We tried to rent out a few spots in the Eisman hut back in December, unfortunately complacency ran over us and we missed the ball.  Trying to redeem ourselves, we made another attempt to get in the woods and camp out with a bunch of strangers.  Again, everything was booked solid.  If it were not for our lady savior, we would have been left to frozen groomers and hard landing hucks of Summit/Eagle County.  We found three extra spots in the Estin Hut and took full advantage of the opportunity.  Well, two of us did.  We skinned in about 5 miles and climbed over 2,000 feet to reach our shelter for the next three days.  It was my first time on a splitboard and it was amazing.  The Voile Mojo was so much better than snowshoes and really quite easy to transition from tour to ski. 

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Our first tour took us up to 12,000 feet and offered spectacular views.  We rode back down to the hut in an open glade and then dropped down into a bowl right below the hut.  The snow was pretty baked but stashes were found in east, northeast facing trees.  We went on two more tours that first day in search of good snow.  Our last run was the best of the day, light soft snow and good turns right back down to the hut.

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That night we feasted like Kings.  Pasta, chicken, rice, cookies and scotch, were the ingredients to a fulfilling meal.  We even put down the leftovers the other groups couldn’t manage to finish.  I may have just eaten enough for three adults that night.

I went up there with little expectations.  I was surprised though at the fellow hut occupants.  We were the youngest ones there at 26.  The others were at the hut more for the tours than for the skiing.  I thought it odd that my buddy had the biggest skis by far with his mantras.  Yeah your skinny skis are lighter, but what about float?  

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One of our crew fell victim to altitude sickness and was limited to only one run while we were there.  I don’t think being in a hut at 11,200 feet with 13 strangers is the best remedy for illness.  While we had a great time, it was shitty going out there and having a blast while one of our friends was holed up in his bunk.  The hut trip was my first and I had a great time.  It was different, fun, and exhausting.  It was truly a lot of work.