Jan 22, 2011, Baker Backcountry - Beginner Days -
1/22/11
WA Cascades West Slopes North (Mt Baker)
3218
6
A coworker of mine has been wanting to get into backcountry skiing. He's from the East coast, so never skied "Cascade Crud", he also never hiked up a mountain before... So it was a long day for him skiing heavy snow on jello legs. He was sort of like Rocky getting his butt handed to him by Mr. T "Stay down Rocky! Stay down!" He kept on getting up and getting slammed back down. :) We didnt get much skiing in, but it was great to be outside taking in the views.
Snow conditions - About 6 inches of new wet snow. Heavy consistent snow pack down to the "MLK Weekend" crust (about 6-8 inches down). Lots of evidence of recent avy activity. There was consistent surface activity on the sun exposed slopes around midday.
Visibility was on and off good. A low cloud soup made some terrain reading challenging.
Below is a link to the video of the day:
http://www.thealpineobsession.com/2010-ski-videos.html
Snow conditions - About 6 inches of new wet snow. Heavy consistent snow pack down to the "MLK Weekend" crust (about 6-8 inches down). Lots of evidence of recent avy activity. There was consistent surface activity on the sun exposed slopes around midday.
Visibility was on and off good. A low cloud soup made some terrain reading challenging.
Below is a link to the video of the day:
http://www.thealpineobsession.com/2010-ski-videos.html
Ahhh, good times. It looks like 67% of you enjoyed all of the trip and 33% enjoyed about 33%.
I've been on both ends of that spectrum. ;D I took an accomplished "lift skiing" friend out to Yodelin a few weeks ago, and he was just a sweaty, thrashed mess by the time we got back to the parking lot. Of course he was used to downhill, and I put him on teles. Are there any rules about that? ;) Looks like you gave your buddy a substantially more difficult first time adventure. If he comes back for more after that, we got 'im!
I've been on both ends of that spectrum. ;D I took an accomplished "lift skiing" friend out to Yodelin a few weeks ago, and he was just a sweaty, thrashed mess by the time we got back to the parking lot. Of course he was used to downhill, and I put him on teles. Are there any rules about that? ;) Looks like you gave your buddy a substantially more difficult first time adventure. If he comes back for more after that, we got 'im!
I think one of the toughest things about getting other folks into backcountry skiing (or just cross country skiing in general) is matching the conditions and the terrain to the gear. If the snow is perfect (almost) anyone can do it. If not, it gets really hard. I think Baker is a great area to learn, though. If you get decent snow on a pretty day, then just going up to Artist Point is an easy way to get them exposed to some heavenly stuff. The views are top notch and there is plenty of easy terrain. You'll have company, but its not too hard to find places to be alone. I think Rainier is just a bit more challenging. There are spots where it is easy, but if you go for the views (e. g. heading up toward Panorama point or beyond) then you are likely to come across some rather tricky stuff.
Lately I've been taking some beginning tourers (and sometimes skiers) out. I'm doing my best not to utterly sandbag them, however my success rate is probably only about 50-50.
I think getting people started by taking them out in the spring is the best bet. There aren't many things easier to ski in this world than good corn, and you've got a better chance of decent vis and weather, and you may be able to eliminate avalanche concerns from the equation.
I think getting people started by taking them out in the spring is the best bet. There aren't many things easier to ski in this world than good corn, and you've got a better chance of decent vis and weather, and you may be able to eliminate avalanche concerns from the equation.
fkn goat show.
Nice to meet you up there, I was the group of 4 that dug the pits near where the vidy starts....it was classic cascade snow that day, but still made for a fun day out.
Steve
Steve
@Rusty - I think a great time was had by all. It was about a month since my last tour, so I didnt care much for the skiing, I just wanted to get out. My buddy was blown away by the total experience and will be back for more. I'm down in a company meeting in Vegas with him now and he is talking it up about how he cant wait till the next trip;) Either he has a short memory or the reward is worth the punishment. I agree with you making that transition from groomers to the bc is often a rough one. I feel like I am still making the transition :) Inbounds to Tele backcountry... I think that is cruel ;)
@Ross - I think Muir to Pan point is probably the easiest terrain you'll find in the BC a gentle open grade, problem is the lower elevation has trees, and if you cant make turns on demand, that can make for some interesting days out. Everybody starts somewhere, so Baker or Paradise is a toss up depending on the conditions....
@SnowTroll - Nice to meet you as well. Thanks for letting us look into your pit, and also for "testing" the slope.
@Ross - I think Muir to Pan point is probably the easiest terrain you'll find in the BC a gentle open grade, problem is the lower elevation has trees, and if you cant make turns on demand, that can make for some interesting days out. Everybody starts somewhere, so Baker or Paradise is a toss up depending on the conditions....
@SnowTroll - Nice to meet you as well. Thanks for letting us look into your pit, and also for "testing" the slope.
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