Ski the Fourteeners
Only a few people have done it. Jordan White of Carbondale, Colorado is the latest of a handful of ski mountaineers to climb and ski back down all 54 of the Colorado 14,000 foot peaks.
This is a big, hard project. Tougher than most people realize. Jordan did it in three years, beginning with his ski of Quandary Peak on May 4th 2006, finishing with Snowmass Mountain this past May 3rd, 2009. During his quest Jordan did a number of stunning enchainments and day-after-day combos that will be hard to match. I was delighted and amazed at some of the stuff he pulled off, such as skiing Captiol Peak, both Maroons and Pyramid Peak in just several days.
Jordan White on the summit of El Diente Peak in 2007.
10 Questions for Jordan White:
Which are the easiest?
“Quandary, Sherman anything in the Mosquitos.”
The hardest?
“I don’t think you can look anywhere but Capitol. Hard mentally, hard skiing, the climbing is pretty much unmatched.”
What was your biggest day?
“Monday the 27th this past April, we did all three of the Wilson group (though my actual list descent of El Diente was probably when I was with you and Louie in 2007.) Last one at sunset.”
How many different partners did it take?
“More than twenty. The most consistent: Frank Konsella, Joe Brannan.”
How many different cars did you go through?
“Only three. With 17,000 miles on the “new” Tacoma since this past September…”
Anyone say you couldn’t do it?
“People were concerned about my ski abilities, but I worked at it and left some of the harder ones till last. Skiing at Highlands all winter helped, as did hanging out with some ex racers.”
What’s your favorite piece of gear?
“Probably AT bindings. I booted the whole Cristo Couloir on Quandary with an alpine rig on my back. Nice to get past that!”
What gear failed?
“What gear didn’t fail?”
What’s next?
“NO MORE LISTS!
I’ve got thousands of pictures from the top of 14ers that look WAY better than stuff I was about to drop into. Time to savor the Elk Mountains and beyond.”
Who do you dedicate your fourteener accomplishment to?
“My dad, who would never have wanted to ski ’em all, but what mountaineering motivation and aptitude I’ve got I was give by my dad since that day at five years old when he first took me on a climb. The only reason I’m 23 years old and am the fifth person to do this is because of the early start he gave me.”
Read the details on Jordan’s Blog.
WildSnow.com publisher emeritus and founder Lou (Louis Dawson) has a 50+ years career in climbing, backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering. He was the first person in history to ski down all 54 Colorado 14,000-foot peaks, has authored numerous books about about backcountry skiing, and has skied from the summit of Denali in Alaska, North America’s highest mountain.