August 6, 2011, - Snowdome, Mt Hood

Snowdome is still holding up quite well.  Cloud Cap road is closed at Highway 35 right now, so access is only through Parkdale.  Got a early start around 5:30 in time to catch the sunrise...



Down on the glacier about 6:30, put on the crampons and crossed the Eliot on the west side, finding a suitable snowbridge over a large crack.  The bridge should be good for another week or two.  Stopped just short of the top since the last bit was pretty heavily cupped.  The majority of the dome yielded really nice corn, and even the lower Eliot rode well.





We peered over into the Langille bowls, but elected not to ride them this time, as they require a pretty good hike back up and then a descent down the Eliot (since the Timberline trail washed out in '06).  If you have a bit of extra time they are worth it though!  Back to Cloud Cap by 10:30 and it was starting to get hot.



The Eliot and Snowdome should still be good for a couple of weeks.  The last few hundred feet of snow on the Eliot was surprisingly good.  Passed a group of climbers doing some crevasse rescue, other than that nobody was around.  Three and a half hours later I was back at home in time for BBQ burgers and a beer!  Heres a shot of the northside of Hood from Parkdale..