Home > Trip Reports > May 10, 2010, Mission Ridge Ski Area

May 10, 2010, Mission Ridge Ski Area

5/10/10
WA Cascades East Slopes Central
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Posted by Jim Oker on 5/10/10 3:52am
Hopefully I'm not going to invoke 509-wrath with this brief report. I've been wanting to get the gimpy dog out for some sort of well-consolidated tour, but weather conditions have been thwarting me. Normally I get hime out to someplace like Alpental around this time of the season, where I know we'll have well-consolidated snow thanks to skiers and groomers packing things down all season long. Not quite the story this year. So we headed off with some car camp gear and the ski gear mid-day Saturday, spent a lovely evening along icicle creek, including a nice 2+ hour hike up into the waning sun on the 4th of July Creek trail, then headed over to Wenatchee on Sunday morning. The ski area has put jersey barries in front of the parking lot, and when I arrived at mid-morning, the locals had already taken all the obvious parking spots. no matter - there was room for a few more creative parking jobs. Looks like snowmaking did a fine job of ensuring that there would be enough late-season snow extending right to the base on multiple trails, despite meager cover off-piste. I made the top of the upper chair my frist destination. Great views from the mountain/desert edge! The snow was well-consolidated low down, and turned to 2-5" of fresh snow up high. By the time I headed down for run 1, the new snow had softened nicely but still skied plenty fast. Fun enough that we went up for a second run, though the dog looked at me funny for a minute as I started skinning up. I think he was ready to curl up in the car at that point, but he quickly got into exploring in the woods as I set a mostly-shady uptrack in the heat of the afternoon. We topped out above another of the higher lifts at a col near the radio/microwave installation at the end of Nanaeum (sp?) ridge. I hit a little bit of sticky mush on this run, but the steepness compensated. I was concerned about how sticky it might be low down, so traversed hard right to the Castle run, and after a little initial stickiness, I hit some perfectly ripe corn, which made for a most enjoyable last drop down to the edge of the closed parking lot. Mission Ridge delivered exactly what I was looking for this weekend!
Nice !
Jeff S and I were there three weekends back, right after they closed and hit some of the best corn I think i ever had. Were you able to ski to the parking lot still? I'm remembering we went that way just to get some sun.

Thanks for the update on conditions. A guy we met there said he skied it through the end of May last year; maybe I'll make it back once more.

I like the desert views and the opportunity to jump in the Columbia on the way back through town.

author=Robie link=topic=16630.msg69623#msg69623 date=1273533570]
Were you able to ski to the parking lot still? I'm remembering we went that way just to get some sun.

The snow ended right at the edge of the parking lot (which is blocked by said jersey barries, so it was a few hundred yards from bumper to snow). That bit of snow is thin and melting out fast, but it struck me that they still have decent depth of pretty dense snow/ice on the groomers down low and my bet is that it lasts another week or three down there depending on the weather we have in the meantime.

I wouldn't describe yesterday as "some of the best corn I ever had" due to last week's skiff of new snow, but let's just say it was quite nice nonetheless.

I was up there today, wishing it was yesterday.  The snow set up a bit list night and only the top inch or so were softening up during the skin.  I cut up through Bathtub, up and over Microwave to Bowl 4.  A few inches of corn on top of a firm base up top, beautiful riding upper/mid mountain, then clear in the backseat for the final pitches.   Link to a few pics: http://picasaweb.google.com/travisknoop/MissionRidge51010#


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may-10-2010-mission-ridge-ski-area
Jim Oker
2010-05-10 10:52:51