A Tobacco Roots Adventure

By the time spring break was here, KT and I were due for an adventure, so we set our sights on Branham Lakes deep within the vast Tobacco Root range. It was complete with large packs, an 8 mile slog in, clear skies and calm winds.

I have heard that there is the greatest concentration of 10,000 ft + peaks of any mountain range within Montana, and from the top of Thomson peak we could nearly see them all. With ideal camping conditions, not another human seen for days and possible wolverine activity near camp, this was a surreal adventure that will most definitely be followed up in the spring for some ski mountaineering!

Enjoy,
Ned Gall

35th Annual MSU American Indian Council Pow Wow (April 3)

[Photo Chris Burdeau]

Day two, bigger crowds and final competitions upped the ante as the crew continued to shoot. Working with the AIC's(American Indian Council's) Chris Burdeau and Michael Fast Buffalo Horse, we were able to pick up some great shots while they filled me in on the finer points of dress, dance style, and formalities. Again, feel free to note on any familiar faces, specifics etc.

Another great day with friends new and old. Yeehaw!

Christopher J. Carter, April 2010

[Photo Chris Burdeau]

[Photos C.J. Carter]

[Photo Chris Burdeau]

[Photo Chris Burdeau]

[Photo C.J. Carter]

[Photo C.J. Carter]

Young-gun filmmaker and lensman, Kade Leachman, stopped in to hone some skills
[Photo C.J. Carter]

[Photo C.J. Carter]

[Photo Chris Burdeau]

[Photo Chris Burdeau]

Thomas "Horse" Robinson claims a clowndance victory for the Lost Tribes of Israel
[Photo C.J. Carter]

35th Annual MSU American Indian Council Pow Wow (April 2)

[Photo C.J.Carter]

Here are some quick production stills from film production with the M.S.U. American Indian Council during the 2010 Pow-Wow. Truly a spectacular event and many thanks to Jim Burns, Rita Sand, Dr.Jioanna Carjuzza, the AIC crew and the hundreds of thankless volunteers that made the event happen.

Please feel free to comment, ID people,clarify specifics, dance style, dress, etc.

enjoy,

Christopher J. Carter, April 2010

[Photo C.J.Carter]

[Photo C.J.Carter]

[Photo C.J.Carter]

AIC Officers Anthony Shoulderblade, Tyrel Ten-Bear and Nic Ross-Dick during grand entry [Photo C.J.Carter]

[Photo C.J.Carter]

Bracket play during the Pow-Wow Basketball Tournament honoring late Miss Indian MSU, Nyree Hogan

[Photo C.J.Carter]

AIC Co-President Nic Ross-Dick and Former M.S.U. President Geoff Gamble on the sidelines
[Photo C.J.Carter]

[Photo C.J.Carter]

[Photo C.J.Carter]

More shots on the way...

Monocle: Rough Cut

Monocle: A Rough Cut

Here is a peek at an ongoing film project.

Monocle from cj carter on Vimeo.

The goal is to produce a human powered ascent-descent ski film entirely within the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Shot in one of the most intact temperate ecosystems in the world, this truly unique locale offers some of the most exceptional, diverse and remote backcountry and ski-mountaineering terrain in the lower 48. Feedback and insights are greatly appreciated.

Enjoy.

Christopher J. Carter, February 23, 2010

Sean Jones approaches the entrance to the white room. (C.J. Carter Photo)

Sometimes Those Who Wander Might Be Lost

There are times when things are not quite what they seem. Sometimes these "things" manifest themselves as mountain ranges encased in layers of freezing fog. With reports of both strengthening and widespread instability in regional snowpack , we took to the Northern Bridger mountain range for some snow study and lessons in orientation.

(C.J. Carter Photo)

(C.J. Carter Photo)

Ned Gall pulls into the ivory yonder. (C.J. Carter Photo)

(C.J. Carter Photo)

Sean Jones and Ned Gall navigate the choss bands. (C.J. Carter Photo)

Ned Gall exits the headwall unscathed. (C.J. Carter Photo)

(C.J. Carter Photo)

After 11 hours of snowmobile wrestling, snow pits, skin tracks, whiteout navigation and dried mango we returned to the Bridger Canyon Road, pensive, befuddled and a bit content. It became clear to me how much there is yet to learn in the hills and that some times North is really Southwest, you can enjoy Scottish winter conditions outside of Ben Nevis, and that even Polaris throttles need love and affection too.

Christopher J. Carter
February 2010

Bugaboos and Beyond, a dash into the Canadian Rockies

Welcome to Precipiste Pictures

There are some things that pull at you harder than others, commitments, obligations, responsibilities and the alpine, continuously butting heads for first chair in our lives. As the weeks and days leading up to another year of study waned, Ned Gall and I were inspired to make a brief run to the alpine wonderland of the Canadian Rockies. With the great company of a Canmore crew( Special thanks Sharyn and Chris) and a fair weather window, we high tailed it to the Bugaboo provincial park

Chris "Thunder From Down Under" Jones starts out Bugaboo Spire in fine Tassie style

Per normal alpine style, Ned moves light and fast

Ned Gall tops out on the first pitch of the Northeast Ridge of Bugaboo Spire

To the North and a ways below , the Vowell glacier provides an ambient tone for the Northeast Ridge Classic

Ned tops out the South Summit of Bugaboo Spire

Early hiking on day 3 for some much desired August turns, 3,000 vertical feet later , we straddled the West ridge of Pigeon Spire. Winds picked up and we skuttled to our skis on the glacier below.

Two Bro-Bs, one far fetched Idea: To ski where people dream to climb.

C.J. schussing some turns below Pigeon Spire

Ned hails from Iowa, lending him the innate ability to assess the world's finest corn

CJ begins travels home with a rapell to the terminus of the Bugaboo glacier . 1,000m and 5k below, washboard roads, snacks and a university start date beckon the crew homeward.

Sunset falls upon Bugaboo Spire and McTech Arete

While August and our jaunt northward drew to a close, focus shifted to studies, concepts and ideas of what a new year would bring. The Suby drifted southward, each kilometer edging us closer to the the lifestyle shift which studies incur. Reaching the high plains of Bozeman, gear was dissasembled little by little, from our mobile storage locker to a more permanent abode. A day later we were back in the whitewash and florecent tones of the university environ, left with a redux of experiences reminising on the immense granite spires, suncups and bags of bran muffins that had been our life the past week .

Returning home from school that first day, I looked at my skis propped in a sunlit corner of my house, encrusted in the glacial till of the Bugaboo glacier. I thought for a moment about brushing them off, I then stopped. I realized that beyond the activity of skiing, the multitudes of environments that this single activity has exposed me to, has altered and encompassed my life. The till was merely an indicator of the immersive nature and omnipresent elemental interaction of the hills. I went back to unpacking boxes and moving in, leaving the skis untouched .


Christopher J. Carter
August 2009