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HiSTORy a “We have not even to risk the adventure alone; for the heroes of all time have gone before us; the labyrinth is thoroughly known; we have only to follow the thread of the hero-path. And where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god; where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves; where we had thought to travel outward, we shall come to the center of our own existence; where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world.” - Joseph Campbell, The Hero with a Thousand Faces. Skiing is as crucial to the vitality of many mountain towns of the modern West as, say, mining, logging and ranching once were and, in some places, still are. It is arguable whether the cattle, mining and logging barons (some of them robbers, some not), and the gunmen who did their bidding of the West’s 19th and early 20th centuries are heroes, but they certainly were powerful icons of undisputed influence who have, for the most part, left environmental and therefore social devastation in their clear-cut, open-pit, over-grazed, violent wake. Skiing, however, has some genuine heroes who, as Joseph Campbell points out, have left a thread to guide us to the center of our own existence where it is possible to see more clearly what we do and why and what it might mean. Each year there are more and more skiers venturing into the backcountry. They seek different rewards—nature, solitude, untracked powder, exercise, relief from the congestion and pretension of modern ski resorts, and adventure with consequences for lapses in judgment, knowledge or respect. Western America’s first great hero of backcountry skiing must surely be the Norwegian immigrant known as Snowshoe Thompson. Born Jon Torsteinson-Rue (later changed to John A. Thompson) on April 30, 1827 in a small town in the Telemark region of Norway, he came to America at age 10, and lived in Illinois, Missouri, Iowa and Wisconsin before moving to Placerville, California in 1851 during the gold rush. In 1855, he saw an ad in the Sacramento Union newspaper for a mail carrier from Placerville, east across the snow of winter in the Sierra Nevada, to Mormon Station, Utah (which later became Genoa, Nevada). The ad read: “People lost to the 16 December 24, 2010 By DiCk DORWORTH world; Uncle Sam needs a mail carrier.” Like most Norwegians of Telemark, Thompson learned to ski as a child and brought those skills to the New World. He was the only applicant for the mail job, and in January 1856, a crowd in Placerville watched him leave on his first 90-mile journey across the Sierra. His homemade skis (called ‘snowshoes’, thus the nickname) were 10 feet long, made of oak and weighed 25 pounds, though in later years he got them down to about 9’4” and a bit lighter. Few in the crowd thought he would make it, but five days later he returned, having delivered the mail going east and bringing back the mail going west. Thus began the career of a true hero of the old west, the father of California skiing, and a legendary postman. Two to four times a month for the next 20 winters Thompson made the trip, three days east, two days coming back west, covering between 25 and 40 miles a day. Because his sack of mail weighed between 60 and 100 pounds, he carried minimal personal equipment: a few crackers, some bread and dried meat to eat, a heavy Mackinaw and a wide rimmed hat for shelter and sleep. He didn’t use a compass and once said, “There is no danger of getting lost in a narrow range of mountains like the Sierra if a man has his wits about him.” Every modern day backcountry skier—with equipment weighing less that one of Thompson’s skis—can appreciate the simplicity and austerity of Snowshoe’s tours across the Sierra. The Sacramento Union wrote of Thompson, “His reliability, kindness and physical prowess quickly earned the admiration and respect of the Sierra residents.” He was never paid for his efforts and service. Ron Watters wrote of Thompson, paraphrasing Dan DeQuille: “The mountains were his sanctuary, and storms were just another part of its raw beauty. On his skis, he could freely move across the snow covered landscape. The feeling of freedom must have been never more Most remarkable man i ever knew, that Snowshoe Thompson. He must be made of iron. Besides, he never thinks of himself, but he’d give his last breath for anyone else— even a total stranger. real to Thompson than when gliding down hill, holding his balance pole out in front of him, dipping it one direction and then the other, his wide-brimmed hat flapping in the wind and the Sierras spread out in front of him. At times like that, he must have felt like a soaring eagle.” S.A. Kinsey, the postmaster of Genoa, where Thompson is buried, said, “Most remarkable man I ever knew, that Snowshoe Thompson. He must be made of iron. Besides, he never thinks of himself, but he’d give his last breath for anyone else—even a total stranger.” Thompson was true hero of the old West at the center of our own existence. Dick Dorworth is the author of Night Driving: Invention of the Wheel and Other Blues and The Perfect Turn and Other Tales of Skiing and Skiers. He divides his time between Ketchum, Idaho and Bozeman, Montana and is a reporter and regular columnist for the Idaho Mountain Express.
gaLLeRy “Bison Head in Snow” by Pat Branting meeT arTiSTS PaT BranTing, kaTie Lee, and Terry and WHiTney HaLL December 27 and 28, 4 - 8 p.m. at Big Sky Furniture Meadow Village, Big Sky aLSO FeaTuRing: Stone tables from Black Mountain Forge Wine offerings from natalie’s estate Winery PaT BranTing Originally from Nebraska, painter Pat Branting has lived in the Gallatin Valley since 1976. She taught elementary school for 34 years and now teaches adult art classes out of her home in Belgrade. Branting is excited for the Western Masters Show in Great Falls this coming March, which is in conjunction with the annual C.M. Russell art show. I mostly paint in oils, but I do watercolors also. I love to paint Montana landscapes and wildlife. I use colors and go for mood and light in a painting. I’m working on a big painting of Lone Peak right now that’s four by six feet. I do plein air watercolor sketches of landscapes. That’s been part of my learning to paint. I also paint from photographs. I’m an avid hiker and outdoor person. I hike in Yellowstone Park, in Glacier and around Gallatin County. I love the washes and the beautiful freedom that comes in painting in watercolor. In oils, I love the textures you can build up and the thickness. I think animals have their own personalities. I am just finishing painting a bear. I like the massiveness of bison—they have such a history with the Native Americans and their connection to the land. I love placing the animals in their habitat. I’ve got a moose walking in the water along the Madison River in Yellowstone Park. How the animals survive in winter amazes me. I love all the different moods snow can give. I’m from North Platte Nebraska, where the North Platte and the South Platte rivers meet. During my childhood, we spent a lot of time on the rivers and lakes. We December 24, 2010 Volume 1 // Issue #5 “Hungry Grizz” by Katie Lee “Fresh Powder” by Katie Lee Big Sky vacationed to the mountains, and found it so beautiful, so we packed up and moved here. We skied every weekend, and hiked and backpacked in the summer. We canoed the rivers and rafted. I raised two boys and they are avid skiers and mountain bikers. I’m the only artist in my family. My art is my passion. I retired from teaching and feel like working on my art is what I need to be doing. It feeds my soul and completes me. patbranting.com kaTie Lee Katie Lee was born in Montana and raised in Grand Forks, North Dakota. The 26-year-old is self-taught as an artist. At 14, she started painting with acrylic and now primarily works with oil on canvas. She completed her college degree at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, did a stint in Seattle, and recently moved back to Grand Forks. I paint animals because people enjoy them, but sometimes wildlife is just a bunch of browns. I use color to make things more interesting and colorful than they really are. I love mixing and making new colors. Montana has always been an inspiration. I love skiing, and I have family in Big Sky and visit every year. I’ve also painted subjects from North Dakota. I’ve sold paintings all over the U.S. and Mexico. I’ve turned my paintings into greeting cards and custom-made greeting card gift boxes. I haven’t been to this show before, and I’m excited. gallerybykatielee.com December 24, 2010 17
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