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Coleman Pinnacle Powder — PNW TR

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This post by WildSnow.com blogger  

I was thinking of attempting to ski a peak on Sunday, but the sketchy avalanche conditions the day before convinced me to simply tour around the Mt. Baker Ski Area. Turns out it would have been a great day to do some ski mountaineering, but fun was had in the powder and sun nonetheless. We headed out to the Coleman Pinnacle area to get away from the crowds around the ski area, which were out in full force. The north faces had wonderfully light powder, and the snowpack was remarkably stable.

Chris booting up Coleman Pinnacle with beautiful Mt. Baker in the background

Getting it!

While we were eating lunch another group skied this line off the pinnacle, the snow looked good, so we followed suit.


Skyler

Enjoying the sun at the top of our last run.

Posted by Louie Dawson on February 3, 2011 | Filed Under Louie Dawson, Trip Reports Backcountry, Your Guest Blogs 

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Comments

11 Responses to “Coleman Pinnacle Powder — PNW TR”

  1. Carl February 3rd, 2011 11:51 am

    Louie nice shots, it looks like it was much nicer up north last weekend, I would be interested in getting out skiing with you at some point (I am in Seattle)

  2. Nick February 3rd, 2011 12:20 pm

    Beautiful day. Bad Morgan is at it again I see.

  3. Skyler Mavor February 3rd, 2011 9:55 pm

    Last photo: *Second to last run :)

  4. J Gardner February 4th, 2011 11:24 am

    Skiing at Whistler this winter? Got an RV? For more information visit: (Give WildSnow.com PNW office a 100% discount and you can advertise here for free. One discount deserves another, right?)

  5. Matt February 4th, 2011 11:28 am

    Is that line off the pinnacle really steep or is it just the persepctive of the photo?

  6. Louie February 4th, 2011 3:49 pm

    the first few turns are fairly steep, probably around 45 degrees.

  7. Boot Dryer February 8th, 2011 12:21 pm

    These are some great looking pictures.

  8. Samantha February 9th, 2011 8:33 am

    Sorry to bump in but are these kind of pictures, which by the way are all awesome, taken with a digital SLR or with a point and shoot? I’m trying to decide if I need an SLR or not. Thanks.

  9. Lou February 9th, 2011 8:41 am

    Samantha, hopefully the post author can answer that question.

    I can say that if you buy a good quality point-and-shoot that allows manual settings and has plenty of zoom range, you can get very fine outdoor action photographs. In my opinion the biggest downside of point-and-shoot for action photography is that the burst mode is slow, so you end up missing shots that would be easy to get with an SLR.

    Another advantage of SLR is they always have a viewfinder, while the point-and-shoot cameras usually do not. In bright sunlight or wet conditions, it can be very difficult to compose a shot using the camera LCD, while using an optical viewfinder makes it easy. Thus, when I shop for point-and-shoot I try to find one that has optical viewfinder, but that’s getting tougher and tougher.

  10. xtracurricular February 20th, 2011 3:09 pm

    Fresh turns and sun! very nice!

  11. Louie July 14th, 2011 6:53 pm

    Samantha,

    Thanks, I’ve been working on improving my photography.

    Those shots were taken with a canon a720, a little point and shoot. It has a viewfinder, and manual mode, as well as lots of settings. I usually shoot in “snow mode” in burst mode for skiing, seems to work pretty well. Only time I wish I had a DSLR is when I want to zoom in to something in photoshop, or want a faster burst mode, or want to use a cool lens.

    I recently got a Canon G12 for my birthday (thanks parents!). From what I can tell it has all the features you can get in a camera that small. It’s slightly bigger than the A720, but has many more features, as well as a better burst mode. It also has external dials for many settings, which makes it easier to use with cold gloved fingers, a big plus.

    I use a point and shoot because of the weight, and the ability to keep it in my pocket for quick deployment. I have some fairly cool shots that I might have missed if I had to fiddle with a camera case or had my camera in my pack. Plus, on cooler (harder) trips I don’t want to lug around the weight of the DSLR, and would carry a point and shoot anyways, and that’s where most of the cool photos are anyway.

    Late reply, but better than never I suppose.

    Louie

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Welcome to Louis (Lou) Dawson's backcountry skiing information opinion website and e magazine. Lou's passion for the past 45 years has been alpinism, climbing, mountaineering and skiing -- along with all manner of outdoor recreation. He has authored numerous books and articles about backcountry skiing and is well known as the first person to ski down all 54 of Colorado's 14,000-foot peaks, otherwise known as the Fourteeners! Books and free back country news and information here, and tons of Randonnee rando telemark info.

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