Pipeline Couloir

6/4/22

After a subpar snow season in Utah, my cousin Patrick and I were left wanting more. So we set our sights on a big adventure — skiing Pipeline Couloir.

Pipeline is a steep, iconic line off the summit of the American Fork Twin Peaks, accessible from the top of Snowbird. I had never skied at Snowbird, or anywhere in Little Cottonwood Canyon for that matter, and I’d never truly been backcountry skiing either. But Pat was much more familiar with the terrain, and I trusted him to help lead the way.

With no lifts running, we had to earn our turns. We started from the Snowbird parking lot, with Pat skinning up on his splitboard while I boot-packed behind him. At first, we kept a good pace together — the snow was firm, and I wasn’t sinking much. But things changed when we reached the base of the Little Cloud chair. The sun had softened the snow, and I started post-holing with every step while Pat glided switchback-style up the slope. It was a slow and brutal push for me, but eventually I made it to the ridgeline where Pat had waited.

From there, we were in the same boat — boot-packing the ridge with our boards on our backs. It was a mix of snow and scrambling over exposed rock. Progress was slow, but steady. And finally, after a long, sweaty climb, we reached the summit.

The afternoon sun was out, and the snow had turned to perfect mashed potatoes. After a short downclimb over some rock and steep snow, we found ourselves standing at the top of the line.

After talking through our game plan, Pat dropped in first. He made a few solid turns, then tucked into a safe zone out of the slide path. I scooted to the edge, looked down into the chute, and followed. The snow was soft and heavy — rideable, but definitely not forgiving. As I made my way down, I could see a good amount of sluff moving with me.

We both paused in a protected notch, letting the wet, shallow slide pass below us like a river of slush. Once it settled, we finished our run into the apron of Pipeline — wide, mellow, and now softened into perfect spring turns.

The steep part was behind us, and all that was left was a smooth cruise to the bottom. We made it back to the car tired, sunburned, and stoked — safe, and ready for our next adventure.

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