TR Replies
Thanks @KellyC for the "map" - we made it today! Turns out there's an actual trail pretty much the whole way.
Love the energy. Somebody needs to build a jib park in there.
Domesticated corn tastes better. Looks fun. Thanks for the report.
I had this image from last year to show someone how to get to the Thumbtack during the summer. Snow Lake Trail to Source Lake Trail then back up towards the Snow Lake Divide (you are on the old Snow Lake Trail) at the big scree field go up the right side (easier) then cross back left and work your way up to the Thumbtack (circled in image). Last year at end of August was hard to see snow until just past the Thumbtack.
someone needs to get the snowcat up there and groom those suncups!
Thanks for the report, with 2 found iceaxes you stole the apple! Nice!
You guys know how to have a good time. Enjoyed the photos - double whippies 4 life
Thanks for the pics and intel. We made our way up on Sunday and the skiing was fantastic! Took a similar route looping around O' rock but in the future would cross over on the North side around 8000 to gain the Flett headwall. Russell glacier is holding up beautifully & is worthy of laps. August corn
You must have run across my tracks from earlier in the morning. The avy fan still has nice ski-ability. Congrats on 100 months...
Hi Mike, keep forgetting to post. A week later (week day), 6-8 cars at Esmeralda Basin parking lot. Even last week, we camped Beverly Creek for a few days of hiking and flowers. And it’s an easy drive from Ellensburg
Love that first shot with the valley clouds at sunrise. Looks like a great trip!
Mike and I have done this ski a few times, we left the car around 17:00 it was I think the hottest day of the year so far. About a quarter mile from our proposed camp sight I ran out of gas, not sure if it was food or water but I wanted my mommy. Mike was the perfect partner and encouraged me along, I staggered into camp about a half hour behind schedule, and about ten minuets before headlamp time. With food and water I rejoined the living, and was not the worse for wear.........m...
Cumulus - Yeah, those heat waves were visible in my camera. It was weird because they were over cold water.
Zap - thank you for the kind words! You are a constant source of encouragement
Neilforreal - I use a casio pocket camera with a good zoom. They quit making cameras and I don't know what I'll select when this camera gives it up. I really like the zoom, but don't want to carry a heavy camera.
Nice, great job on the TR - pretty entertaining. Also, nice resolution photos. What're you shooting with?
Mike, Your trip reports are GREAT. Skiing, camping, meeting weekend folks, one dog, large crowds, trail crossings, an ice berg which a swimmer loaded, plus the long drive from the parking lot to the last vehicle in a 1 plus minute. Thank you for the report.😀
I'm glad we can count on you Mike for the parking lot updates! It's part of the experience and yet Mowich reports only ever seem to include suncupped corn etc... but I bet the parking lot was dustbowl mayhem this weekend... Great to read an open eyed report reflecting the current zeitgeist.
And that wim hof vid with the flimmering heatwaves is strangely mesmerizing
Congrats on 100 months! You ski so fast all the time!
Thanks for the report and congrats on 10 years TAY! I'm one month behind you. I'm not sure what to do with that TAY-a-versary :)
@snowboy, the WC patch will be gone soon. If you want August turns on it, August 1st would be the best option :) It'll be short.
Scouting the Pugh line on Google Earth, it'll be a long walk for ~1,000' of skiing in a stunning position with rock walls on both sides.
Seems compelling.
Nice! Will have to check out white chuck or that run on Pugh this august
We skied off the summit of Pugh and down straight glacier (maybe what you are seeing?) a few year back. Definitely a worthy early spring destination. It would taking your skis for a long walk right now. I need to check out the WC someday.
This is what summer skiing in eastern WA is all about! I'm glad to see someone patch skiing in western WA. Thanks for the report!
Bryan, must have been the three of you we crossed paths with right after getting onto the Russell. We decided to traverse from there and loop behind Observation Rock to gain the top of Flett headwall. Not the most efficient route but we made it and the headwall was great! We followed your skin tracks all the way out to the trail with a couple carries, so that was nice to be able to ski down that far. Great day for it!
It was excellent on the 26th as well. Very satisfying day. Full length Russell descent (the top, where the cups turn into dirty bathtubs, was worth it for the views, if not the skiing), plus Flett headwall and below. Very shreddable. Good ski/hike ratio, and road in good shape too. I was surprised to see only two other skiers on this perfect day. (Maybe a few others sneaked their turns in while I was on the far end?)
Lots of marmot conversations, if only I could understand the screams!
You’re a wise man!!
The walk out is a bit easier when the turns are good.
Even the small sun cups were soft yesterday
Hey , thanks for the effort !
Lots of memories of that tour. The real trick is to hide a can of pineapple slices and beer in the last stream before the switchbacks up to
Spray park! Makes the walk out so much more pleasant.
When I lived in Sumner the view of that area would just drive me crazy!
Picture 4- i was surprised to see that Marmots can read. Did he/she/they have any comments ( profanity free) that you could print in your report?
Kameron, thank you for posting that banger! I never expected TAY to help introduce me to new hiphop...😌
Yeah we ascended the Talum, we thought about going up the Squak, but decided the Talum seemed more direct. I’ll try that way next time! Lots of good skiing to be had around there!
Nice shots, Jacob! We saw your tracks on Tuesday and wondered where they came from. So it sounds like you ascended the Talum as well? It's pretty straightforward to gain Sherman peak from the regular Squak route and ski it top-down since you can scope it on the up. For next time.
Skied the Talum on Sherman on July 19, it was great! Mostly smoothish corn till the top couple hundred feet that were a little dirty and rocky. We didn’t quite summit cause there was a schrund/most across the face, still navigable but we didn’t feel like messing with it late on a hot day.
Nice!
It's amazing how that face on Sherman Peak loads up with snow and ice and becomes a good ski run, then collapses a few years later. Will it happen again?
Cuppier yesterday than last week. Still fun. The crux crevasse is getting hollow. We found decent corn off the Roman wall with some punchy sections higher at 1 pm. Made the short climb up Sherman pk and skied slightly sticky corn down the Talum before making the big traverse back to the up.
shit I miss the NWMJ :-(
Norseman, yes. I took this pic on May 12 2019.
A large day in the business. Good work, men.
Was it one of you guys who took pics of the huge shit that Sherman blasted all the way down the Boulder Gl, within the last couple years maybe? The current image layer shows something similar... not sure if it's the same event, but regardless, I'd be thankful as well to make tracks in there without getting creamed.
Yes.
Also, I love that this was climbed and skied by the Hummels & co. essentially on accident. Classic Hummel approach.
Yes! That photo of Reed looking at the camera is killing me, love it, reminds me of LeBron when he went off against the Bobcats and locked eyes with Jordan during an emphatic dunk. Nah mean?
Somebody please forward Drew's images to the flat earthers, that outta fix 'em.
Hi Sky, I think that's the same line. Jason's picture is very similar to the views I had mid-slope.
What a blast! Here are some more photos.