Known Back Country Spots

[bret]

Disclaimer: The Back Country is just as the name suggests. It's out there a long way and if you heart your self out there help is going to take a wile to get to you and it may be too late. The Back country is not a place for beginners. Just like the signs on the ski area boundaries, Beyond this point you are responsible for your own safety and survival.

Most if not all of the back country we have requires the use of a snowmobile to access. On the tops of mountains where the wind can change very rapidly and is the strongest smaller kites become much more important. The avalanche danger is extremely high this year so watch out, never travel alone, have a beacon you are familiar with, a probe and a shovel.

Grand Mesa
-A plateau on the south side of I-70 just before Grand Junction. I have not been there yet myself but I have heard good things about it.

The Flat Tops
-This is my little slice of heaven. It is a plateau on the north side of I-70 between Glenwood and Dotzero. I have never accessed it from the Glenwood side but there are two snowcats that pave a nice trail all the way from Glenwood to Dotzero for the sledheads. On the Dotzero side you go north after getting off I-70 and turn left on Coffee Pot road that goes up Deep Creek Canyon. You park a few miles up the road depending on the time of year and take a 12 mile snowmobile trek up to the top of the plateau. Once on top be very carful not to get lost because it is very big and easy to get turned around. If there is 10-15 wind in the valleys there will probably be 25+ up top. If you want some one to show you around up there and you have your own sled I'd be happy to hop on the back. My number is 970-390-7507 I don't have a sled of my own but hopefully next year I will.

Vail Pass
-At the rest area on top of Vail Pass there is a cat trail that the they do cat tours and sled tours on. About three miles up this trail it pops out in a big field. There are very large cornesses and the avalanche danger is extremely high this year so watch out.

Most of the passes go above tree line and have a lot of snow so most of them have potential and just need to be explored. Always take extra care when in a new location that you are unfamiliar with.

Ozone Manta
-Your ticket to the back country
-They come in 8, 10, 12, and 15m

[maxajess]

to get to the grand mesa follow highway 65 south from the interstate just before grand junction, follow it up past the local ski resort (powderhorn) up to the first level then continue up to the second level near a cros country skiing turnoff called skyline about a half mile past that you will find the turnout for the first field.
kiting the grand mesa falls into two distinct catagories. 1 you stick near the road once you get on top there is a large field right at the road that can support a few kiters at a time, this field is somwhat prone to gusty conditions as there are trees nearby. 2 (vasty better) if you get to the same field mentioned in (1) and you have a snowmobile or are planning a long day x-country to acces the rim fields (6-8 miles each way). those are snowkiting gold. the entire rim area of the mesa is a huge field that gets fairly consistant wind (all in the right direction usually (from the valley (not off the edge))). to estimate this flat expanse of open space from a satelite photo id say the field area is roughly 6 miles long by a mile and a half wide. check it out on google maps using the satelite tab. and check the webcam from the radar station on the mesa http://www.crh.noaa.gov/gjt/?n=nexrad Happy kiting