Shoulder Season Skiing in the Cascades
Eric on his way up to Skyline Divide. Click all images to enlarge.
It’s “shoulder season,” the time when summer activities lose their hold on me and I start pursuing powder and peaks. In the Pacific Northwest we received a huge dump in early October which dropped over 3 meters on the high country. We hiked up the snow-covered trail to Skyline Divide for the first turns of the season.
The month started with stormy pow skiing on high sub-alpine ridges near Mt. Baker. Recently the weather has been better, and we’ve ventured into higher country to find above-average backcountry conditions for this time of year. Following are photos from various PNW outings this October.
Adam enjoying protected powder on the north face of east Goat Peak, with the western summit behind.
Eric skiing heavy powder on Skyline Divide. One early storm worth brought about 3 feet of fresh.
A few weeks later, Adam surveys the snow that's still a long ways away on Hadley Peak (with Mt. Baker behind).
High up on Hadley Peak. Even though temps felt like they were in the 70's, powder lingered on protected slopes.
Adam dropping down a nice couloir on Hadley Peak. I'd never been to this area before. It proved to be awesome!
This last weekend we climbed the Coleman Glacier on Mt. Baker. Here Adam climbs above crevasses on the Deming Glacier.
Enjoying a beautiful sunset in the mountains with friends. After hanging out for a while we skied down in the dusk.
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Comments
16 Responses to “Shoulder Season Skiing in the Cascades”
Greetings Lou! Glad to hear someone is already getting after it up in the PNW.
I have been completely consumed by your and other’s stories of backcountry adventures over the last year or so and, as a Washington resident myself, I wanted to know how to get involved. I have been nothing but an alpine/park/side country skier my whole life and am hoping–this year–to begin dipping my toes in what the Cascades have to offer from a touring/backcountry standpoint. Only thing is…I dont know where to start. If you were hoping to get a friend into touring/backcountry skiing, what advice would you share with them and what resources would you recommend they look into? In other words, point me in the direction for a successful beginning in touring the Cascades. I’ve skied all around the West Coast and Canada and the closest I’ve been to the backcountry was off resort skiing in Jackson Hole. Im in my 20’s and have never felt better about my skiing. There is just so much that the NW has to offer, I feel it is best to begin in my own backyard.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Warmly,
J
Jake-
A great place to start is by taking a avalanche safety course. The stuff you’ll learn is indispensable, it can literally save your life. Also, it’s a great way to meet some other skiers who are getting into the backcountry. There’s courses offered all over the country, and a bunch in Washington. You can find a course here:
http://avalanche.org/education.php
Agreed; avalanche knowledge is essential. Terrain, weather, and snowpack combine to produce counterintuitive phenomena. Quality avalanche courses are the fastest way to gain a comprehensive picture of the field.
The mechanics of touring are covered by trusted ski partners, courses from community groups like the Washington Alpine Club (I help with the course) and the Everett Mountaineers, and a bunch of quality guide outfits throughout the range.
Make it a goal to read more than 70% of this year’s forecasts from the avalanche center. turns-all-year.com is a helpful community resource.
And, this Sunday is the Northwest Snow and Avalanche Workshop. It’s not aimed at beginners, but you can’t help but learn something cool/fun/useful. Look for tickets at brownpapertickets.
Make sure your partners are avalanche educated too . It’s the only way to make sure your group is making the right decisions about where to go and what to ski . The best thing about avalanche courses is it makes you aware that the backcountry is a very different playground compared to side country, slack country, and of course ski areas.
I’m East Coast and very new to this, but I am using/have used a guide for an initial experience, plus side-country skinning to build skills in an accessible environment. Some resort skiing on my new AT gear to adjust technique, etc.
AVI One course is on the docket for me, too. I’ve been reading a lot and Wild Snow continues to be a great resource.
Thanks Jack! It’s definitely wise to dial in your equipment, muscles, and technique in a safe area close to or on the ski area before venturing out into the wilderness where mishaps are much less forgiving. And guide services are a great resource. I always seem to learn something new when go on a guided trip.
Jake, learn how to do an efficient kick turn for the uphill track. It will make your day much more enjoyable. Happy turns!
Canadian Avalanche Centre (avalanche.ca) has a really good online tutorial that takes about 2 hours to complete. Great to do just before your first Avy course!
Jake:
I had the same questions when I arrived in the PNW a few years ago. I found an organization called the Mountaineers, got involved in their avy education and backcountry skiing courses, and took advantage of the backcountry tours one can sign up for to build uphill skills and meet other folks. (http://www.mountaineers.org). The price to join is nominal, and they have multiple branches in Western Washington. Their courses are pretty well priced, and I made a group of friends that I now tour with regularly.
You should also check out turns-all-year (http://www.turns-all-year.com), which has a great set of forums filled with beta and includes an area for finding touring partners.
As others have said, the critical first step is getting an adequate avy education, which I think these days means an AIARE Level 1 course, as Louie indicated earlier. There are numerous outlets for this depending on your location, and easily google-able.
Cheers,
JR
Maaaaan! You’ve been skiin’, man!? Whooa… I’ve been surfin’ and, like, hangin’ by the water, you know. With the bros, just like havin’ campfires and surfin’ you know? What month is it anyway? Whoa!
Maybe I’m feeling a little contrary, but I’d say rather than launching straight into an avalanche class it may be better to take an “intro to touring” type class. My Avalanche 1 class involved a woman blowing her knee out in her rented touring setup that she did not know how to use. I think that having at least a slight grasp of touring basics prior to an avy class would be a great benefit…Or buy a touring setup, do a couple of mellow trips with understanding friends then take a class. Either way welcome, I hope you are able to figure it out.
FYI: TheClymb.com currently has a deal on 2 days of guided backcountry skiing near Steven’s Pass in the Cascades. It could be a way to get some safe BC experience at a discount.
The other group that I would recommend checking out is the Washington Alpine Club. The members run many types of classes including Backcountry/Avalanche and Randonee/Telemark skiing.
http://www.wacweb.org/default.view
Oops, just noticed that Charlie already mentioned the WAC.
STOKE!!!
Education and experience. Lots of experience. A saying among the pros ” no such thing as an avalanche expert” .
Sweet. Always enjoy the PNWet TRs.