Check out this bit from Devon Balet about 4 days of strait awesome. Be sure to check out more info on Devon and his killer photography at devonbaletphoto.com:

For most people, the idea of being snowed in atop of one of the roughest mountain passes in Colorado is the beginning of a nightmare. Red Mountain Pass is well known for catching some of the deepest snow storms and having some of the most dangerous avalanche paths of any highway in Colorado. When Colorado Avalanche Information Center employee Anne Mellick walked up to the Addies Hut where I was staying, I knew exactly what she was about to tell us. NOAA was calling for nearly ten inches of snow to fall Thursday night. However, from what Anne had to tell us, it appeared that the storm was bring much more then 10”.
“We will be closing the pass at sundown today. You guys should really think about packing up and heading out. There is a good chance the pass will remain closed until Monday.”
LEAVE?! Are you kidding me? There was no way I was leaving. Monday huh? That’s only five days, I can hang with that. So after a few friends slipping past the gates just in time to join our lock in, the pass closed at 7pm Thursday. Around 9:00 we all decided to venture out to the road to see what was happening. Snow was blowing side ways and piling up fast. After only two short hours nearly 6” had already accumulated on the road. We were in for an adventure.
The next morning came after a full night of wind and pounding snow. The front deck of the hut was under a solid foot of snow, and the trail to the outhouse was gone. A single set of post hole foot prints led the way. The energy in the hut was through the roof. We all headed up to the road to see what the night had brought for us.
All our vehicles were nearly gone. Snow drifts piled up burying my truck to the hood. The road now had over 16” of solid snow. With this massive drop of snow on top of unstable snowpack, we all decided the best thing for us to do was to build a jump over the road closed sign. After little effort the jump was built. Creating an in run proved to be a bit more challenging. Swimming up to my chest, myself and few others trudged up the hill to pack in a run.
Once we had enough of playing with federal property, a four man crew headed out for what we thought would be a short skin. Now over two feet had fallen since the pervious evening, making for some of the hardest skinning I have ever experienced. The track was knee to chest deep, forcing us to switch leaders regularly. The massive amount of effort needed to slug through the snow made for slow movement. We were moving at about 1/4 mile per hour.
Besides the difficult skinning, the constant fear of avalanche made the tour slow moving. Constantly we were hearing massive womphs in the snowpack. Several times the snow collapsed so much you would drop nearly six inches. As the sun slowly made its way west, we knew we needed to get back. The three hour skin up came with a one hour skin down. The snow was so deep that in the low angle terrain you couldn’t get enough momentum to move through the snow pack.
Friday night brought even more snow and wind. Later I learned that a weather station on Red Mountain Pass recorded a 141 mph wind gust Friday night! 141!!! More snow, more wind, and no plows. We owned Red Mountain Pass. There was no sign of life on the pass and no sign of CDOT crews whatsoever. What to do? What to do? “Let’s go hit this big jump I built while you guys were skinning yesterday!”
The bottomless snow was perfect for hucking your meat skyward with no fear of injury. The biggest fear was swimming your way back to the top of snow. One of the crew members, Travis, sent well over 40 ft and ended up a good two feet under the snow on impact.

As the sun set on our third day of being snowed in on the pass the snow begin to pick up again. Now we were wondering if we would be getting out anytime soon. Not to worry! There was still tons of food and a solid stash of beer. We can make it.
Sunday morning came with a nice snow storm. MORE SNOW?! With well over 50” fallen in the past four days, it looked as though Sunday would not be our day of release either. The big concern now? Our costume party the night before left us with a mere five beers left. With a crew of seven this would quickly pose a problem.
Myself and good friend YaYa decided to take a chance at finding some decent turns with our day. “If we aren’t getting out, we might as well get some face shots.” Around 2pm we set out to an area close to the hut with a promise of good turns. As we neared the top of the pass the roaring sound of diesel hung in the air with a side of explosions. Just as we were rounded the last corner to the summit there they were. CDOT was in full force; plows, massive snow blowers and an avalanche canon mounted on the bed of a truck.
As the blow made its way through the snow, a feeling of disappointment over came me. Sure, it was nice to know we would be getting out finally. But I was growing fond of being locked onto the pass. For four days, the only sign of life on the highway was a single skin track making it’s way up the pass. The simplicity of our snowed in life appealed to me.
As the crews worked their way up the road, we learned we could get an escort off the pass in one hour. Nearly ever slide path ran, covering the highway in 15 feet of snow in places. So with the sign of pavement, we packed our stuff and made a line for our escort out. As I followed the massive plow down the pass back towards Ouray I was already missing my life at the Addies Hut.

Lets hear about all your own experiences with last weekend’s dump in the comments!

Rating:

Pros: Very light, no binding attached to your heel in tour mode and super solid in ski mode.

Cons: DIN of 10, need dynafit compatible  boots, don’t come with brakes (keep and eye on them).

Bottom Line: Solid binding, especially if you are just going out to make turns. I wouldn’t recommend getting to far off the ground with them. Much stiffer binding than I originally thought it would be. I would recommend this binding to anyone who wants to run powder laps up coneys.

Rating:

Pros: Easy to use and self contained. Piezo electric ignition so no flame up issues compared to other backpacking stoves. Boils water very fast (fast like a jet?)

Cons: Pretty purpose-built for boiling (water), nor really great for cooking. Hard to tell when fuel is running low (common with these kinds of gas stoves).

Bottom Line: This is an awesome item to have in your collection – and not only for backpacking. It is a must have in the car to boil water instantly for coffee using the french press option. Take it to bike races, climbing, car camping, kayaking, rafting – where ever! No matches needed and heats water faster than my home stove.

Pros: You can tour with alpine bindings.

Cons: Called “Day Wreckers” for a reason – they make a heavy setup heavier, generally frustrating, and slow.

Bottom Line: Way better than boot packing – no doubt about that. When you get to the top and you can step into alpine bindings, it makes it worth it. They can be a pain though; if not adjusted correctly to your boots, they don’t stay on very well. Basically, as an A.T. binding, they don’t hack it. Nevertheless, a great tool if you want your alpine bindings on the top with you.

Pros: Women’s-specific fit with a rock solid 4 buckle design for aggressive runs. So far seem super durable.
Cons: Really an all-around-great boot for aggressive female tele skiers.
Bottom Line: These boots are 5-star all the way; they kick butt. Scarpa has finally made a burly boot with 4 buckles for those aggressive tele ladies. These boots are designed specific for the female anatomy: slightly lower calf, narrower heal box, as well as the a narrower last (which really cuts on the slop). They are included with intuition liner.