Skinning Naches
Peak west bowl | 
Barrier Peak and
Governors Ridge | 
Russ skiing Naches
Peak west bowl |
Matt randonee
skiing west bowl | 
Charles telemark
skiing Naches Peak | 
Russ randonee
skiing Naches Peak |
Charles telemark
skiing Naches Peak | 
Charles skiing west bowl | 
Scenic discussion |
Frozen waterfall on east
side of Naches Peak | 
Frozen waterfall close up | 
Ski touring Naches
Peak east side |
Russ AT skiing
Naches Peak glades | 
Russ AT skiing in glades | 
Nope, he didn't fall |
Charles telemark skiing
Naches Peak glades | 
Russ skiing glades | 
Matt randonee skiing
Naches Peak glades |
Photos by Matt Depies and Charles Eldridge
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Backcountry skiing trip report: Naches Peak, Chinook Pass, Washington
Charles, Russ, and I decided to risk a trip over to Chinook Pass rather than the long drive north to Baker. Our hopes of good coverage were quickly dashed by a look at the south slope of Yakima Peak: it had lots of exposed patches of grass. So we decided on the west bowl of Naches Peak. Hmmmm, during the skin track up we noticed quite variable snow conditions. More southern aspects had a thicker crust while others were fluffy. Higher up in the snow we encountered more wind affected snow while there were still patches of fluff. This was all academic after our first run as we smashed our bases on numerous rocks. There was not nearly the necessary coverage. My damaged bases only caused me to shed a tear or two. Russ' screams could probably be heard all the way to Camp Muir.
At that point we decided to do a tour around Naches Peak. As the day went on and the temperature rose the snow thickened and became more cohesive. Still not enough coverage in most places to cover up the random rocks. Our final run was through some glades on the west side of Naches and these proved to have good snow and adequate coverage.
Matt |
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