TR Replies
Wait a minute...those are your tracks I'm always finding in my stash? Damn. We gotta talk.
Thanks for the report, Greg.
Thanks for the report, Greg.
Don't worry, Jason, your secret's safe with us ;)
Oh, oh. I gave my stash away! ;D Sounds like a good trip...
Different Twin Lakes Jason. The Twin Lakes that Greg skiied is in the Snoqualmie Pass Ghetto SE of Mt Catherine.
Glad you had a good trip Greg. Hope there were no remnant tracks?
Glad you had a good trip Greg. Hope there were no remnant tracks?
He means the one near Snoqualmie Pass, across from Mt Catherine.
Do you have any pics. I love that area in the winter. Just curious, are you talking about the mountain in the background of this photo 
Cool - I'll be waiting to look for clues...
Russ,
Opted to head to Mazama based on a positive report. Sorry I missed you guys. Heading to the pass on Thursday with Mike C. and I appreciate the info. Skiing here has been great. 6 inches last night. Temps in the low 20's. Very Vague and extremely obtuse trip report to follow......
Gregg
Opted to head to Mazama based on a positive report. Sorry I missed you guys. Heading to the pass on Thursday with Mike C. and I appreciate the info. Skiing here has been great. 6 inches last night. Temps in the low 20's. Very Vague and extremely obtuse trip report to follow......
Gregg
I guess for those who missed out - and I expressed this to the author of this post - my rants are best served chilled, in person, and with heavy powder on a skin track climb up a big peak. My original post sent a bad vibe that I didn't intend.
Only my friends should fall victom to my opinionated self, not you, dear reader.
Only my friends should fall victom to my opinionated self, not you, dear reader.
Oh yeah I forgot to mention, we were getting ready to ski, and that Sky dude was all "check me out I'm rippin!" and then proceeded to sideslip the entire couloir, ruining all of the nice powder. We asked why he wasn't good enough to jump turn or whatever, and he was like "chill yo, 180's and s**t are for you punkass snowboarders..."
or something like that. Granted, my ears continued to bear a powdery burden long after my stylish indie fakie fakie half-backflip 2...
or something like that. Granted, my ears continued to bear a powdery burden long after my stylish indie fakie fakie half-backflip 2...
And you revealed our secret stash, butthead. I hate you.
Yeah, my bad. I just hope they don't check those coords..
MW8888888's original reply to your post is now gone...
Too bad, turns-all-year was starting to have almost as much drama as ttips!
Too bad, turns-all-year was starting to have almost as much drama as ttips!
Now I'm REALLY confused...
What did I miss?
What did I miss?
Justin - with some good advice (thanks!), I removed my harsh remarks about your snowshoeing. I'm finding that posts are a very inefficient way to express opinions as the whole story can't be expressed without 5,000 word dissertations. Sorry if I sounded mean, I certainly don't want to put a damper on your skiing experience.
actually, the shot you want is the one I took of Amar huckin' the cornice into the crater....he's saving that one for the book!
It was an interesting day to study slab formation. we did lines all day on the BB chutes, all lines having the same aspect and exposed to similar wind loading.
In the morning, stability was superb. The wind was visibly transporting snow into the chutes, but we decided that the wind must have recently come up because the amount transported was not significant.
As the day wore on, the new snow and wind deposits continued to accumulate. The major accumulation was near the...
In the morning, stability was superb. The wind was visibly transporting snow into the chutes, but we decided that the wind must have recently come up because the amount transported was not significant.
As the day wore on, the new snow and wind deposits continued to accumulate. The major accumulation was near the...
I demand a shot of Dave Coleman ripping the corn. Give it up, Amar, I know you got it. Action, action!
I am glad you had fun Justin. We'll have to take you back out when you can actually see some scenery.
My dog has had the same reaction - it has made touring from the Mt Baker ski area a challenge when we get a late start. Same thing with anyone in uniform too. Smart dogs.
