June 25, 2005, Silver Star Glacier
6/25/05
WA Cascades East Slopes North
2845
0
A group of five (Frank S, skier, Frank D, Al and Jon, climbers) left Seattle at 8 am, drove up north with the obligatory coffee stops and hit the trail head off Route 20 at 1pm. The hike up on the "climber's trail" (aka a dry wash) with overnight packs and skis was interesting, especially the blowdowns. We camped at the large campspot at 6500 ft and then up at 5 am to hike up the Burgandy Col. We then dropped onto the glacier, unpacked all the gear, and the climbers went their way. Frank and I spent the next 5 hrs yo-yoing the glacier. The section below the col was decent, but some rocks were visible and the runs short. We then skinned over to the upper glacier, the snow was excellent, with long runs possible, almost to the tarn. Frank felt a little limited with slightly noddley skis, but we managed to nest lots of turns down. As the sun got higher, the snow got grabby and soft, which limited the fun slightly. However, it was still a great to be out in late June, especially with the views. The climbers summited without incident, we regrouped and then began the slog down....
Equipment: Standard glacier gear (not really nessesary)
AK Launchers (overkill)
Karhus Orions (probably just right)
Work to turns ratio: ~50
Equipment: Standard glacier gear (not really nessesary)
AK Launchers (overkill)
Karhus Orions (probably just right)
Work to turns ratio: ~50
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