May 15, 2018, Mt.Pilchuck, May 15

The gate near the bottom of the Pilchuck road remains closed so we strapped skis onto our hardtails and went for it. Road is snow free up to about 1/4 mile from the trailhead. Moderately taxing ride at 5-7% steady uphill grade loaded down with gear. A few downed trees to negotiate. Took about 1 hour. Snowpack remains good by the upper parking area and we were able to skin the winter route the entire way from where we parked the bikes. The lower mountain snow is heavily covered with pollen and pine sap and there are large tree well moats. Once above tree line, travel was easier. Despite the warm weather, the snow was well consolidated and not too mushy. Not hero corn but good enough for fun turns. Enjoyed the shade of the lookout for lunch and views. The upper mountain ski down was enjoyable but became increasingly sticky lower down. On my return, I noted a thick layer of black goo adherent to the ski bases. This required 1/2 hour of scrubbing with a good citrus based solvent to remove. The ride back was a blast though frequent deep potholes required careful navigating and moderate speeds. Speaking of potholes, the stretch of road from the Mountain Loop hwy to the gate at the Heather lake trailhead is really in awful shape with huge potholes spanning the width of the road the entire way it seemed. I guess our Northwest Forest pass fees and taxes are going for more important things than road maintenance, like first class travel for the interior secretary to his meetings with oil and coal executives. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x3iU0-N-1bA