Yeah Justin, you suck. And you revealed our secret stash, butthead. I hate you.
I'll admit, I did describe something more like going straight up Snoqualmie Mountain, and then took you on a multi-lake tour. The classic bait and switch!
I couldn't bring Panama because he attacks snowboarders. He is a vechthond the moment he sees one of your knuckle-dragging ilk. He stayed home for your safety.
Love,
Sky
PS- MW8888888 you da man. Get...
I'll admit, I did describe something more like going straight up Snoqualmie Mountain, and then took you on a multi-lake tour. The classic bait and switch!
I couldn't bring Panama because he attacks snowboarders. He is a vechthond the moment he sees one of your knuckle-dragging ilk. He stayed home for your safety.
Love,
Sky
PS- MW8888888 you da man. Get...
We were up there for 3 days as well. Saturday skied Bonney Trees and the lower part of the glacier. Experienced conditions much like you described. People at the Ranger Station said the area was probably "skied out". We only saw one other parties tracks??? Generally there was about 10" on new snow on a firm base.
Both Sunday and Monday we went up Connaught Creek to Balu Pass. Each day we did a run on the Hourglass, an 1100' ft north facing slope that still had reasonably l...
Both Sunday and Monday we went up Connaught Creek to Balu Pass. Each day we did a run on the Hourglass, an 1100' ft north facing slope that still had reasonably l...
This brief update dedicated to famed backcountry aficionados George and Abraham:
Not bad up there today, with moderate snow (an inch per hour), increasing winds, inadequate visibility and temps hovering around freezing. I stayed clear of steep terrain, but the snowpack seemed less unstable than the weather forecast (high winds, heavy snow, rapid warming) led me to expect. On the other hand, YMMV.
Uncharacteristically, I used waxless skis and three pin bindings, adding...
Not bad up there today, with moderate snow (an inch per hour), increasing winds, inadequate visibility and temps hovering around freezing. I stayed clear of steep terrain, but the snowpack seemed less unstable than the weather forecast (high winds, heavy snow, rapid warming) led me to expect. On the other hand, YMMV.
Uncharacteristically, I used waxless skis and three pin bindings, adding...
Wouldn't that be the "Eldridge Detritus"?
I am considering renaming The Secret Bowl Where Everybody Goes. From now on, I think I'll call it "Eldridge Bowl."
Edit: remove extraneous mumbo-jumbo.
Edit: remove extraneous mumbo-jumbo.
Charles,
Regarding your question on overnight solo equipment, I would like to know how different people on this forum solve their individual problems.
I just aquired a nice light down jacket and a down "half" bag with no zipper that is very light and seems quite packable. I had always carried a tarp and it is my hope that some of the frustration of hoofing it all day for a couple of thousand ft. of vertical (like Coleman Pinnacle and Rainbow glacier) would vastly be...
Regarding your question on overnight solo equipment, I would like to know how different people on this forum solve their individual problems.
I just aquired a nice light down jacket and a down "half" bag with no zipper that is very light and seems quite packable. I had always carried a tarp and it is my hope that some of the frustration of hoofing it all day for a couple of thousand ft. of vertical (like Coleman Pinnacle and Rainbow glacier) would vastly be...
As for the skiing....well on the headwall it was firm/icy with some pockets of punchy breakable crust. Below camp it was pretty much more of the same, with a few areas of nice and soft. Below about 7,000' it was either frozen crust or super soft slush depending on the aspect. And once I was below Mildred Point, descending down through the trees towards Van Trump Creek, it was really nasty glop...So pretty much the typical Rainier winter mixed bag o' fun.
-Ross
-Ross
Charles, yeah I was solo. My partner bailed the night before with a cold or something....??? Bummer for him. Anyway I used my standard solo winter overnight stuff: ID singlewall, 20deg. bag, and bibler wintersac. Has worked really well for me. Although on this trip the weather was so calm that I probably could have done without the tent. But I like tents. And it was fairly gusty from ~ 11:00pm to about 1:00am. So it was nice to be in the tent...
