September 25, 2010, Heliotrope Corn Harvest

9/25/10

WA Cascades West Slopes North (Mt Baker)

4602

8

Posted by skier8484 on 9/25/10 9:24am

The corn harvest was on in full up at Heliotrope today. Snow was as good as it gets for September: easy skinning on the way up; fast, smooth corn on the way down.

It was rather windy all day today, which actually kept the snow in good shape throughout the afternoon. Lots of people up there getting September turns, with a surprising number of them hoofing it sans touring gear.

Crevasse/glacial ice exposure was minimal. As were the suncups! Literally, there weren't any! The snow was good enough to warrant 4 laps, at which point the prospect of sitting in an easy chair and watching college football drew me away from the mountain.

Truly amazing September turns. Having skied the Coleman Pinnacle area in the last two weeks, I would definitely recommend heading to Heliotrope instead.

9/26/10 5:28am

gary_h

Nice Brian,
Sounds like I should have headed north from the Hood Canal Bridge instead of south yesterday morning. Heliotrope is a beautiful area and a fun ski.
I can't complain though, had a fun day climbing and skiing the Muir snowfield. Like you describe, it was windy, there was lots of company and some good skiing. What more can you ask for?

Gary