By Popular Demand......

Really just because Amber asked:
"The Two Day Ordeal"
I got the S.A.V. (Ski Approach Vehicle) stuck up Prov Canyon the other day. There was no way I woulda got it out by myself, so I skied out and called my buddy Dustin who also has a sled. He agreed to come and bail me out. He got off work at about 3 PM, and we rallied up the canyon to try and get out before dark. We located the S.A.V., but decided it was too late to begin getting it unstuck, so we headed downcanyon. The next morning it started snowing, and I knew if we didn't get my sled out today, I prolly wouldn't get it until July. Dustin bailed out of work at 1, so we got a little earlier start & headed for the S.A.V., which was stuck in a drifted gully at 8,600 feet. I was lucky to spot it, and this is what it looked like when we arrived:
And after a half hour of digging:
I know this is a poor picture, but it kinda gives an idea of the bad spot the S.A.V. was in. Not only is it somewhat in the tree well, it's also in a gully full of about eight feet of drifted snow. It is located left of my skis:
Dustin managed to get his sled stuck a few times while trying to create a bit of a track for me to get out on. To make a long story short, we did a whole lot of wallowing in snow up to our chests, lifted heavy sleds out of holes a whole bunch, shoveled copious amounts of snow, and inhaled way too much 2-stroke exhaust.
When 9:00 PM rolled around, we assumed Search & Rescue had prolly been dispatched by then. Luckily, our worried ladies at home had held out long enough on calling the authorities, and we managed to get phone service on a ridge at 8,000 feet. We arrived at home two hours later, after the second night in a row of descending 3,500 vertical feet down Providence Canyon with no headlights on our snowmobiles.

Some things I already knew, but have been reiterated:

* T.T.T. (Things Take Time).
*Providence Canyon deserves respect.
*When you get stuck, friends are priceless.

Special thanks to Dustin for saving my bacon.