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June 23, 2017, girls ski Pahto

6/23/17
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Posted by cumulus on 6/28/17 4:02am
I was going to comment and add some pics to the June 22 entry but then thought nah, I don't want to overwhelm someone else's thread with a bunch of grainy pics (which btw I don't care if you do with any thread of mine). It also seemed that it deserved its own entry--awesome day that it was!--not just for the perfect conditions (not too hot not too cold) and the ever auspicious CORN* (even if it isn't Muir), but mostly to celebrate two young ripper daughters (13&14) who got up and down this 12,276' mountain with style, strength, and grace!

Big time congrats to the next gen! And everyone who helped out, cheered on, and waited up at the summit for the little ones.



Here they are, finally getting to the good part!  (after a few "I wish we were there and skiing down" throughout the day)  And yes, slight photo tilt it's true--purely for compositional effect of course.



a view from earlier in the day


https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/AOuD9-Soi9XNJtIntIL2_itwY_sx_Gb8XLvdRWjJ8OH5UXZswFHghXeGkpQLN31vS9gMouKEhIQb8G7NZlfBwNdouoA0D3-51J5TAZAG26aLVMJN-SU4KwuqRPG4fTTnKCwlYKRb1msYCJXe6uLP_N3ZqQgD-3xchyDlVM8n2dMzoYU6g6s0wFcEDAZSm4KIIFClpvoadI7zJTbpitvGA_T1BXqh_tzXB4ksDgH8HpJ3S6_BgVxQ0BBtT9LWWBbVlPQx8hpWuWoeapcYHYUpJ3SRQ4SUWV66of_-g_KrVumZCXrcNurTXZyDfHJCCRllPJepwMlTGl_9ir3EQKBng-3QGqVeCaIqYUA7eaJLAazJH3s6EdTez_cDBQ1A8trNZqZS09a8IZFhHdqCmshfdQc9uj3xp2q2KH8vONgS5fMqv_fZmQPYh6s0npd4RRra5ZCeWm3-MvFEcYW4bIkq2fGQwWuo_1Y3ID4XXIqKKK5KtBUR1_2eOCvDO-gu85lTjhDdvpXZAcyo7vGaF1SzxjMCr4hpVOWfbDpIafS_QUMI6M3OWYeU6EYFySKZLqHUY9-Ra5K_fRnDksc0mEqcbVhhceu1ZhTBrCYdC_3h08cNyeCMzvMNK21z8HSRBdJOt4lOx7iMaxj0_He8f1exvhKNq6i5BdfG_ukFCvQQSQ=w655-h860-no" />
and on the way up to Pikers, looking over at Hood


This trip got shifted last minute to a day earlier than originally planned... had me scrambling to pack in an hour or two, then the long drive... rolled into Morrison Creek & sleeping bags around 1am on the 23rd. Chilly night on Thursday; Friday night was easily 15°F warmer for the record. We were up at 6am and moving at the trailhead at 7:45.
I'm not sure when we got to the lunch counter but it fully lived up to its name (a little nap may even have been had).  Fortified with food tea and beans we proceeded up to Pikers which somehow almost seemed easier than the first leg up to lunch counter... Poppy thought so too. Amazing what a little rest and refueling can do.




Couldn't resist taking a look down the Klickitat. Highly recommended. Beautiful view and right along the way.









Topping out on pikers we were met with a fierce wind. Hold on to your hats! or just take them off. 
The summit is visible from here so that made the last leg seem more like a known quantity, even if you've never been.  So after getting our picture taken by a nice gentleman who offered a helping hand, off we went to go summit.

Amar skied down from the summit and joined our motley little crew for the final skin up. Lots of merry folks hanging in the warmth right below the summit when we got there (20 ft. up the wind was howling). I think Zack set a new record for summit sitting... not sure how many hours. After some rest and refueling and transitioning and a summit group photo (my crappy little camera was not in rotation for this, maybe someone will post one?) all ten of us set off to ski back down the way we had come up... but then, no wait--ended up in the chutes--definitely a good decision!  Dropped in circa 5pm, pretty much perfect timing, corn o'clock on this particular day... Best corn run yet this season!

Hope those kids don't expect to always get it this good...


I think that's Zack up in there in that plume o'corn



Poppy with a view down the line



aftermath



next days R&R with river chilled feet & watermelon (and ice cream! Thanks Jeff and Bri)


fantastic day!




two volcanoes down, a few more to go...




* see Drew's "Eg.: June 23, 2007, Mt. Rainier, Camp Muir corn" reference and Charlie's concurring echo...
Great team that ends with happy feet in the stream. ;)

Those girls are badass ;D

Thanks for the photos and report, Stefan.
So glad we got these little gals together early in their ski touring development. They have been able to feed off of each others enthusiasm (much like their older counterparts do with their ski partners)  :)

Seeing their smiles, while skiing down the chutes affirmed to me that We have created volcano ski enthusiasts, and the aspirations of having a Brain Surgeon for a daughter (to cover fathers retirement expenses of being a life long ski bum), was probably pissed to the wind. Sacrifices... :D
https://vimeo.com/223244340

Skiing the Chutes at 13 and 14? Oh man - that's top-shelf bragging rights. Too bad most of their friends won't have a clue of how cool that truly is. But the girls know and that's what matters. Kudos to them.

Congrats to the girls, very cool!

Best TR of the year :)

yes, very cool! the stoke is palpable. looks like you guys had a blast. 

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june-23-2017-girls-ski-pahto
cumulus
2017-06-28 11:02:00