Dafoe's Wiggle is the final drainage on climbers left before Bostock Pass.
It was a long and sometimes tedious hike in. Any snow in direct sunlight had turned to porridge. This was lying on top of cold fresh snow. This was a recipe for skins, bindings, and edges balling up as if we were walking in glue. We scraped. We waxed our skins. We re-waxed our skins. Nothing helped.
Eventually a stop was called for at the first clear view up the valley where we pondered the cornices now baking in the late morning sun.
Already it seemed unlikely that we'd reach the head of the valley. We went to have a look anyway. Giving the north side as much space as we could.
In the end it was pretty clearly not worth the risk today. So we hung a sharp left and began climbing up a promising and shady north aspect. Captain Kick Turn made an unwelcome appearance.
We topped out on a small moraine with some spectacular views of Corbin and the surrounding peaks.
The ski quality on the descent was much better than anticipated. It was like winter had returned for just one final run.
The ski out had its trials when even the bases of our skis begin icing and balling with snow. It turned into a 10 hour day car to car! But was well worth the effort to visit another new area.
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