and around 30 to 40 for about 300m.

It's a little windblown and icy at the top which makes it feel more exposed and a bit steeper and this is the first descent of the trip were I stop halfway to make sure things are ok as everyone rides in.

The light is a little flat still but the storm seems to be holding off and once we're all safely over the entry the snow improves and we're back in the steep and deep stuff that we're used to.

Simon charges towards the bottom of shooters couloir!

It's a great descent which we call 'Shooters wall' that brings us all the way down onto the Glacier with an easy descent back to camp.

The weather improves over the afternoon and we chill in camp enjoying the sun which is now burning through and a small team of us make plans for an 'evening raid' up the 'midnight sun' side of the Glacier.

Around 5:30pm we set off across the glacier and the evening sun lights up the perfect walls above us.

Breaking trail to the 'evening sun' side of the Glacier, our camp is right over the far side under the far peak.

It's about a 2 hour hike with some serious trail breaking on steep terrain in very deep snow but by around 7:30 we're standing at the top of the amazing looking 'Midnight Sun couloir' which I've been looking at everyday since we arrived.

It's beautiful, about 30 to 35 degrees, 20 to 30 meters wide and about 600m long and full of sparkling, deep, cold, fresh, never touched, crystal snow.

We can clearly see the camp out across the flat glacier as we negotiate the entry from the ridge and drop in. It's quite steep at the top but the snow is amazing and I go to full speed and charge down into the open couloir below.

It's one of those runs that you just never want to end, the snow is perfect, the light is amazing and the angle just right. By half way I can feel a slight lactic build up in my thighs as I power into some deep carves throwing thick waves of snow high into the still cold air.

Straight lining out of the bottom of the 'Midnight sun couloir'.

I can now see the bottom and the couloir opens out and I'm now charging down a huge face, so much space and perfect snow, I'm spoilt for choice and almost don't know where to ride so power a few more powder carves and straight line the rest with my hands pointing to the sky in celebration of another one of the best runs of my life in the bag!

Alan gets his line dialed down the Midnight sun couloir!

I stand almost in shock on the glacier at the bottom as one by one the guys come down with the same delirious/shocked expressions on their faces.

Everyone is buzzing as we hike back across the Glacier, knowing that we must ride this line again before the trip is through!

Tired legs this evening but Dave is cooking 'Steaks' so all good!!!

Day 10: 31st April, 2011.

More snow overnight, just enough to fill in our tracks from the previous day, great for the riding but it means some serious trail breaking again!

It's a little cloudy in the morning again but looks like it will clear so we wait it out and plan an afternoon raid to ride the 'Midnight sun couloir' again which has filled in and looks perfect once again.

Hiking across the ice cap above the 'Evening sun walls' to gain access to one of the many amazing lines to be found there.

The guys that didn't come out the evening before are keen and so as the sun burns through we set off back across the glacier following the vague remnants of yesterdays trail with Dave wading through out in front.

Once again, this time with the full contingent, we find ourselves standing above this amazing couloir, cast in the golden glow of the evening sun as one by one we drop in and charge down towards the glacier below.

I take the last drop this time and I stand for a moment taking in the atmosphere of our situation, untouched peaks stretch out to every horizon, the air is crisp and still as the sun simply rotates above us.

Our camp, our home from home awaits, a tiny speck across the other side of the vast glacier below, with one access trail that leads out from it lost under the wall beneath my feet, the only sign of movement.

Down below I can see the guys ripping it up, powder hangs in the air from their turns and I can hear their whoops as they charge down towards the final slopes before straightlining out on to the Glacier.

When everyone is down and the air is silent I once again drop in!

Although I'm the 9th rider into the couloir finding a fresh untouched line is not a problem and as before, I soon begin to feel the burn of lactic in my thighs as I power deep carves into the deep fresh snow before charging out to join the guys, big grins on all our faces as we each relive the run in our minds.

Dave and Al cook up some pork chops and with the heat from the stoves warming us and drying our kit, we settle down to another big card session in the mess tent.

The end of another perfect day!

Last riding day tomorrow as on Tuesday we have to pack up the camp and ship out!

Day 11. 1st May, 2011.

Well you couldn't have scripted this any better! Today we wake up to perfect weather, blue skies, no clouds and the air is still and crisp.

We've got work to do today, some big lines to ride and its the last day so we're up and off by mid morning, again heading over to the South side of the Glacier to ride the 'evening sun walls' where the snow is perfect.

Mike following the track towards the upper Ice cap above the 'evening sun walls', one of the couloirs we rode is visible up and diagonally right of where mike stands.

Our track from the previous evening is still in great condition and the going the ascent is quick, even though I've instructed everyone to take it easy and not push themselves going up this morning as we're going to be running laps up and down these walls today!

We're warmed up to this now, a smooth running machine, changes from boards to splits and back again are quick and silent.

We arrive at the top and everyone does their thing, jackets go on, drinks and food are passed around and boards are prepared.

We're warmed up to the riding now as well and I've definitely saved the best till last and today we're going to push it up to the next level for sure!

As the guys change to riding mode I quickly head scout out a couple of lines down the wall below, 2 lines that I have checked out from the bottom as we hiked up and from the camp with my binoculars.

