alone and content in a beautiful place = best feeling in the world. your dog is the coolest.

The skin on those parts of one's hands is designed to be removable, that's why it comes off so easily.

Funny now how I need skin there. I use that forgotten part of the body quite often so it seems.

That's quite a good bloody mess there. I wonder if you encountered one of those momentary flashes of clarity where almost instantaneously you see the error of what you have done and wish you could undo it to avoid the forthcoming pain. Like some of my best chess moves, I have a full memory of those vivid moments of instant regret.

This is my favourite TR of yours so far. I think the key to its beauty is how you have come to be able to read Lloyd's mind, and also the remarkable progress Lloyd is making in skinning, riding, setting up camp and other advanced mountain techniques.

Certainly one of those vivid moments.  I've had a fe this year as well.

For the first 50 meters or so I was pathetically yelling ahhh! repeatedly. I think it was a pure pain and fear response as I went faster and faster. I knew what was happening and couldn't stop it because I was on my stomach, face first, heavy pack on my back and skis (split board halves) awkwardly on my feet).

I started to hit bumps, which got me airborn, just to land with a belly flop again. This knocked the wind out of me. The whole time I was losing skin and couldn't react correctly without losing more skin. Eventually I started to yell at myself  "arrest!", meaning, perform self arrest, which I did with my ski pole after I slowed a little and managed to rotate onto my side and use the pack for friction as well. When I came to a stop I was in paid all along my arms and stomach. Seeing blood I instantly assumed that all points of pain where also points of stripped skin. It took several minutes for me to realise that the only bleeding was on my palms. If there had been rocks/trees/drop-offs in my path then I'd have a large collection of broken bones right now.

The worst part was it was 5am, just getting light and I was sitting on the ice alone in quite a bit of pain.  Lloyd didn't even know where I was for a while and seemed quite confused about how I got there.

The lasting memory is me thinking "holy shit, I'm going really fast and cant stop".

Thanks for the vote on the TR.

Out of curiosity, what would you do if you were a bag of broken bones? Can you call for help on a mobile phone? Do you launch signal flares? Do you blow on a whistle? Just wait until somebody realises you haven't come back? Write a note with your coordinates in blood, put it in Lloyd's backpack, and firmly say "Home!"? What's the SOP for that one?

Enjoy your long answer.

This is Japan, and unlike the nations of the European Alps, there is no alpine rescue in the organised and efficient sense. You can get help, but don't count on it being quick. And don't count on it being executed by a team of trained pros who for the last 100 years have been proud of their successful rescue statistics. In Europe I had the rescue number written on he back of my mobile phone, and had reception almost anywhere. You call, and they will come. In Chamonix the heli rescue is even free (so long as it was an honest accident, not a result of unprepared stupidity).

I don't even know the number of a rescue operation in Japan, or more precisely, Hakuba. There isn't one. And besides, most mobile phone networks have no reception just a little bit into the mountains here. Where I was has no reception at all. That is the case 95% of the time.

The best plan is don't travel alone in the backcountry.  I break that rule constantly.  The second rule is make sure someone knows where you are going, your route and your return date.  I always do that, but very often change my plans on the move.  In this case I was going to snowboard Shakushi Dake, but at 2am was woken by lingering doubt and second guessing my plan.  Confidence vanishes during that lonely feeling time in your tent.  Often it is replaced by a sensible review of overenthusiastic intentions.  And so I changed my plan, still going where intended, but about 10 hours earlier than advised.

I carry a whistle, and carry a big bag of pain killers and very basic first aid.  I would have dragged myself back to my car in this case.  It would have been a nasty few km's, but too bad.  I also carry enough equipment to stay the night in situ, even if I only planned on being gone half a day. Usually someone comes within yelling distance.

