6/16/08, Mt. Rainier, Wilson Headwall

I left Paradise around 3am and made good time across the Nisqually, then up the Wilson. I wanted to ski the Wilson Headwall, how to approach... I was not too stoked on subjecting myself to the heinous rockfall I experienced the other day in the FF, and I figured the Wilson Headwall would offer similar, if not much worse objective hazard. I decided upon ascending the Kautz Glacier route, and continued up the Turtle, with the rising sun. Melted a couple liters, near the rope shenanigans, then ascended the ice chute, which is currently much differant than it was this time last year, I have seen several TRs this year of this route, but there are already several sections of ice exposed.

Past the ice chute I continued up the Kautz towards Point Success, hugging the far climber's left of the glacier, successfully avoiding crevasses. I found shin to knee deep variable snow all the way to Point Success, areas of near corn, areas of windboard, crusts, and powder. Point Success came much easier that it did the other day, it was beautiful up there, sun, slight breeze...

I skied fall line down my ascent route of the upper Kautz, then traversed to the entrance of the Wilson Headwall. Beautiful, and intimidating, especially with the soft snow conditions. I entered the Headwall tentatively, found variable wet snow, some of it quite deep and sketchy... I cut most of the slopes I skied, but moved nothing except small sluffs. Some think the Wilson Headwall is too "traversy" and it appears so from a far off glance, there were traverses involved, but you don't have to lose too much elevation when making them. I skied some outstanding fall line steeps in-between those bands. A little sketched about skiing under the Kautz ice cliff, I did it quick, and found superb snow down to the bergshrund area at the base, which was a little tricky - finding a way through. Beautiful corn down the Wilson Glacier, to the Nisqually, a little haunting following the other days experience.