I'm pleased to see we're in the right spot and below me lie to amazing looking chutes that join about half way down the face.

The right hand chute is only accessible through a straight line opening and an ollie over some rocks at full speed, after which it looks amazing!

The left hand chute is more open and mellow so I give the guys the option of which line they fancy.

Soon everyone is ready and in position.

There's nervous silence in the air as I line myself up above the right hand chute, I can feel my body buzzing, itching to make the drop.

It looks amazing, I play the line through my mind; drop, straight, ollie, straight, carve right, carve left, through some rocks and then the face opens out and charge to the valley!

Ok, guys, all good?

One last check that everyone knows what they're doing.

I slide onto the steep ace above the chute, one last pause and check, ollie 90 and drop!

Amazing! the acceleration in incredible, Ollie the rocks, into the narrows, the snow is getting deeper and better so I can afford the speed to build, cut right, try to scub a little speed and get a look below, carve left, slide the tail out of the turn a little, pop and drop through between a couple of rocks and then charge out into the open and carve the massive face below.

Mike charging out of the bottom of the 'Midnight sun face'.

The mellow left hand variant of the 'Midnight sun wall' the right hand chute joins this one through the gap up and diagonally left of the rider (from where the tracks come).

Alan and Mark ride the Midnight sun wall!

Amazing, is the only word I can use to describe this feeling and I can see it mirrored on the faces of the guys as each and everyone of them cuts a fresh line down the steep 'Midnight sun wall', each has their own story to tell, their own memory to take away and their previous limits destroyed!

This, however is just the warm up and so after a quick change, we're on our way back up to the Ice cap above for run number 2.

On our way across to the top of the 'Midnight sun face!' the face we called 'Shooters' is visible at the back far, far left!

The climb doesn't feel so far this time as we don't have to cross the Glacier first and so we're quickly back at the top and searching out the top of a steep and narrow couloir that we have been checking out from camp.

To be honest, when I pointed out these lines to the guys at the beginning of the trip, I didn't think we'd get to ride them, and most of the guys thought I was joking!

But here we are finally standing at the entrance to one of the big 'King lines' of the area.

The entrance to the 'Couloir of the Kings' is steep and narrow but I'm pleased to see that we won't need to mess around with a rope and can sideslip in the first 10 meters or so.

Either side, the vertical rock walls stretch upwards giving the upper part a deep shaded exposed and steep feel.

It looks amazing and I can hardly contain my excitement as I drop in for a quick look.

I stop about 10 meters in and wait for the team.

Below me the couloir is deep, steep and narrow but I can see it mellows a little and widens before dropping again.

The rest is out of sight, but if my memory is correct it's pretty straight, dog legs to the right a little then straight again and then opens into another huge face.

I check everyone knows the drill and is feeling good.

As always, Mike is right behind me, so far he has pretty much matched my every line turn for turn. Simon, is grinning right behind Mike, he's been charging everything full tilt and getting in some amazing lines too.

I have Al in here to, he's my spotter for if anything moves or if something doesn't go to plan, but so far the snowpack seems to be super stable (as it's not really effected by the massive temperature fluctuations that we get in the Alps).

Dev and Alistair are hovering up on the ridge with Mark, Matteo and Dave, all with excited/nervous looking grins on their faces.

I quickly check we're all good to go, we leave a standard 30 seconds or couple of 100 meters between each other when dropping in and we're all ready.

Again, I drop into the fall line and straight line through the narrows, my speed is increasing fast as I check left, then right altering my line to set up for the next steep narrow section.

There's a point at which for a fleeting milli second I think I might be too fast to make it through the dog leg but now fully commitment I mike some quick adjustments and carve straight down the middle of it and I'm through to the open slopes below.

Big open turns around small rocky outcrops and a straight line out onto the Glacier, another first descent and another new best descent in the bag.

'Couloir of the kings' on the 'evening sun' side of the glacier. Mike is on his way down the open face after a technical (fore shortened in this shot) upper passage.

Alan takes a nice variant out wide to get his own line!

The guys each get their own line as the face opens and soon everyone is back on the flat glacier buzzing with adrenalin.

Heading back to camp for a short break, 'Couloir of the kings' is behind and the 'Little Alaska face' is to the right of it!

We now head back to camp for lunch and a chill before the grand finale and a date with the amazing looking lines on the steep spine riddled 'Little Alaska face' about 400m to the lower side of the line we've just come out of.

The day continues to get better and better, the skies are cloudless and in the polution free air the sunlight is brilliantly crisp and clear.

The Sun lounge sees some action as we try to get through the last of the cheese and biscuits and re hydrate with teas and soups.

The 'little Alaska face' gets the sunlight late in the evening and so its not until around 6 that we set back off across the Glacier.

A few of the guys have opted out of this one and will hike across towards the bottom to watch and take photos once we're in position.

A fore shortened view of the 'Little Alaska face' pick a line, any line, everyone's a winner!

The face is a little more complicated than our previous descents with cliff bands and chutes all over the place, so its a matter of picking out a few prominent features from which to guide your way in.

