April 26, 2009, Snocorny Pass
4/26/09
1923
1
A quick jaunt to Hyak for a flurry of quick laps turned into a trip up Granite. Who can drive past 2000' of corn without stopping (unless there's 3000' to be had elsewhere...)? Left the parking lot at 1:20. Lower in the avy gully was boot-deep but rightside up goo. Skinned to the ridge, then booted up slightly punchy but fairly consolidated corn. The kernels are small, but growing :). A little cloudcap on the summit kept things shady. West aspects held 1-3" of roasted new snow atop an edgeable and supportable crust.
Met a friendly father-son team at the summit and descended just after they did. The SW aspect skied well, then great, down lower. The new inch of snow sluffed easily below ~4.5k or so on the steepest roll, but it was so slow that I grew tired of waiting for it and trivially outran it. I inadvertently sandbagged the father-son team with the understanding that , "sure, the traverse out of the West bowl will go, I'm going to do it too!." It went, but not before deteriorating into something many people would no longer consider "skiing". Traverse right at treeline from the West into the main gully and it'll still go. Clicked out at 2800', but more sensible people may ski the gully to ~3200 or so and call it good.
Kaleetan's looking fat, though I couldn't see the gully on top for the clouds. Go get it!
Totally worth the hike. Mmm. Corn.
Met a friendly father-son team at the summit and descended just after they did. The SW aspect skied well, then great, down lower. The new inch of snow sluffed easily below ~4.5k or so on the steepest roll, but it was so slow that I grew tired of waiting for it and trivially outran it. I inadvertently sandbagged the father-son team with the understanding that , "sure, the traverse out of the West bowl will go, I'm going to do it too!." It went, but not before deteriorating into something many people would no longer consider "skiing". Traverse right at treeline from the West into the main gully and it'll still go. Clicked out at 2800', but more sensible people may ski the gully to ~3200 or so and call it good.
Kaleetan's looking fat, though I couldn't see the gully on top for the clouds. Go get it!
Totally worth the hike. Mmm. Corn.
[Kaleetan's looking fat, though I couldn't see the gully on top for the clouds.]
Here is the top of the northern gully which leads up to the south face- taken from below Melakwa pass on Friday the 24th. The photo was taken with my camera zoomed in all the way so its hard to get a sense of the scale, but the vertical or slightly overhanging section at the top looked to be about 8 to 10 feet.
Here is the top of the northern gully which leads up to the south face- taken from below Melakwa pass on Friday the 24th. The photo was taken with my camera zoomed in all the way so its hard to get a sense of the scale, but the vertical or slightly overhanging section at the top looked to be about 8 to 10 feet.
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