October 14, 2007, Sahale Peak

Teledave and I headed up Sahale on Sunday for a beautiful fall day and some nice Oct turns.  The road was closed at the Eldorado parking area which added a few miles to the hike.  This was the earliest I've skied Sahale with the unexpected snowfall from last week.  We left the car at about 9am and hiked the trail to Cascade Pass and just beyond before skinning up the rest of the way.  Better than I expected actually with only a bit of postholing.  The views were spectacular as always with fall light and colors.  It felt like a sanctuary really, to be there alone on such a splendid day.  Coverage along Sahale arm was good with intermittent sections of rock or heather to cross.  We climbed to just below the summit at about 3:00.  The skiing was quite good for over a 1500'  with a firm base and a couple inches of newer snow on top.  Back to the car by 6:30.  We saw several cars at the TH and few folks coming out from Eldorado as we pulled away.