A Dog’s Breakfast | E83

Apr 2, 2026

A wild hut trip in Canada with dramatic avalanches and a snow sage sharing avalanche wisdom. A deep dive into beacon training, gear choices, and multi-burial practice. A historic zero-inch March at Donner Summit and debate over social media’s effect on April Fools. Bike wheel trends, uphill-right-of-way trail etiquette, a near-mace trailwork mishap, and a heated grizzly reintroduction debate.

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INSIGHT

Bad Weather Can Yield High Value Snow Education

Rainouts on hut trips can be valuable for education if leaders provide structured programs.
Pow Bot received three days of Russell Hulbert's risk maturity material and recorded two hour-plus sessions on risk and beacons.

ANECDOTE

Hut Cuisine Was Restaurant Quality Every Night

Food at Ice Creek Lodge stood out as restaurant-quality and contributed to the trip's enjoyment.
Pow Bot praised Hannah's consistent, top-tier meals that left guests full despite heavy skiing days.

INSIGHT

Historic Zero Inches At The Snow Lab In March

March with zero inches at the official snow lab is unprecedented locally and signals an abnormal, drought-like season.
Trail Whisperer and Pow Bot note March is usually the biggest month and this year closed with no recorded snow at the snow lab.

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After two weeks of bi-polar weather in Canada chasing pow and getting rained on, aka a “dog’s breakfast”, the boys recount the trip to Ice Creek Lodge and the wisdom gained from the jedi master of snow, Russell Hulbert. Meanwhile, back home in the Sierra, a dismal March left zero inches of snow on Donner Summit, the first time in recorded history, capping off a Winter to forget. Moving on to Spring things, the boys chat about a variety of topics including DOPE or DERPs on 32” mountain bike wheels, uphill or downhill traffic having the right of way on trails and reintroducing grizzly bears into the Sierra Nevada. Other topics include introducing a new AI-generated Mind the Track theme song, Trail Whisperer almost getting maced by a hiker while logging out a trail with his chainsaw, Lost Sierra trail conditions updates, a class-action anti-trust lawsuit against Vail Resorts and Alterra and has social media ruined April Fools Day?

2:10 – New intro song for Mind the Track created by AI. Maybe AI is good for something.

4:30 – Recapping a wild Canada ski hut trip to Ice Creek Lodge.

8:00 – Watching avalanches come down all around the crew at Ice Creek Lodge.

9:00 – Russell Hulbert, owner of Ice Creek Lodge, is a jedi of snow. The snow Yoda.

13:50 – Learning everything you’d ever want to know about avalanche beacons – Mammut Barryvox versus the BCA Tracker 4.

17:50 – Is all the risk, variables and dangers of pow skiing worth it? Should we just ski corn only?

21:50 – Shout out to the crew of Ice Creek – Benny, Brodie and Hannah.

25:05 – Jerry of the Day awards from the trip.

28:14 – Skiing Kicking Horse in Golden, BC and attending the “State of the Snowpack”.

35:25 – March closes out with zero inches of snow on Donner Summit all month – the first time in recorded history.

38:20 – Has social media ruined April Fools?

40:45 – A few LOST and FOUND stories – leave it where you found it.

43:10 – Anti-trust lawsuit against Alterra and Vail Resorts regarding a duopoly and inflating the price of day pass tickets.

49:50 – Update on the Downieville mountain biker getting lost. It’s way dumber than expected.

52:20 - DOPE or DERP from Stu – 32” wheels on a mountain biker.

54:30 – DOPE or DERP/RANT from Lee – Uphill traffic has the right of way.

1:02:45 – TW almost gets bear sprayed by a hiker while cutting out a log with a chainsaw.

1:04:55 – DOPE or DERP – reintroduction of grizzly bears into California.

1:12:55 – Update on the Ruby Mountains ski resort near Lamoille Canyon.

1:16:35 – Listener feedback about the Frog Lake avalanche accident.

1:18:40 – The Durand Glacier accident in 2003 changed guiding in Canada.

1:23:50 – Spring corn skiing missions to Shasta and Lassen.

1:25:55 – Calling 311 to complain about the Ice Cream Man

1:28:30 – Trail Whisperer’s story about being a cold calling headhunter machine.

1:35:15 – Lost Sierra trail conditions update – Mount Hough completely open!

1:39:10 – Weather forecasters calling for Godzilla El Nino!