Home > Trip Reports > mt Index Hour glass Couloir 4-16-2013

mt Index Hour glass Couloir 4-16-2013

4/16/13
15837
23
Posted by alecapone on 4/18/13 2:29am
I remember watching a grand marnier commercial on here, but I couldn't find it. It was a french commercial with some kids who seemingly decide to go and get alpine. I dunno, it was in french with no subtitles. Kinda reminded me of Madame Liz Daley and Monsieur Drew Tabke. So Euro! how cool would that be, I always thought? Get up and alpine something by headlamp right outside you door?  yeah.. right.

Kololo and I where on a way back from a more notable day, where she tagged FOUR laps through the top phlight terrain park. As usuall, it was hard to keep the car between the mustard and the mayo, while trying to gawk up an Mt Index... "The Eiger of the Cascades"?, or so I have heard it called. This thing taunts me daily. as I drive, do my yard work, or even look out my bedroom window, there it is. The only named peak I can see from home. It was looking goood! I could see the snow line was still around 2,000' so I decided to give er a go. I grabbed some cheese for a snack as it was about the only thing i had that was kind of french like.


My route inspiration. Thanks Val! Wish I had the full moon to work with.

http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1057056

my fancy route map. dots are down.

trail was snow free and I started up the one million, seriously, one million steps to lake serene. A little worried about how to tackle serene as the snow was pretty thin, but crispy. but,  Joy oh joy! when I hit it the lake was skiable! zoomed across with Index hulking over me in the starry sky. Skinning the saddle was easy enough, and soon I made my way up the semi steep east ridge. Climbing up some sections looked ridable, some obviously not. there where some old rap anchors... and some new ;) . It was just turning dawn so it was a little tough to navigate, but once it was light, everything was pretty obvious.


first light,



east ridge.


Other then the east ridge, most of the route is pretty moderate, and felt unexposed...

down,(there is a 200' cliff down there)



up..


pretty easy from here, go around looker left, and mellow snow to the top.




UP the hourglass i mostly booted the bed surface of a day old avi. just a small strip leaving plenty of good smooth snow for riding. Way less steep then I thought it would be. I gained teh upper ridge and hiked to a small col just below the summit and dropped my gear. You could easily ride from the summit, but it was too traversy for a snowboard to get back to where I was. I went and stood on the index's main summit. So airy. so Scarey. Even though i knew I wasn't on a cornice I still couldn't bring myself close to the edge.

how hard do you think it would be to tag them two? ;) middle and north index.



looking down the north face.




Wish I could have stayed longer, but it was getting warm, and past corn thirty on the lower slopes. The upper hour glass was holding good powder on its shady side. Face shots on index? priceless!
once out of the hour glass it was a combo of smooth corn, soft roller balls, and lots of shady pow hits! I rode it without stopping until I came tot eh end.

Decided against rapping the east ridge back down and ran out the east face until I hit the cliffs at the bottum. Knew the rope had to come out eventually anyways, and then made a couple fun wet of raps to mud creek. Skinned back to the east ridge gap, and down to serene. 

skiing back ac cross the lake I realised I was about 6 hours behind when I said I would be home. mostly on account of standing around half the day with my mouth a gape. so, at the outlet I gave Nyla a call and she said she would come and get me.Halfway down the trail we met and and she gave me a cold root beer. Thanks Nyla, your the best!



:), Glad you got it.

Nice! We aborted on the tree arete earlier in the season. Very cool area, I think there's some big stuff that could go down off the ridge between Persis and Index with the right conditions.

Thanks guys!

I seen the photos of you guys hanging around. Wish you would have had better conditions.

Yes Andy, I've looked at persindex cirque from several vantage points. I think you are right. 

a side note.... I 'think' you can access index on skis without any rope work up or down if you take the slope just to the south of where I decended. Same access, skin across serene, but then drop down to mud creek.

I love Mt Index and have always thought it would be rad to get up there in the winter. I can't even imagine riding a line down it. Sick. Thanks for posting.

On another level man.

So glad to hear you got this line, I can imagine how long you have dreamed of it.

Sick, sick, sick. Gross even. Seems to be the winter of the Enigma Range, with Big Four, E Ramp of Three Fingers, and Index seeing ski lines.
http://www.alpenglow.org/themes/subalpine/

Amazing.

Sweet man! Way to get something awesome in your backyard. I did that rock climb traverse across the 3 peaks in the summer 7 or 8 years ago, and have always wanted to get back there in snowy conditions. It looks worthwhile!

another nice one mr capone.  index-area lines have been on my radar for a long while, good to see someone actually get after it.  any recent photos of the N-facing walls, stepped back a little ways (like perhaps from the road)?

haha tabke, good find--"enigma range", i like it.

Nice!

Has anyone ever skied the col that runs from due east from Pt 5160 down towards Mud Lake?  Looks like it could be pretty awesome with a decent low elevation snowpack.

Awesome! I've always thought about it when I've been up in the summer, good job getting it

That's a great read,
...it's also a really intimidating mountain wot you just skiied down. Outrageous. Put that thing back where you found it!

Nice Line!

Countless memories staring at that line on the drive back from stevens pass.

Way to step it up.

Way to go Scott! I know you've been wanting index for a while

Well Played!!
Are you on suicide watch Scott?

Ha! No Joe, but I must admit, them park laps where borderline insane!

Honestly, other then the rap shennanigans, it's  fairly reasonable. Maybe slight confusion, but I did not ride the north side, but the side you see from the town of baring. Cant find a photo of it.

I don't think it's nearly in the same category as the big four, or three fingers decents. Maybe if you skied the north east side.

Sorry, I have no photos from across the way. Forgot the camera last time I went to heybrook... looks thinner then normal.




Well I've followed your trip reports this winter and been impressed withstanding the long tough approaches, solitude and exposures. I put myself temporarily in your boots and it's been (more than) exciting!

WOW! most impressive! you are the man scott .. a little sick but still the man!

Rad. I've always known it would go. Good to know someone finally got her.

Awesome, Scott! Way to send.

Dammit Scott!  At this pace you're going to ride the Eve Dearborn Mem. route soon. Jesus. Nice pace this season dude!

Rage, rage against the dying of the light.    8)

author=jwplotz link=topic=28317.msg119252#msg119252 date=1366688686]
Dammit Scott!  At this pace you're going to ride the Eve Dearborn Mem. route soon. Jesus. Nice pace this season dude!


I think I'll pass on that one!

Reading recent tragic news, and the ensuing comments, i came across a gem from Lou Dawson stating that not sharing a mistake is selfish. I made the comment before of not wanting to be a case study. I was jokingly refering to mental case.

I made a minor error on this one, but not so much a skiing one, more like a calculation one on rappel. Now I know what to do.

http://www.climbing.com/skill/long-rappel-short-rope/

I also have a little mess to go clean up... but if anyone gets there first, there is a nice single rope hanging midway from the cliff above  upper mud creek.


Reply to this TR

10924
mt-index-hour-glass-couloir-4-16-2013
alecapone
2013-04-18 09:29:23