Bonkers Via Broads Fork Trip Summary
April 4, 2020
The day before we set out we received about 5” of light snow on top of a stable snow pack. With winds dying down and having great skiing the day before, Bonkers in Broads Fork seemed like it would finally be a good idea.
So today, we woke before the sun came up to avoid some potential wet snow that could affect the skin track later. I checked the Utah Avalanche Center website for our daily avalanche forecast and the danger was low on all aspects and all elevations. I was still a bit concerned about wind loading, but after checking winds from the last 24 hours it seemed like they had died down and we were tentatively in the clear! I drove down the street to pick up my friends Alex Arnis and Jeremy Collette to head up to the hills.
When we arrived at the Broads Fork trail head on the S Curves of Big Cottonwood Canyon it was 32 degrees, the coldest start we have had in a few weeks. At this time of the year the first part of the trail is pretty melted out so we threw the skis on our backs, put out boots in walk mode (except for Arnis who is an animal on his Daymakers), and started hiking.
You immediately start to gain a bit of elevation heading up broads, it was a mix of hiking on dirt and ice until we could finally click our skis and skins on. Then you meander up the hiking trail in a mix of aspens and pines. Finally after a lot of being in the woods you pop out of the trees and can see the big stuff.
-Alex emerging from the woods to look up at Bonkers, the Diving Board, and Blue Ice.
My mouth started to hurt from all the grinning I was doing, this corner of the Wasatch is mind blowing in terms of the size and ruggedness. We get to Jeremy (who is naturally far ahead of us), drink some water and get ready 2,600 feet of kick turns.
When skinning up you usually want to hug the lookers right hand side of the face. This keeps you in lower angle terrain (low 30’s) as well as keeps you out of the way of bigger potential slide paths from wind loaded slopes above. That being said this is bigger terrain and not a place you want to be if you are really worried about slides that day. The skinner that was already set (which was actually perfect) went a little bit more in the middle which was perfect since we were more concerned about wet avalanches from the cliffs on the lookers right hand side. On another note, the amount of glide cracks and glide avalanche debris was really stunning. It gives the feeling of being on a microgracier.
-Look closely and you can see why Blue Ice is named such.
As we near the top the stoke continues to build, the slope lookers left is untouched and looks to be superb. Peering over the right you can get eyes on Stairs Gulch, which looks amazing, up top. The bottom of Stairs looks like a nightmare, not to mention the entire thing is a massive terrain trap.
-Stairs Gulch overlooking the valley, note some of the glide cracks on a number of faces, scary.
-The last bit of skinner before the top.
After reaching the top, once again we were all grinning ear to ear and greeted with one of the most spectacular views of the Central Wasatch I have seen in a little while. With the NW Face of Twin Peaks up close and personal, then Coalpit Headwall one layer back, then back to the Lone Peak Cirque, it is truly stunning. It would make anyone hungry to get on those faces.
After transitioning and eating some snacks we went over the plan. Originally we wanted to just ski from the first summit you get too, but two people had skied it earlier and it looked a bit tracked out. So about halfway up we had decided we would be skiing the more north facing part closer to the Diving Board run. This section is overall a lower angle, but has a few potential problems. First, you have to cross a slope that could be wind loaded and has some thin spots. Second, what is below you is generally some rocks and glide cracks. These were important but since conditions were looking really good, it was only a consideration.
-Jeremy cheesin'
-The zone we skied from a skinners view.
I traversed over, minding my speed avoiding rocks and paying attention to the snow. It didn’t even slough and confidence was all there. I radioed my drop and proceeded to rip 2,500’ of Wasatch cream. It was such an amazing feeling being able to open up the speed a bit and see that you have such a long run ahead of you. I can see why people say that this is one of the best pow runs in the Wasatch.
-A good perspective to look up and admire our wiggles.
Getting to the bottom I had to squeal in joy before giving Arnis the go ahead to rip on down. Both Jeremy and Arnis layed down beautiful wiggles next to mine and amplified the stoke. We had to hold back to not head up for another lap. Which is good because the exit is not an Alta Groomer.
The first bit is fun tree skiing then it rolls over and pretty much until you have to transition again it is like a bobsled track mixed with a poorly laid out slalom course. After skidding on ice, dirt and rocks we put our skis on our packs one last time and walked the last bit to the car.
We got to the car to be greeted by cold beers, warm sun, and the satisfaction of skiing Bonkers. It was an amazing day and we were pleasantly surprised by amazing snow.
This is an awesome run, it is a bigger day and requires good weather planning and avalanche awareness. If you have that, and are ready for an annoying approach, with the longest pow run to date, go get it.
Stats!
Elevation Gain/Loss: 4,472 ft
Summit Elevation: 10,830 ft
Start Elevation: 6,400 ft
Time to Summit: 3 hours even
Total Time: 4 hours 30 minutes and 3 seconds
Total Distance: 7 miles
These stats are recorded on a Garmin watch and there can be a little variation.
If you have suggestions or questions, let me know!
Here is a video of my run top to bottom:
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