July 15, 2005, Mount Lassen, Northeast Face

On the 14th we went to check out the south side route on Lassen...it looked rather boring so we decided to try for the Northeast Face the next day.

Note: next time I will do as Lowell and others have done...hike up the south side, ski the north side, climb the north side, then ski the south side...

We were hiking the Devestated Area "trail" by 3:30am. We soon lost all signs of a trail...after a brief discussion about stupidity, we began heading towards the black face in the distance. We worked our way up the ridge on the north side of the creek in the comforting morning light. We arrived at the base, strapped on crampons and made our way up the face. It was a great climb...especially the steeper upper face! It was going to be a great ski. We met fellow TAYer, Rich B, on the summit. After a quick snack we decided to desend. IT WAS A GREAT SKI. The top turns on the face were magic. Easily the best turns of the trip!

Note: We descended the face skiers-left of the summit...and you should too!