In short, Hakuba has no organised rescue and very poor alpine phone reception therefore it is irresponsible to travel alone.  With time I hope more people like me will move to Hakuba and wake up every day for 7 months of the year with a plan in their head about what they will climb and ski that day.  I am also trying to improve my Japanese so I can comfortably tour with the local guys.  Until then, I'm kind of on my own.

ya know...I always wondered about solo travel in the backcountry. Every time I consider it, I always arrive at the conclusion that it is not a good idea. Doesn't traveling solo potentially negate all the know-how and experience you have out there? Certainly carrying the minimum safety gear looses its value as well (unless you have trained Llyod to use a beacon and dig).

You seem to be really on top of the science of bc travel and acquiring all the right skills...but you do go solo alot, so how do you justify it to yourself??

I think it doesn't fall under the 1yen curve...

I can't justify it to myself, I consciously act in an irrational way to allow me the freedom to do what I want.

It is worth noting that I usually ride very conservatively. In winter I only solo the safer itiniaries, often going up only to recon a route and dig some pits, then to ski down the most utterly conservative route possible.

In spring I feel much more comfortable. Travelling on spring snow in the backcountry, if done properly (I failed to do so and lots skin), is not unlike hiking alone in summer. Its just backpacking on skis. How and where one descends makes the difference.  I soloed one particular route this spring that went poorly and had luck been against me, I'd have suffered for being alone.

I too had a built in barrier against touring alone. Then I started doing it and have since found that it feels quite normal if done carefully.

To me the biggest problem with solo touring is not having a second or third person's body of experience to formulate plans with.  Going solo it is quite easy to make a plan and build in an oversight that doesn't become apparent until late on, resulting in a change of plans or a hassle.  With more minds at work on the point of judgement and route planning, you get a better outcome faster.  Merely talking through a plan quickly identifies ways to improve it and a trio of experienced people will efficiently distil a sensible plan and get moving quickly without indecision.  Executing a good plan quickly is the key to success in the mountains.  Being alone can sometimes allow that and at other times, hinders it terribly.

> I consciously act in an irrational way to allow me the freedom to do what I want.

So if at some time it all goes utterly pear shaped, we will sagely wag our heads and comfort ourselves with the polite line "At least he died doing what he enjoyed". (Others will no doubt comfort themselves by saying "He was a prick anyway", but only after a decent interval.)

Philosophically speaking though, it's a perfectly reasonable approach. I'd happily go alone and face the consequences, whatever they may or may not be.

I'm an unabashed fan of any post that features Llyod. This is in part because I'm secretly waiting (hoping?) for a final bleak post reminiscent of To Build a Fire with a similar ending.

Ocean11 - Lets say in the unlikely event that I died backcountry snowboarding then I guess all that need be said would be "a man died backcountry snowboarding. It can happen." Any fuss or interpretation beyond that would be unnecessary. Regarding the popular polite phrase 'doing what he liked', well yes, that would be true, but it doesn't change a thing after the event. "He died doing what he liked.... except for the last few seconds which consisted of utter terror as he fell 200 meters to his death over a sheer cliff after having lost his footing and endured that bowel weakening suspended moment of realisation as events unfolded with the thought 'oh shit I'm going to die, and its going to hurt!". Yuck.

goemon - I'll read that before I respond. My education appears to have fallen short of your literary expectations.

Yes, that's the part I can't help supplying whenever I hear that line. It's like asking Mrs Kennedy, how did you enjoy the drive up to that point?

I just discovered the other day through a little poking about that Mr Goemon is a literature grad like me. There's lots of US lit. that I feel I should read, probably starting with Uncle Tom's Cabin. (I have however read that Jack London piece before though. Lloyd wouldn't just up sticks like that, American though he may be).

That was a piece we had to read in Mrs. Fitzpatrick's 6th grade Reading class.

It obviously stuck with me.

Unlike some misbegotten, ungrateful mutts I know...

That reminds me of the classic joke.

You know, when I want to die, I want to go out like like my grandad. Peacefully in his sleep. Not screaming ... like his passengers.

Hi Stew, that is a classic joke. Very funny.

cheers