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Gus Bosch

@gus_batcho

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Ski Mountaineer, Engineer, Videographer
@momentskis @unboundoutdoorco

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The Comstock is a descent that had always been on my bucket list. The difficult access, technical skiing, required coverage, and poor weather mean it’s not very often that there’s a good opportunity to ski the line.

Watching the legends @_greghill_ @codytownsend @michaelcwirth @malinoyes @spencerharkins skiing or attempting to ski the line had sorta built it into a myth.

This year’s January Canadian ski trip I remember our entire group watching the C Wirth descent video and talking about how crazy it looked. I also remember @danybannanies asking me to promise not to try and ski the line. I promised not to do it in a single push.

So 4 months later, back at Roger’s Pass with @declanknies @brigettetakeuchi and @kelsey.rt and a fantastic weather window, it was a bit surreal to get back in the Dawson’s for the first time and boot the couloir.

@himali @momentskis

#skiing #backcountryskiing #mountains by @gus_batcho

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4 months ago

This time, I swear I’m not going back again…

The cumulation of 6 years of ski mountaineering on one mountain.
#skiing
#backcountryskiing
#mountains
#mountoftheholycross
#cross
#couloir taken in Mount of the Holy Cross by @gus_batcho

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a year ago

Japan Ski Film 2024
🇯🇵 🌨️🌋

During last year’s Japan ski trip I edited daily videos as we drove an RV around Hokkaido. But I wanted to go through the process of making a full film, with no time constraints, and develop original music. I animated this intro and came up with some garage band music, but it became clear that I didn’t have the footage to tell the story I wanted to tell. What I did manage to do is capture a life changing trip, and although the music is spotty, the color grading is messed up, and it’s really, really long it will be a great memory some day. If you ever need to kill 1.5hours go check it out on YouTube!

P.S. 2025 edit is gonna be sweet! taken in Hokkaido by @gus_batcho

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2 years ago

Resort is nice, but the mountains aren’t inbounds
#ski by @gus_batcho

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4 days ago

Torreys is the new Teton #startingtosnow

@momentskis by @gus_batcho

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5 days ago

To create the portrait music edit I created a landscape master shot, and I kinda like it more so here it is with a bit of tweaking. These don’t seem to get much engagement (unless it’s a trending song) but boy are they fun to make.
#wideshot by @gus_batcho

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15 days ago

boys trip edit #deeper by @gus_batcho

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17 days ago

My thoughts below….

On all the other Class Four Mountains you HAVE to get through the tricky terrain in order to reach a comparably chill summit (if we are considering that 2 foot perch sunlights summit). So there is a lot more pressure and risk of unprepared people overextending trying to reach the top.

According to my internet research, there has never been a reported fatality on Sunlight Peak while all of the other Class Four 14ers have had multiple.

Maybe the class four rating is a useful deterrent, or maybe the long approach and remote location naturally filters out unprepared climbers.

But if you love class 3 scrambling and find yourself in the basin, you don’t want to miss out on Sunlight! by @gus_batcho

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18 days ago

These might be the best 14ers… but that’s a tough choice when there are 58 (or 54) to choose from.
#mountains #colorado #14er taken in Colorado, USA by @gus_batcho

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20 days ago

Who else has stood up here?

#mountains #photography #peak by @gus_batcho

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23 days ago

If you check out the @colorado14ersinitiative ’s 2025 hiker use statistics you’ll notice that the San Juan mountain range is far less crowded than the more Denver adjacent peaks. Even during the 2021 surge the Needle Mountains 14er linkup of Sunlight, Eolus, and Windom stayed relatively crowd free.

We climbed these peaks both in 2020 via the purgatory access trail, and this September of 2026 via the Durango to Silverton steam locomotive. While campsites in the Chicago Basin can reportedly get crowded on the weekends, the four 14ers are good at spreading people out for perhaps the most remote feeling 14er experience in the state.

From the summit of these peaks it’s possible to look out across the San Juan range and see almost no signs of human habitation.

It’s not a lack of information or a social media blackout that kept these peaks pristine. The trails are all well built and well maintained, and the scrambling is incredibly well cairned and stays mostly in the class 2-3 range (*although Sunlight’s summit block is considered class 4).

These peaks are self regulated by the capacity of the Durango-Silverton railroad, which limits wilderness access to 40 passengers per day. Over the course of the 20 weekend season, thats only 1,600 spots! (Week days during peak season also tend to fill up)

If you want to save some money and skip the train, you have to add 20miles roundtrip along the purgatory flats just to access the Chicago Basin trail, which is another barrier that makes achieving these summits even more difficult.

During monsoon season an afternoon thunderstorm is almost guaranteed, which means you’ll want multiple summit days if you can’t complete all four peaks well before noon.

And let’s not forget the 6 hour drive from Denver to Durango, which is perhaps the peaks greatest defense from the front range crowds.

Have you climbed the Chicago Basin Grand Slam? If so congratulations! You’ve earned it.

#14er #colorado #gusruinedchicagobasin taken in Colorado, USA by @gus_batcho

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24 days ago

Chicago Basin is the access point for Four of the most remote 14ers in Colorado.
Deep in the Needles Mountains in the southern San Juan range it isabout as far from a road that you can get and stand at the summit of a 14er.
However the Durango to Silverton steam locomotive cuts the required access significantly, but also requires you to plan around its timetable and backpacker quotas.
The other alternative is an extra 20miles (round trip) of approach that can put total mileage north of 50miles to complete all four peaks, a feat which is dubbed the Chicago basin grand slam.

I’ve now climbed these peaks both with the train, and without. Now I’m itching for a try at a single day attempt… maybe on skis?
#mountains #14er #colorado by @gus_batcho

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25 days ago