Lincoln Peak, X Couloir

Haven't visited this site in while, it's great to see so many useful -- and rad -- reports from around Cascade Pass, Shuksan, Baker zone, etc.!

In that spirit, sorry to be late but maybe not too late: The so-called X couloir (Southwest route) on 9.080' Lincoln Peak is in good shape as of two days ago (Monday). The improbable-looking route is less a couloir, and more like a series of steep chutes and faces.

I could ski the entire route from the very summit -- a precarious and energizing spot to click into skis. Aaron Scott and Dan Helmstadter skied this in late June/early July of 2012 (haven't seen/heard any reports since, but wouldn't be surprised if others tagged this attractive line). Apparently some downclimbing was required then, but not currently -- the two main pinch points were fat enough for linked turns. The very top 10-15 feet off the summit was narrow, icy, and exposed -- I side-stepped/slipped this with axe in hand, then enjoyed a spicy drop off the whale's back towards the highest notch in the pic below.

Climbing required a bit of work in the conditions I found, but the skiing exceeded expectations! Firm snow, wet powder, proto-corn, slush, settled powder, mank, legit corn, mush, you name it -- all the food groups represented by the splendid spring snowpack sitting on various aspects. They were mostly appetizing.

I can imagine with some recent consolidation that conditions are even better now -- go get it!

Here's a Scurlock photo shared by Dan in his TR (the route drops from the high point to that highest notch to viewer's left, then down the narrow chute, and trends right out of view): 

Here's my photos, for whatever they're worth (solo trips don't make for the best pics, but the views of the Sisters Range are pretty great): https://photos.app.goo.gl/EjkEWaCtsF155SPr7

Concerning the approach: You could go in via Heliotrope, but I took the more direct NF 38 (Middle Fork Nooksack) and headed up the switchbacks proximal to Rankin Creek. I made it to ~3,100' in a non-lifted SUV, but regretted it -- recommend a high clearance vehicle or walking from the point you see the spring runoff flowing down one track of the narrow road, gouging it deeply. Walk/ski up the remaining switchbacks and look for a steep trail that heads up the ridge just past the last switchback, circa 3740'. (Much thanks to Jason Griffith for approach beta.)