June 27, 28 McCall Basin, Goat Rocks Wilderness

We  arrived at the North Fork Tieton Trailhead at  7:30 AM and started the long trek into McCall Basin.  Nineteen blow downs and several hours of route finding later we were in McCall basin where we set up camp in a snow covered meadow.  The off trail bush whacking with heavy packs had taken a toll on our energy reserves as well as our time schedule.  So, we decided to stay in the lower basin and ski some of the surrounding gladed slopes.  The morning was cold and the snow firm as we headed for a north facing slope off the west shoulder of Old Snowy.  From the top of this ridge we had good views into the upper McCall basin and the McCall Glaciers.


And the snow was softening nicely by 9:00 AM into tree protected corn which was a delight to ski. We spent the morning lapping these slopes and returned to camp at 11:00 AM  to pack up for the hike out.  More route finding was required on the way out and the downed trees were right where we left them.  We arrived at our car at 5:00 PM somewhat spent and bloody but satisfied with our first scouting trip into this area.  We will definitely return because the skiing and solitude are well worth the effort.