TR Replies
I agree with jdclimber and their groups decision to dig a pit. Many of the areas that I and others ski have ascents that differ from the descents. And while we all make observations throughout the climb; some of the most necessary evaluations made are at the most inopportune moments of skiing or riding (due to the particular aspect/slope/steepness/terrain). Not to mention to each his(her) own.
BTW - I'd like to get out Thursday afternoon if anyone else is up for it (Snoqualmie ar...
BTW - I'd like to get out Thursday afternoon if anyone else is up for it (Snoqualmie ar...
With such talented poetry, who needs pictures? ;) We enjoyed meeting you and Kevin on the road. It was hard for us not to drop in off of Eagle Pt earlier that day, but time constraints did not give us that option. We will be back another day to sample the goods. Glad your trip out on Sunday went OK, the weather up their looked tough.
Gary and Jan
Gary and Jan
Thanks for the report and the conditions info.
If anyone can get out tomorrow (Wed), there are some other fun, steep n. facing chutes in the area that I'd like to ride, but my partner had to bail. ;D
If anyone can get out tomorrow (Wed), there are some other fun, steep n. facing chutes in the area that I'd like to ride, but my partner had to bail. ;D
The pit was dug to assess stability, which of course is an ongoing process. Ski cuts were also used, plus probing of the snowpack, as was evaluation of the NWAC forecast and evaluation of the telemetry include precip and wind direction. The location of the pit was in an area that is both the steepest part of the slope (so it would likely represent a worst case in terms of stability) and is in an “island of safety”, so is relatively safe for hanging out which was why it was chosen. Th...
author=jdclimber link=topic=13018.msg54266#msg54266 date=1239750745]much sluffing but no slab issues
Almost all filled in for skiers #5 and #6! Good to see you, and thanks for the sweet uptrack!
Beautiful pics and words.
The blue ice and then the multi-colored granite in your pictures show what a special place this is.
Very cool, kudos, nothing mediocre about your TR. ;D
The blue ice and then the multi-colored granite in your pictures show what a special place this is.
Very cool, kudos, nothing mediocre about your TR. ;D
That's some purdy granite in your third photo. Glad you found the goods on your descent to Lake Stuart; I've only descended interminable talus to the lake. I love the north side of Stuart.
I'm glad someone got some great skiing in today! Hopefully the next few days hold up?
OK so I a bit confused as to why you dug a pit in the slot 100 ft down. If you thought it might go why would you go down. A snow pit is only one tool for assessing stability. With the dogleg and islands of safety that can act as an eddie in the case of an avalanche there are a couple of outs. The Slot isn't really a place, in my opinion, where you want to be hanging out in. The Slot is narrow enough and digging a pit for another skier to fall into isn�...
I did the afternoon patrol with my dog Hank and managed to leave the car at the ripe hour of 2pm. Unfortunately, I had to be in the office all morning. In the forest down low it was pretty much raining with all the snow melting off the trees. But it stayed colder as I got higher up so I didn't end up totally soaked. The sun even came out once I hit the open bowls which made for a nice decent. Nice snow in the open, a bit heavy but still carvable. There was lo...
Wow, nice report!
Those are some damn stunning photos- now I understand why you lug a full size camera!
author=haggis link=topic=13015.msg54256#msg54256 date=1239733829]
... if you don't go you'll never know.
Much to the chagrin of those who have trouble with the alarm clock. Glad you got some!
Nice report, got me stoked to get back to the area.
author=Kyle Miller link=topic=12992.msg54227#msg54227 date=1239672145]
there is nothing like picking up someones skis that way 1/10 the weight of your splitboard :-[
Took a tour of the Prior factory in Whistler last week. They have a light weight split board in the works. Just have to fine tune it so it doesn't keep snapping in half.
Your PWC mate, Jon,myself and our sons spent the Easter'91 weekend in that A frame. I have some warm memories of our stay there. No digital photos to share as I was shooting slides in those days.
Nice work, good to see you all are out there getting some.
author=Snow Bell link=topic=12992.msg54199#msg54199 date=1239639875]
Snowboarders are ok. It's when they get split boards and venture o.b. that causes problems!
Let's get you on skis.
there is nothing like picking up someones skis that way 1/10 the weight of your splitboard :-[
Id be willing to try out some skis that is if your paying ;D.
author=Amar Andalkar link=topic=12992...
Glad you had such fine time Amar.
author=kam link=topic=13002.msg54185#msg54185 date=1239602330] Surprisingly, we had all the mouth-watering breakable to ourselves. I for sure thought everybody would be out considering the ideal weather and snow conditions.
We must have been right behind your party - saw you in the parking lot - but we decided to take a more 'interesting' approach up to the saddle. We surmised that someone in your party must have been up there be...
Thanks everyone for the kind comments.
I'm assuming that you're planning to stay in the hut? Not much advice I can think of, just bring standard winter camping gear. The hut is n...
author=snbdman link=topic=12992.msg54177#msg54177 date=1239579709">
Thanks for the great report. A friend and I are planning an over night trip to camp Muir next Saturday, and would appreciate any advice for over nighting at Muir.
I'm assuming that you're planning to stay in the hut? Not much advice I can think of, just bring standard winter camping gear. The hut is n...
author=cascadesfreak link=topic=13002.msg54187#msg54187 date=1239603768]
Best turns ever! ::)
I'm a bit surprised my camera survived the jolting-jumpturn-gymnastic ride down the trap-crusted slopes:
Funny how even the most evil crust still looks sweet when you're not trying to hop in & out of it. ;)
Nicely done Amar and Kyle, great report and photos Amar!
Thanks for sharing this great TR.
Nice line and nice lunch!
Thansk for the TR and pics.
Thansk for the TR and pics.
