June 3, 2012, Fortune SE Bowl
6/3/12
1612
3
Road open to end (Esmeralda TH). Snow coverage very good for early June. Sun stayed behind the clouds most of the day with a few sunny spells. Snowpack a bit funky in Headlight Basin. SE bowl of Fortune has good coverage and fun turns. Plenty of sluff potential there if the sun cooks it. We skied down to the trail c. 300' verts above the TH. Some skiable snow patches below that. Saw several other groups up there.
Busy day on Fortune Peak on Sunday. We were surprised to be able to ski all the way down to the Esmeralda trail via the SE basin. Just barely though, and the amount of walking will increase rapidly.
Based on tracks across mud, dirt, meadow and snow, it appeared to me that snowmobiles had run the Esmeralda trail within the past week. (Two weeks at most.) I think they should stop riding up there when any part of the trail is bare. Just sayin'.
Fun day of skiing with my family.
Based on tracks across mud, dirt, meadow and snow, it appeared to me that snowmobiles had run the Esmeralda trail within the past week. (Two weeks at most.) I think they should stop riding up there when any part of the trail is bare. Just sayin'.
Fun day of skiing with my family.
Some of those snomo tracks went in on Saturday. No evidence of them in the morning, mucho evidence in the afternoon.
I was up there too solo, later in day such that by time I summited after a presummit lap (4PM) everyone else was already gone.
I didn't think the Headlight Basin snow was funky, I thought it was excellent. Maybe a difference in timing of warmup. Much smoother surface than in SE bowl, and less tracks.
Rather than exit via SE bowl I decided to drop into Headlight again and exit via Ingalls Pass, to hit the slopes to the E that looked tempting from a distance and appeared to get you lower down before entering the trees. Unfortunately these slopes were overcooked and sticky, and I think the lower part of SE bowl would've held better snow. Via the Ingalls Way parallel it was also possible to ski basically all the way back, with occasional ~50' carries or dirt walkovers.
I didn't think the Headlight Basin snow was funky, I thought it was excellent. Maybe a difference in timing of warmup. Much smoother surface than in SE bowl, and less tracks.
Rather than exit via SE bowl I decided to drop into Headlight again and exit via Ingalls Pass, to hit the slopes to the E that looked tempting from a distance and appeared to get you lower down before entering the trees. Unfortunately these slopes were overcooked and sticky, and I think the lower part of SE bowl would've held better snow. Via the Ingalls Way parallel it was also possible to ski basically all the way back, with occasional ~50' carries or dirt walkovers.
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