Lochan's Cirque

Lochan's Cirque is a wild backcountry run that can be accessed from Backside Bowl. About 1/2 down Backside Bowl, as far skiers' right as you can to the start of the bootpack up Carrie's Run. This bootpack is ultra-steep, nearly as steep as the run itself and that'll weed out a bunch of inexperienced riders. Because of the pitch, this is the one bootpack in the area that absolutely requires Crampons and an Ice Axe. The scariest part of Lochan's Cirque is the sheer exposure. You're directly over gigantic cliffs and a fall would have profound implications. The safest route for skiing this legendary Cirque is to veer as far skiers' right as you can. Skiers' left is for the truly brave as it involves huge rock and cliff drops. Although if you opt to hit this cliffs, beware of the lake below. The main Cirque run however is furthest skiers' right. Although the main Cirque run is less intense than the mandatory cliffs found skiers' left of it, there's still a gnarly choke in the middle of the run that involves either a series of very tight turns or mandatory straightlining in some cases. After this choke, the run mellows out substantially and enjoy some really nice turns all the way to the cat-track out.