May 24-25, 2004, SW Chutes-Mt. Adams

After coming off the high of Rainier we ventured to the coast and Portland to kill some weather days and were in position to approach Adams on the morning of the 24th.  Except one thing, it didn't stop raining and our start was delayed until 2:30pm. I'm not sure what it was that hexed all of our approach days but i'm just glad that the trend didnt carry over to summit days! Anyway, we left Morrison Creek campground before 3pm and were at camp at 7300' by 7pm. Consequently the earliest end to an approach day on our cascade trip!  The next morning we were underway by 6am and had summited by 10:15am.  The view from the summit was amazing, with visibility as far as Glacier Peak and the Three Sisters of Oregon (120+ miles).  During the two hours that we waited for the snow to soften we stared at Rainier and our entire route up the Fuhrer Finger where we 4 days earlier looked back the other direction. What a very, very cool feeling!  At 1215pm we started descending toward Pikers on hard snow.  The first 500' vert. of the SW Chutes was hard and then gradually became optimal corn snow conditions then too soft by the time 4000' vert. had passed.  The SW Chutes are no joke! they are everything everyone raves about and more!  It is truly amazing that a ski line can be sustained at 35-40 deg., entirely fall line and over 4000'vert.  Whoever has skied them with settled powder may be the luckyist person on earth.  Once at the bottom of the chutes we booted the 500' vert. east over a major rib and descended the rest of the way to camp. Once we eat, celebrated and tore down camp only the exit was left. Back at the car at 5pm we celebrated our amazing cascade trip.  See you next spring in the land of corn.