Trapper Mountain, North Couloir

Original trip report: https://engineeredforadventure.com/trapper-mountain-north-couloir/

Background

What is perseverance in the mountains? Is it short-term memory loss? Is it dedication to the craft, to going and having a look?

This year I've tried to ski Trapper twice before, unsuccessfully. The first time was with Nick and Lane in January as part of an extended S-Loop trip we did; we got to the base of the couloir on the last day and found icy, unsavory conditions. It would have went but just wasn't the style we wanted to ski it in. The second time was with Stephen in March; we made it halfway up the couloir, this time, when we found a wind slab we didn't like the looks of.

Trapper Mountain is stunning. From Alliteration Col it stands proud, beckoning for you to go and have a look. The first documented ski descent was in 2012 by Rowan Stewart and Alex Spoonde (per Skoog Alpenglow History), although it was climbed in the 1970s by John Roper, Don Avreitt, and Stu Ferguson.

Last year, Letty and Erin skied the North Couloir in proud style. I was on Magic Mountain and Pelton Peak that day, watching them crush a far-out-there objective. It was really inspiring, to say the least.

Lane, Haigh, and I made plans to ski out in Cascade River Road on Sunday. There was new snow and it was cold, right-side up. We tossed around a lot of ideas, but ended up settling on checking out the lines above Alliteration Col, such as the Banana and the NE Face of Magic.

Trip Report

We met up in the Marblemount Shell Station parking lot, as many good trips do. We waffled on what to do. Spider? Feels a bit aggressive given the new snow and winds overnight. Buckner? Lane had been on it the year prior. We agreed on checking out Alliteration Col, window shopping the lines above and seeing what was what. We set alarms for 5AM and agreed to head out by 530AM.

Alarms rang and the road at MP21 was buzzing. There were lots of people out and rightfully so, it was a splitter window. We figured most would be heading to Sahale; turns out, nearly everyone ahead of us was heading to Alliteration Col as well. Our plans for the day quickly changed when we saw a party ahead in the Banana Couloir already, another party behind them, and a party heading up the NE Face of Magic. The West Face of Pelton looked pretty wind affected, which turned us off of that too. Hmm...what to do?

We discussed options and time of day. It was cold and temperatures weren't supposed to get too hot. I had voiced concerns the night before, during our waffle session, about the climb out of Trapper Lake back to Alliteration Col. The slope frequently sees huge wet slides come down off the slopes near/beneath Hurry-Up, often between D2-3. Last year, when Letty and Erin skinned out, they saw a massive wet slide take out their skin track after they were through. We discussed, looked at an alternate egress option around Wanttoforget Peak, and agreed to head over to Trapper. We were psyched to push out a little further.

We transitioned and skied thin powder on solar crust down to Trapper Lake, quite enjoyable compared to what it can be at times. Quickly we were on the debris fan beneath Trapper; 3rd times a charm, eh?

We opted to just boot straight up, foregoing tedious skinning through debris piles. The couloir itself looked to be in good shape, clean of debris. Once we got near the base of the couloir proper the firm, debris laden surface that was easy to kick steps into turned to a wallow. Lane and I immediately switched to our ascent plates...poor Haigh. Lane and I each had an extra pair in the car but they didn't fit his crampons.

Climbing up the couloir was easier on the sides and we opted to swap between climber's right and left, trying to avoid overhead hazard when possible. The snow surface was soft, maybe 5-6 inches of low density sitting on a firm crust lens on the sides, deeper in the gut of the couloir where the snow pooled. It felt well-bonded and we did not pick out a concerning snow structure. So far, so good.

Near the top the crust became more apparent, likely above where most of the snow had pooled off the rocks. We topped out in the sun, looking over the south side towards unknown valleys. Looking south, there are endless couloirs that end in nothingness, either vertical cliffs or narrow chokes that don't go. Endless stoke in the Cascades.

A brief sun basking session, then time to drop. Time to finally ski this thing. I got into position with my camera, ready to capture Lane and Haigh's initial turns down the couloir. The top was a little funky, with the prominent crust a little bumpy. Still, both Lane and Haigh made elegant turns as I smashed the shutter.

Finally, on the 3rd try, my turn to ski the line. Perseverance...or stubborness. Sometimes it's hard to tell between the two. Lane, Haigh, and I leapfrogged down the couloir, managing slough and enjoying the scene.

Down at Trapper Lake we found a creek to fill our water. Nice, dudes. We ate snacks, basked in the spring sun, and readied for the warm and concerning climb out. Temperatures weren't too hot, thankfully, and we hadn't been seeing anything move all day.

The climb out from Trapper Lake to Alliteration Col was thankfully uneventful. The most exciting part was watching a party ski the S-Glacier in what looked like perfect, boottop powder. Damn, that looks really good, Lane exclaimed. Atop Alliteration Col again, we snacked (again) and chatted with the party that skied the S. Just as it looked, it was pretty damn good.

It's fun when everyone can bask in good conditions, enjoying their own corners of the mountains. Sure, our day changed course when there were people out and about where we wanted to go. We didn't want to make group dynamics complicated by entering a couloir beneath a party, so we changed our plans. But there's plenty of room to roam, you just have to get creative.

Back at Cascade Pass, we took a direct line down to valley, through a sneak couloir that Lane wanted to check out. A few moats and some moosh and we were back at the road, hiking down to the cars.