Kelly Holland

We did it, and we did it good! The Peak Performance Backcountry Tour for the Cure was awesome!!! Eleven of the coolest women around the Wasatch came together Saturday morning and headed into the backcountry…all in hopes of raising money and awareness for breast cancer. Okay, so we didn’t exactly make our intended destination, but the trip was so amazing that I could care less. It was a million laughs, a wonderful challenge, and 25 hours of pure adventure….and a little bit of pain. My body was definitely screaming by the end.

The final team consisted of me, Rachael Burks, Re Wikstrom, Vanessa Pierce, Jess Kunzer, Hannah Whitney, Molly Baker, Rebecca Selig, Quincy Young, Tanya Christensen, and Pip Hunt. We started at the White Pine trail head at 2 p.m. and skinned our way toward Hogum…slowly but surely. I managed to pack everything I could think of and dwarfed my incredibly large pack, so I was moving real slow. It was a miracle that I made it to camp all together. I appropriately acquired the name “Shorty Got Pack” and had everyone convinced that I was carrying a girl scout who could set up our camp and delve into all the needed survival skills for us…certainly not a bad idea for next time.

We had to skin up the Red Pine drainage, traverse the ridge into Maybird, and traverse one more ridge into the Hogum Fork drainage. The first third of the skin track was a uni-direction side hill skin…a complete pain in the ass, and I’m amazed that I didn’t loose my balance and eat it with the weight of my pack. I can’t tell you how relieved my left butt cheek was to climb uphill. In the midst of wondering if I’d even make it, I found relief in the company of my best friend in the whole world, Ms. Rachael Burks, who stuck by my side and kept me laughing…even when I reached the point of a death march.

As we reached the top of the ridge we had a clear view into Maybird. I was beat, but Vanessa was a driving motivation and kept us charging with the little light that we had left in the day. We charged on another hour before deciding to make camp at the base of the Pfeifer Horn. It was one ridge short of our intended camp spot, but it was a great location, and I was stoked to pitch a tent and give ‘er a rest.

Five tents sat under Pfeifer’s shadow with incredibly clear skies on a windless night. A fire was built–with Rebecca diligently on fire wood duty–and we managed to scrap together some pad thai. We then topped the evening off with a well deserved bottle of champagne and cookies…thank you girl scout.

I think we all froze that night, so we were stoked to see the sun in the morning. Unfortunately we got a late start, and when we skinned to the pass and saw the remaining distance to the Hypodermic Needle….we pulled the plug. Hogum revealed a bigger drainage than anyone pictured and a lot longer boot pack to the top of the Needle than the warming snow would permit. Our spirits were so high and enjoying the day regardless that I don’t think anyone was devastated…we opted for plan B and skied topless down “Pfeifer Pass”. We shralped a solid four turns and called it good before gathering our gear and heading down.

If hiking up wasn’t hard enough, skiing down with the “girl scout” was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. My legs and knee just didn’t have it in ‘em, so I took beaterdom to a whole new level. It was miraculous I made it off Red Pine ridge in one piece, and it certainly wasn’t done graciously. Luckily I was with some really rad chicks who saved my ass. Vanessa was nice enough to trade me packs…I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have made it otherwise. Yeah, she rocks.

 The Parking lot was sweet salvation and topped with extra awesomeness thanks to Adam Clark who dropped off a 12 pack of PBR…just waiting for our arrival. I don’t even like beer, but that PBR tasted great. The trip was awesome and worth every ounce of pain.  We topped the day off with some nachos and wings at the Porcupine…a beautiful ending.  I woke up today and still can’t walk quite normal, but I love it! Thank you to all the girls for making The Backcountry Tour for the Cure an amazing trip!

I also want to thank my mother for her inspiration and support for this event. Her strength and courage through her battle with breast cancer left an ineffable impression upon me, one that I hold dear to my heart. She is a survivor.

 Thank you to all those who gave pledges and support to our tour, especially Peak Performance, Backcountry.com, and Black Diamond. I appreciate the support greatly…thank you!

Trip Nicknames

Kelly “Shorty Got Pack” Holland
Vanessa “VD” Pierce
Vanessa “Bobsled” Pierce
Hannah “Pro Camper” Whitney
Rachael “The Lost Tourist” Burks
Rachael “R2D2″ Burks
Rachael “I swear I’m dex and you’re TJ” Burks
Rebecca “Fire Killer” Selig
Molly “5 Star” Baker
Jess “Loves the Jack” Kunzer
Jess “Theater Major” Kunzer
Quincy “The Hot Water Saved My Life” Young
Tanya “The Tiger” Christensen
Tanya “Sleepwalker” Christensen
Pip “I Didn’t Like These Boots Anyway” Hunt