This is a doozy . . . the second and final chapter of my adventure to Peru with Ptor and the Sweetgrass boys.

Backcountry skiing is entering a new golden era, or an era of selling out to the corporate mainstream (one or the other, or maybe a little of both). There are backcountry features in new school mags. Films are being made by mainstream guys like TGR and Seth Morrison. Backcountry skiers are being sponsored by mainstream companies. In short, everybody wants in on the action.

Lying on the fringe of the industry, representing the soul of the sport, the Sweetgrass boys are carving their niche and leading the charge of this backcountry renaissance. The stories they create are meaningful, the cinematography top-notch, and their films have an originality that is unmatched.

This behind-the-scenes video that Nick conjured, is one of most powerful collections of ski imagery you’ll ever see. If you weren’t there, it might seem a bit melodramatic. But death in the mountains is real. The paralyzing fear I felt at the first glimpse of our line was real.

It’s honor to know these guys.