July 11, 2007, Southwest Chutes, Mt. Adams
7/11/07
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
2556
2
Decided to escape the Willamette Valley heat. The chutes are still in fine shape, but not for much longer. We dropped into the chutes at 11:30 and had very decent corn much of the way. It got a little mushy and mildly cupped/runneled the last 1000 ft. but still very skiable. We took the skis off at approximately 7500 ft and had a longer trek out to the Round the Mountain Trail than I've had in the past. From Piker's it took us just over two hours to get back to Cold Springs. The butterfly migration that people have mentioned is still in full effect -- really neat to see so high up on a mountain. Also, for the weight conscious, there is quite a bit of melt water much of the way up Adams -- at least as far as the lunch counter.
Thanks for the update & report. I'm thinking about heading down this weekend. Is there any snow below the Crescent Glacier? I typically set up camp there at 6800' near the creek. Just curious how things are around that area... Thanks!
There is not any snow to speak of below the Crescent. I kept on my trail runners until the top of the lunch counter. There is less snow below 8000 feet presently than I've seen in the last four seasons at this time. High up the snow pack is still pretty solid. The summit as of Wednesday was still very skiable, particulary skier's left overlooking what I believe is the Klickitat glacier. The chutes were great as I indicated, but the south face can still be skied to the lunch counter. Enjoy the butterflies if they are still migrating.
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