1/6/17, Blue Mtn ONP 1/6/17

The Hurricane Ridge Rd remained closed due to "unforeseen staffing limitations" so I headed for Blue Mtn. It's a long slog (8 miles, 4000+ ft) but there is a good track now all the way to the top. The reward is gorgeous 360 views of the Strait, the Sound, and the Olympics, and 600-700 ft of decent moderate turns from the top. After that, it's the mother of all glides: the road is so graded that there are only two short flat sections if you know how to conserve speed, and that makes the ski out very easy and fast. Indeed, it makes the whole tour less arduous than it seems on the map. It's a long day to get to the top but skiing out even in the dark is no problem. I started relatively late so I didn't have time to explore the NE bowl of Blue. At the top I saw tracks of two skiers who seem to have done the Hurricane traverse (or come via Deer Ridge trail as Runcle and I did on Wednesday). Nice meeting you, Messrs Roger and Miceal.
Niko