Jan 10, 2009, Mt Baker area
1/10/09
WA Cascades West Slopes North (Mt Baker)
2725
2
Brenda and I took a trip up to Baker today for what I thought might be the only accessible powder in the state. It did not disappoint. Deep, deep and very skiable. Poor visibility had us doing laps in the trees below Artist Pt, along with a lot of other folks, who must have had the same idea. It didn't seem that last week's storm fell as rain at Baker. I could push a pole up to my shoulder without much resistance. Stepping of skis put you in up to your waist. It was kind of windy and snowing as we left, but it seemed to be warming up a bit. Not sure about tomorrow's conditions so we made it a day instead of a weekend.
I agree with your snow and fun skiing assessment of the Swift Creek area yesterday and add …
Our group tried a steeper area west of where most folks skied and found the recent storm layer (6 inches) was very reactive to ski cuts. The sites that were reactive had avalanched in the recent warm-up and the side walls of the older avalanches were 2-3ft high. The new storm snow was running on a smooth crust, but as you mentioned in your report I couldn’t find that crust the top 3-4ft of the snow pack either.
It was nice to be in the mountains regardless of visibility and limited area.
Our group tried a steeper area west of where most folks skied and found the recent storm layer (6 inches) was very reactive to ski cuts. The sites that were reactive had avalanched in the recent warm-up and the side walls of the older avalanches were 2-3ft high. The new storm snow was running on a smooth crust, but as you mentioned in your report I couldn’t find that crust the top 3-4ft of the snow pack either.
It was nice to be in the mountains regardless of visibility and limited area.
Hello md2020,
We met you two in Swift Creek on Sat. I was the tall guy with a woman wearing a pink helmet (Corrina and Randy). We had a great day. We had goals of skiing up to Herman saddle but when we arrived to a low cloud cover. The trees we went! It was our first time in there this year. Snow was deeper than we had anticipated and to our surprise when we came to the edge of the drainage. It hadn’t been skied yet! Luckily, there were remnants of a skin track from the day before. Who ever set it must have been in a hurry we figured due to the direct route up the face. Made for quick Laps:)
We met you two in Swift Creek on Sat. I was the tall guy with a woman wearing a pink helmet (Corrina and Randy). We had a great day. We had goals of skiing up to Herman saddle but when we arrived to a low cloud cover. The trees we went! It was our first time in there this year. Snow was deeper than we had anticipated and to our surprise when we came to the edge of the drainage. It hadn’t been skied yet! Luckily, there were remnants of a skin track from the day before. Who ever set it must have been in a hurry we figured due to the direct route up the face. Made for quick Laps:)
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