My experience, based on a couple winter trips up Silver Peak from the north, is that the final west facing slopes are usually windswept and icy. If you want to go to the top, as opposed to just skiing the bowls, I would bring crampons and either self-arrest poles or an ice axe.
The west slope down to Lake Annette looks like it could be really nice skiing in the spring, when the sun softens it.
The west slope down to Lake Annette looks like it could be really nice skiing in the spring, when the sun softens it.
The grade is not really all that steep on this route, there are lots of glades, and the trees are generally well spaced, but the routefinding is more challenging than the north bowl route. There are several stream gullies which come into Twin Lakes, and also cliff bands along the way, so it is good to start up in the right place and keep track of where you are. This route is probably more work than the north bowl route, since for the latter you can take the XC trail right into the bowl at ...
Nice jaunt although you are going to scare away some potential weekday partners - like me ;-) with TRs like this.
nice report have, have often pondered that aspect of Silver would be a pleasent ski. I was thinking though that it would be more a more diffcult route coming up from Twin lakes. Was the grade a pretty straight shot coming up? Is it glades or a bit thicker? Hope to be out by this spring with the new hip!!
I second that "wow!" Did you do this by yourself, and if so, what did you do to minimize the weight of your overnight gear? And how was the snow along your descent with respect to skiing?
That unrepentent Eldridge posted a picture of Mike on the cover of Telemark.tips.com.(
Well, when I asked Mike if it would be OK to post photos of him, he replied, "make me famous", so I'm trying. Anyone else?
Regine says Wow! She climbed MR by that route in 92 but wouldn't ski it [left her skis at the top? ;D]abc
Well, getting to Mt. Baker in the winter is a bit of a hump no matter how you look at it. The route you choose will depend on whether you just want to ski, or if summitting is a priority.
1. Shcreiber/Morovitz Meadows/Easton Glacier: Matthaeus knows this better than I. Sounds like about 4 miles of road to the trailhead,and from there it is another 3 miles getting on to the glacier, above the railroad grade. Say, seven miles and 4000 ft. elevation gain. If you just have t...
1. Shcreiber/Morovitz Meadows/Easton Glacier: Matthaeus knows this better than I. Sounds like about 4 miles of road to the trailhead,and from there it is another 3 miles getting on to the glacier, above the railroad grade. Say, seven miles and 4000 ft. elevation gain. If you just have t...
That's a fun little butte! The west (?) bowl is fantastic, I hit it in deep powder conditions on Thanksgiving. ;D
russ, thanks!!! I get confused sometimes.
Mark, always with good advice, thank you too.
Mark, always with good advice, thank you too.
Gregg_C - change plans, we're head to Roger's Pass this weekend - check your messages on this board. - Russ
Let's see, hmmmm, if I remember correctly there is a "no falling" rule that 'sag' implemented, so I have this technique that I use, let someone else go first, watch them, and if they fall, don't do that ;D and like Ron says, "keep the slippery side down". 8)
She does seem to be available for more shots, doesn't she. ;)
ron wrote
I think MadDog managed the spotlight for the best shot I got:
thats because she's the only one that stays on her feet:)
It gets worse Mark. That unrepentent Eldridge posted a picture of Mike on the cover of Telemark.tips.com. The digital camera code scrambler (Model 220Excaliber) that we installed last summer has malfunctioned. All is lost.... >:(
Nice photos Ron, and Darryl my sore butt turned out not as bad as I thought it might be right after the crash. 8)
Fill me in. Is this partly a joke or partly an object lesson, or both? ???
Joke, JOKE - this is no laughing matter. There is nothing more prime than making sure secret stashes don't get propagated. Blind-folds, pharmaceuticals, threats of death are all fair means. Venture into the Mt Baker outback at your own risk - the locals will go to any means to protect the goods. Oh ya, if you do go, remember to spoon your turns.