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11-6-11 Mt Hood Little Zig Zag

11/6/11
OR Mt Hood
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Posted by rong on 11/6/11 10:04pm
I took the opportunity to get out yesterday, and check out the fresh snow on Hood.  Telemetry, and Timberline both indicated 13" in the storm cycle, and knowing that is not near enough for turns it is enough for a tour.  Arriving At t-line at 8:45 I was not surprised to see the total to be in the range of 5-7 inches, but I was there, the sun was out and no wind, so what the heck.  I headed out to the NW to escape the resort, and took a delicate approach, attempting to avoid rock, but with no base under the fresh it was impossible.  The higher I got the thinner the new snow became.  At 6600' I switched to booting, and continued.  My goal at this time was to hit the Little Zig Zag, and see if the permanent snow would offer relief from the rock.  It was a pleasant surprise to find the tongue extended down to 6850' and had 4-6" coverage, and had not been skied.  I skinned up to 8450' in bluebird conditions, with only light wind at the top of the climb.  It was tempting to go on up to Illumination Saddle, but the underlying crust was bullet proof, with only 1-2" of dust on it, winds were increasing, and clouds were creeping up the flanks of the mountain.
Time to get some turns in, and not too surprising there was no edge grip to start.  Once I hit 7600' the crust softened, and the 4-6" of new skied nicely down to 6850'.  Good enough to do a second lap on the lower half.  I am always amazed to find how little this area gets skied when it is the only game in town, and conditions are good,  and only 200 yards from a functioning resort.
I decided to hike east to the upper lift terminal of the Mile, and ski down the snow finger back to the resort.  As it happens this is the best approach also, until a little more snow falls.  With cool temps this ski should be good for several more days as the forecast offers little relief from the doldrums. 
Glad to see things turning white down south.

Very nice. 

That crust is unbelievable.  I had a hard time kicking steps into it, and the occasional slip on skins just hurts.

Cheers.


Nice work Ron, you always get the goods no matter what conditions. I can't wait for this area to fill up.

Nice pics and report.  Can't wait for a bit more snow to fall and the season to come into full swing!

Looks like you made the right decision, or should I say the "Left" decision. We went up the busier right side of the Palmer on Sunday and had mediocre conditions at best.

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