Where to go?

Here's the conundrum: Where does one go skiing in early October when the snow level drops to 3500' and 6"+ are expected to fall between now and friday?

If the road to Sunrise is open, is Burroughs Mountain the best bet? But what if they close the road? That seems likely. If they do, how about starting from Mowich Lake, a la snoslut in "Powder, Sun, Carnage on Rainier"? But might that road close too if the snow really falls as expected? What about Cayuse Pass?

Or does one head North to Baker and Ptarmigan ridge in such a situation?

What to do? What to do?

Not enough to ski, but WSDOT cam at Stevens shows snow on the roadbed!!

Hypothetically speaking, of course...

It's all hypothetical at this point... right until I am pulling out of my driveway with skis on the roof and boots in the back of the car. But if the weather does what it's supposed to do, well, hopefully we can take the fruits of this abstract discussion into the realm of reality.

Seriously, where is the best place to go this early in the season?

just my two cents...

muir snowfield is arguably the easiest access to early season turns.  perhaps not necessarily the best (since it is such low angle skiing) but theres a reason why there are usually so many muir snowfield TR's early season.  if you go, bring the full enchilada of navigational tools (maps, compass, altimeter, gps, wands perhaps?) viz is often terrible up there during storms.

Heliotrope Ridge/Coleman glacier area on Baker is probably getting hammered with snow right now, but its a longer approach than muir and it would probably be wise to carry full glacier gear should you head up there early season.....2ft of snow plus high winds = thin snowbridges over crevasses

Ptarmigan Ridge might have some goods, but I've never headed out there early season...I've usually tried to get to higher elevation spots than that.

I'd skip any destination that doesn't have an ice/snow/neve surface under the new snow......taking your boards to Cayuse/Chinook or Sunrise would probably yield a bounty of core shots to your skis and perhaps a stern scolding by any park ranger that would see you meadow stomping.

I'd bet there is snow up on Chinook Pass (5,400'), and depending on where your located it might be a much quicker drive then Muir. If not enough snow, it is a nice drive!