Cody Townsend's Fifty Project— A Larger Than Life Mission To Ski The Split Couloir
David Reddick
·5 min read
Behind the Scenes of a Successful, and Emotional Attempt in the Sierra Nevada
Words by Cody Townsend / Photos by Ming Poon and Bjarne Salen
Sure, there are fifty lines in The Fifty Project, but there are only a few that have stood out from the very beginning. Split Couloir on Split Mountain is one such line.
It didn’t stand out because of its incredible aesthetics, its nearly 9000' vert of skiing from the iconic 14,000’ summit, or its location in my home Sierra Range. Rather, it fu*cking scared the sh*t out of me.
In 2011, a friend, mentor and ski buddy, Kip Garre, along with his partner Allison Kreutzen, tragically perished in an avalanche that slid while they were climbing the Split Couloir. To me, if one of the most knowledgeable, passionate and talented skiers had passed away while attempting to ride it, then there was something tricky, dangerous and potentially unpredictable with this line.
So, four years ago began a process of learning about this line in a uniquely deep way. From many days walking up to the basin to sit with the mountain and watch it change throughout a day, to monthly drive-by scouts armed with binoculars and big lenses, there hasn’t been a line in this project that I’ve spent more time with than Split.
It was a journey of patience, self-reflection and persistence. It’s a line that sums up what the entire FIFTY project is about. I feel lucky to get to know a mountain so well, to pay respect to lost friends, and to grow as a person through this journey.
Split Couloir on Split Mountain was never a check in a box for the Fifty, and I’ll always look back more fondly on the journey that got me there than the accomplishment of finishing the line.
Half the battle in the Sierra is just getting to the base of the mountains. With flooding and washouts destroying dirt roads in the Sierra, I borrowed my wife’s Ford Bronco to access the traditional start point on our last attempt.
Photo: Ming Poon
My first foray’s into the High Sierra involved sleeping on the desert floor the night before. Now I’m your regular ole yuppie bro with a Sprinter so don’t opt to sleep in the dirt as much. But with the van at home, it felt so awesome to sleep under the stars and out in the open again. It’s part of what makes High Sierra days so special.
Photo: Ming Poon
The slog up to Red Lake Basin never got easier. It’s steep, tight and feels like it goes on forever. I probably walked up there 4 other times you don’t even see in the episode. It feels like my backyard now.
Photo: Ming Poon
What ended up being my favorite part of spending so much time with this mountain, was the trees up in Red Lake Basin. After 4500 vert of slogging with a heavy pack, they instantly put a smile on my face when I reached them. Being that this line is only a couple hours away from one of the biggest metropolises in the US, the trees, solitude and natural beauty of this place made the years long struggle to ski this line truly special.
Photo: Bjarne Salen
Doing Split in a day was the original plan and is totally doable. In fact most people that do Split go car to summit in a day. But for me, with factoring what I believed to be a safer plan, we opted for two days to get it done. Which meant for a lot of time spent napping in the sun, waiting for the sun to go down and waiting to get up at midnight. In my chaotic life, these moments were to be cherished.
Photo: Ming Poon
Starting in the dark is never fun, but always worth it.
Photo: Ming Poon
Our plan to be on the summit of Split Mountain before sunrise was primarily centered around safety. What I didn’t know was how magical it would be to be on that summit before sunrise. You could see cities off in the distance and what felt like the heavens and sky above just at your finger tips. Sure skiing the line was amazing, but I’ll never forget that sunrise.
Photo: Bjarne Salen
On the summit of Split Mountain at dawn.
Photo: Bjarne Salen
It took four years for it too look like this. Waiting paid off.
Photo: Ming Poon
I still don’t know how the traditional ice form forms as I’ve never seen it in a stage where it’s actually climbable. It’s one of the mysteries that still endure. Going top down on it added it’s own danger and difficulty and down climbing through the coral reef, blue ice and rock slabs was one of those added levels.
Photo: Ming Poon
Photo: Bjarne Salen
Bjarne kept talking about getting a “Christian Pondella Shot” while dropping into Split at sunrise. Welp, I think he did it.
Photo: Bjarne Salen
Though rappelling seems scary, this was where I felt almost safest during the whole descent. On a rope, about to rap out to the exit, almost done. Damn it felt good.
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