February 4-5, CJ Couloir, NCNP

With high pressure and favorable avi conditions firmly entrenched in the PNW for the weekend, there was no doubt a bigger alpine line was on tap.  Discussions of location were hashed and re-hashed, but low elevation snow from the previous weeks was making access (sans sled) to many of the potential objectives difficult.  We settled on a bit of gamble: the CJ Couloir via a potentially long slog up the Cascade River Road.  Armed with skis, overnight gear and a chainsaw we (myself, allenataylor and chmnyboy) left Bham early, anticipating the Cascade River road attempting to deny us entry to the North Cascades.

After clearing a few downed trees from the road (much to Allen's delight), we randomly met another 4runner that helped use mechanical advantage to break some trail:



Soon the snow became too deep, and progress was stopped just shy of mile marker 11, leaving a 12 mile road approach to the CJ.  The pleasant weather and prospect of bagging a classic in the winter persuaded us to unload and get slogging:



9 miles in, passing the Eldorado Trailhead:



Skinning was efficient, with most of the approach in the shade, keeping the snow firm and fast.  Eventually, the forest began to give way to the alpine.

Sahale:


And the line came into view:


Chmnyboy was stoked to have the approach over and done:


Getting less calorie negative was in order; Allen played chef/water melter:


Over dinner we discussed Plan B if the CJ was icy/crusty/wind slabby/etc, watched the moon rise over the Cascades, and called it a night early in anticipation of a pre-dawn wake up call.

Avi debris made skinning the lower apron difficult, and so began the long, but mostly enjoyable bootpack up:



Luckily, conditions ended up being perfect booting - firm base with 4-6" of boot penetration.  The skiing should be good too!  The upper slopes steepened, and some wallowing ensued, but a well consolidated snowpack wasn't showing any signs of major instability.  Allen found his gas tank the fullest, and charged up the final pitch:



The crisp winter views from the col were awesome:





Conditions were excellent with perfect alpine packed pow dominating.  Sloughing was minimal, but the occasional crust/ice kept us on our toes.  Time for the fun part:

Chmny:




Allen:




The gamble had paid off - the line seemed to just go and go.  Our Legs felt every bit of the approach as we descended to the valley.  But damn it hurt good.  Really good.  This was my first big line almost two years after breaking my leg while skiing last March, and coming full circle was amazingly satisfying/exhillerating/FKNAwesome.  Lots of high fives were had and we coasted back to camp riding high on endorphins.

After quickly packing up camp/cooking we headed out for the long trek back to the car.  The warm spring air made for some thoroughly enjoyable road travel (the downhill skinless coasting helped too):



Out before dark, we would have made it back for the end of the Superbowl if not for an order mishap at Boomer's. 

Hard to beat steep skiing in wintertime high pressure in the PNW!