I have been doing some research on Twin Peaks, a set of peaks I have been captured by since I was just a young kid. It seems the first known successful ascent occurred in August 21, 1847 by John Brown, Albert Carrington, William Wilson. John had been in the Salt Lake Valley as a mormon pioneer only a month prior (one book had indicated Orson Pratt was party to this but most other sources point otherwise). It took the party 8 hours to climb to the top of the lofty mountain (starting from their camp at the mouth of Big Cottonwood) and snow was discovered on
top. John seems to have documented their ascent best. Some of us are immediately drawn to the mountains.
Off the east summit of Twin Peaks a steep and super long couloir on the the north-west aspect drops down into the north fork of Deaf Smith. This couloir is riddled with complex quartzite complemented by shades of creamy light and dark brown. I am calling this couloir the Brown Couloir, in honor of John Brown, the apparent expedition leader of the first successful party to ascend this remarkable peak.
Justin and I had an excellent morning yesterday, starting at 615 AM. We topped out on Twins via Broads Fork with the Brown Couloir our objective and found steep mixed conditions right off the bat. It was a remarkable descent into the mystical setting of the north side of Twin and then into Deaf Smith. We ascended the Deaf Smith North Fork headwall and then traversed over the ridge to find consolidated powder the entire descent of Bonkers. The crystal clear sky told the story of a storm that never materialized.
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| Justin- Cottonwood Ridgeline |
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| Me, cheesy pose- Thanks Justin |
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| Coming off summit and descending in |
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| Justin upper third of Brown Couloir |
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| Me in weathered terrain, rime-crusted quartzite |
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| Justin ascending out of Deaf Smith |
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| Twins Massive North Face |
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| Not bonked yet |