Nice tr, amazing photos. loos like beautiful country..
Fairy Meadows is a wonderful place. Glad the weather broke for you and allowed you to "venture out and up". Your photos bring back great memories of a week at Fairy filled with new friends and powder.
I was riding the lifts at Stevens and my daughter and I ventured into the trees once early in the day. It ended with a double ejection faceplant into the crust by my 5 year old and me thinking I was pretty glad not be in the BC. It did turn to something the consistancy of three day old oatmeal by around 2:00 pm and that made is almost skiable if you didn't want to turn. But, as the saying goes, a bad day skiing beats a good day doing anything else.
Selkirks Rock!! ;D
I need another hut trip....
I need another hut trip....
The runout below the Nisqually Ice Cliff is really impressive in the background photo of Amar skiing the Chute. I may think twice about skinning that section of the glacier! Glad you guys had a good trip and got Gib Chute.
Thanks for sharing and nice TR Amar. Way to take advantage of the weather window.
I'm with you on the whippets. They obviously don't belong on every tour but when they are warrented, they can be life savers.
Snowboarders are ok. It's when they get split boards and venture o.b. that causes problems!
L...
I'm with you on the whippets. They obviously don't belong on every tour but when they are warrented, they can be life savers.
author=Kyle Miller link=topic=12992.msg54174#msg54174 date=1239575921]
Damn Snowboarders ;)
Snowboarders are ok. It's when they get split boards and venture o.b. that causes problems!
L...
Great TR, as usual. Nice work on a dangerous descent.
Those are great photos - many worthy of the stoke thread - just wish your larger versions were even larger (desktop size). Gotta get up there one of these days. Thanks for the TR.
Hey Matt -- fantastic photos as usual!!! Glad you had a great time in such a beautiful area!
Thanks for the report on the premature Valley Road plowing, Robie. I'll shovel a staircase at 4th Crossing today or tomorrow. I must say the hardcore looked rather soggy around the edges when you returned...
Thanks, Robie! I was kicking myself for not getting up there (had a back episode for the last week), wimping out, saying oh, my back ... I'd better not stress it. Now I know I was wise not wimpy :-)
My visit in February showed me what you and the lake dwellers have within half an hour of home! Feb was great, sounds like things are still excellent, you are in a good place. Thanks again.
Yeah, it was pretty ugly.
Nice side slipping with you guys, let's do it again sometime!
Nice side slipping with you guys, let's do it again sometime!
author=skinup link=topic=12992.msg54182#msg54182 date=1239595472]
Kyle,
What kind of splitboard gear issues did you face?
Oh just the standard traversing above gaping crevasses on icy slopes so I took my time making sure my edges were holding. I just picked up some crampons for my split so it shouldn't be a problem anymore though.
Best turns ever! ::)
I'm a bit surprised my camera survived the jolting-jumpturn-gymnastic ride down the trap-crusted slopes:
http://picasaweb.google.com/chriscass1/JimHillMountainTrapCrustAdventureViaLanhamCreekApril112009?authkey=Gv1sRgCJSKx8Tn14na4AE#
I'm a bit surprised my camera survived the jolting-jumpturn-gymnastic ride down the trap-crusted slopes:
http://picasaweb.google.com/chriscass1/JimHillMountainTrapCrustAdventureViaLanhamCreekApril112009?authkey=Gv1sRgCJSKx8Tn14na4AE#
Well done. Wonderful report and pictures.
Kyle,
What kind of splitboard gear issues did you face?
Kyle,
What kind of splitboard gear issues did you face?
there is a gps map of our route on the blog entry i listed in the post.
http://coachingendurance.com/blog/2009/04/spring-has-come-to-snoqualmie.shtml
http://coachingendurance.com/blog/2009/04/spring-has-come-to-snoqualmie.shtml
What is the best way to get from Hyak to Catherine? The last time we tried to ski in, we were turned around by a Summit volunteer patroller because we didn't have ski passes. She gave us the impression that the trail to Catherine was marked, but difficult to find.
Thanks for the great report. A friend and I are planning an over night trip to camp Muir next Saturday, and would appreciate any advice for over nighting at Muir.
author=Amar Andalkar link=topic=12992.msg54154#msg54154 date=1239532005]
A combination of morning delays and gear issues (splitboard-related and crampon) had cost us a few hours
Damn Snowboarders ;)
Nice write up Amar I had a great time.
Looks great Oyvind and crew.
Thanks for living out a forgotten dream of mine. My friends have a cabin pretty close to there, and we spent a fair amount of time in my teens touring around the Nason Ridge vicinity. They slightly rerouted Hwy 2 in the late 70's (where you took the last picture) so there is a better view of that "Swath". It appears the avalanches have strong appetite for trees in there, as a result the Swath seems to have grown in width over the years.
Thanks for living out a forgotten dream of mine. My friends have a cabin pretty close to there, and we spent a fair amount of time in my teens touring around the Nason Ridge vicinity. They slightly rerouted Hwy 2 in the late 70's (where you took the last picture) so there is a better view of that "Swath". It appears the avalanches have strong appetite for trees in there, as a result the Swath seems to have grown in width over the years.
author=Amar Andalkar link=topic=12992.msg54154#msg54154 date=1239532005]
Not elegant, but survival skiing never is.
Smiling at the bottom always is. :). Very glad your Whippet held. Excellent TR. Thanks for continuing to add conditions calibration information to the collective mind!
Thanks for sharing Amar. Great account and pictures. Living close to Baker, the Rainier area to me has only been through (mostly yours) pictures and accounts ... until last Friday. We climbed through the clouds to glimpse some of Rainier's beauty and impressive size on our way to Anvil Rock. I hope to be back someday with more time and better weather.