5am pick up came quickly. Pete Then (the Faller) loaded his arsenal of huck sticks into my truck and hopped in eager and ready to shred. On the way to the border we stopped in Rossland and picked up Gabe Gaudet (the Planter) and his Banjo. So… there we were. The Logger, The tree planter, and the washing machine salesman! On our way to Jackson Hole to spend a few relaxing days skiing groomers and enjoying hot cocoa with the rich and famous.

Border issues were minimal and the planter and the logger managed to get along through the entire 12 hour drive. After seeing hoards of fantastic Jackson footage in all of Teton Gravity’s ski movies, we knew what to expect but were still taken by the size of the terrain in and around Jackson Hole.






Luckily for us, the Hole had been experiencing it best January snowfall in the past eight seasons. Just as luck would have it we arrived with a rather large skiff of fresh snow to be gnarred and blue bird conditions up top. Exploration was critical to our success as our cell service didn’t seem to pick up our friends Ian MacIntosh and James Heim who where already in town tearing up the area. Pete and Gabe scoped great rocks with potential for massive drops. As will be when you’re not local, most of these cliffs had already been stomped and the others were in permanent closure areas. With the sheer size of Jackson’s terrain we were able to still find great, untracked lines in bounds for days on end.






On day two we hooked up with James who took us into an area of pillows. When he mentioned pillows we could only think of laying our Jack bruised heads back to sleep as we were feeling the ill effects of indulging in Jackson traditions the night before at the Mangy Moose. Gabe and Pete shredded hard but James was feeling a little beat up from a weeks worth of filming and could only ski about three times as hard as the rest of us.






After wandering, Jackson, Teton Village and Wilson I was still in search of a Buffalo. Any type of Buffalo would have cured my curiosity! I claimed to have seen a few late one night after searching for another species that seem to elude me (women). Pete pointed out that wild buffalo usually don’t live on farms or look identical to horses.





Between skiing and blue grass medleys, Gabe barely had the chance to continually top up his beers. Gabe is a big mountain comp skier with a look of determination unlike most. When Gaudet finds something he wants, he goes after it with an aggressive smoothness that is evident in the lines he skis and the style he brings to them. The look of determination was ever strong when a few local girls took the stage at the Moose with a mandolin and a guitar. The Girls carried a lovely tune but Gabe figured he could add a new dynamic by joining them on stage with his jo. Two songs later and the fastest sweet talk Jackson has likely ever seen, our Kootenay planter was on stage rockin the house with the ladies.
The Banjo seems to attract ladies and World record cliff huckers alike. One afternoon at the Teton Village Hostel, Gabe was outside picking a riff and caught the attention of our neighbour Jamie Pierre. Jamie claimed that he was going to drop a 245 foot cliff at Grand Targhee Resort and set the new World record. The thought of such a feat seemed unbelievable. Pete nicked named him the wild man and the discussion made for great sociables all evening. Sure enough, the next day, Jamie accomplished his goal and set the record.




Our Jackson trip was quickly coming to an end and I really didn’t want to leave. Jackson has a character that many places lack. You truly get the feeling that you are in the Wild West, skiing the untamed. And being in the tram was like stepping into a time machine. While music played, and people squashed together for the 12 minute journey to the high and wild, boot ache cut the circulation to toes much like the stirrups on a horse would have cut the circulation to a fat footed stage coach thief back in the day.






I felt special to be able to ride in the tram that has been servicing shredders for 40 years. It’s a sad fact that the tram will be taken out of action this coming fall, however the resort’s Board of Directors have plans to implant a new ropeway system to service our hunger for the Tetons. For those who have journeyed in Jackson’s Tram, you’ve truly experienced something special.

For more on Jackson Hole, check out their website: www.jacksonhole.com