I'm looking at a spine that rolls into a face which then leads between some rocks and drops into a chute which continues all the way to the bottom. It looks amazing and even from the hike across some 3 or 4 Km away you can tell the snow is perfect!

The hike goes quickly with the track already in and also as we know its the last time we'll be hiking this winter and so take it on as a bit of a challenge.

Soon, we're all in place and changed back to riding mode above the face. I've scouted out a couple of lines for everyone to have a go at, the snow looks perfect and the face is steep and perfectly featured with lips, crests, chutes and drops, (enough to keep you coming back to just this one face for a whole week of filming!)

I've scouted out my line, it looks fantastic, round some rocks to the spine, drop right down a narrowing roll off triangular face that leads through some rock into the narrow couloir that leads to the glacier. I obviously can't see it all from the top, but I know its there and feel the buzz building as I get ready to drop in.

Carving into the couloir that leads down the 'Little Alaska face' and setting up to carve the windlip below and right! this line was so much fun to ride!

The snow isn't as deep as it looks for the first few turns so I have to adjust my speed quickly, but as I come around the rock tower near the top of the face and onto the spine its steep and deep, a few tunrs down the triangular face that rolls off a little more than expected and there are the 2 rock outcrops that I'm looking for guarding the entrance to the couloir I need to follow.

Coming down into the final exit chute on the 'Little Alaska face', amazing snow, a definite line to remember!

A bit of a windlip on the left draws me into a big deep tail slide along the lip, a carve out right to lay out on the toe edge and drop and charge our the bottom, I ollie off a slight roller to land full power into the powder below, when bang! the powder below has a rock under it right where I land and I'm down in a cloud of whiteness.

I don't need to look at my board to know that I didn't get away with that one as I stand and straight line the last few hundred meters to the bottom.

Last run of the winter, last turn turn of the trip, so if anything not such bad timing but as I suspected my board is destroyed, or half of it is anyway. (One of the good things about these splitboard might be that you can just get a new half board!)

Up until that final turn however, this has to have been my best run of the trip, a great line, great snow down through some great terrain and playful features!

It might even the best line I've ever ridden! But then I seem to be saying that more and more these days (so that can't be a bad thing!)

I turn and watch the guys hammering down their lines!

As usual Mike is right on my track, Simon is exploring off to the side and takes a nice chute to finish. Al is right down the middle and Dev can be heard hooting all the way!

On the way back across to the camp I stop and let the guys go on until they disappear from view and I'm all alone in the middle of the Glacier surrounded by mountains, the unbelievable silence and the golden light of the midnight sun.

I take some time to contemplate and relax, my season is finally over for another year but what a finish!

This has been by far my best trip yet, I've ridden the best lines I've ever ridden and as I cast my gaze upon the untouched terrain that surrounds me its obvious to see that there will be many more trips to come!

Dave has cooked up the last of the steaks for the evening meal and surprises us all with a chocolate moose desert!

The end to another fantastic day!

Day 11. 2nd April, 2011.

Another sunny day which makes camp break down quick and simple.

By midday we are ready to go and as with everything on this trip things are running to perfection as just as we finish packing the tents away we hear the sound of the approaching skidoo's coming up the glacier below.

By 2pm we're back at the Constable airstrip where we are booked to spend the night but are quickly informed that an unscheduled flight will come in and fly out empty later in the day so if we want to leave this evening we can.

Seeing as there is absolutely nothing here at Constable point and we'll get an extra night out in Rykejavik in Iceland we each quickly take turns to grab a quick wash and change of clothes before jumping on our own private plane.

As we fly out we get a perfect view of the mountain range that has been our home for the past 2 weeks and the amazing looking valleys that surround it.

It's been the perfect trip, perfect conditions, amazing snow, a great team and some of the best lines I've ever ridden for sure!!!!

I'd like to finish with a big thankyou to Matt and Dagmar from Pirhuk for logistics, Dave Grant for his whit, trail breaking, camp and cooking skills, Alan Fielding for his sporting card play and also for his help as 2nd in command and finally to all the guys on the team who made this trip such a pleasure to guide, so Alistair, Mark, Matteo, Dev, Simon, and Mike! I look forward to riding, exploring and sharing distant adventures with you all at some point in the not to distant future!

Right! Now I have to sort out next winters Calendar!

Next years dates will be online mid June...

You can expect all the regular courses, Tech clinics, Off Piste Clinics, Classis Backcountry Intro and BC Freeride, plus in the Backcountry courses there'll be a 'new' Splitboard Intro course and Splitboard Freeride course. Also a new destination for the Splitboard touring course and a whole new April trip to Splitboard in the northern fjords of Norway.

Splitboard Mont Blanc and Greenland could be back on line and I'm also looking at a possible September South America trip to Chile for 2012!

We already have a lot of interest for next years courses but will not be taking bookings until mid June.

I'll run the expeditions/courses that get the most interest so let us know what you want to do and I'll see what we can arrange.

(Any groups looking to design a bespoke trip suited to their needs should get in touch with an idea of dates and numbers before the calendar goes on line and I get fully booked for the winter).

Now for some serious cycling!!!

All is good,

Neil.