Home > Trip Reports > July 10, 2003, Adams Glacier, Mt. Adams

July 10, 2003, Adams Glacier, Mt. Adams

7/10/03
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
3931
5
Posted by ski_photomatt on 7/10/03 11:46pm
Predicted warm temperatures and reports of very good recent skiing in the Southwest chutes and on the Coleman Glacier led me to the north side of Mt. Adams.  I was eyeing the North face of the Northwest Ridge (NFNWR) but was keeping an open mind, should the snow conditions appear to be less than optimal.

I left the trailhead at 5am and quickly made my way to the meadows above the trail juncture with the PCT.  I was planning on beginning my descent sometime around 3pm so time was on my side.  As I started to climb the North Ridge, I slowed into a methodical pace, almost of an experiment to see how little energy I could expend while still making steady upward progress.  The North Ridge is essentially a long, boring, but quite scenic scree trail and the ascent gave ample time to consider descent options.

From the summit area, a skier doesn't have many options for easy descents if they intend to return back to the Killen Creek trail.  The NFNWR is steep and exposed;  the Adams Glacier is moderately steep, committing and requires a fair bit of navigation around crevasses and seracs.  Fortunately, the Northwest Ridge itself is relatively low angle and rarely exposed; by following its entire length, a safe descent looked possible (with one carry over what looked to be a scree field).  As I neared the top, the plan was to descend down the Northwest Ridge, keeping on or near the ridge line and evaluate the snow conditions.  Half way down, I could either commit to skiing the NFNWR if I felt completely confident about the snow, otherwise continue down the entire length of the Northwest ridge.

I reached the summit area at 2pm, and the first look down the Adams Glacier changed the plan.  I had also fully evaluated the glacier and memorized a line down on the way up.  The snow at the top was softening nicely (FYI - the summit area was covered in deep penitentes) and I left near 3pm.  The skiing and route finding around the crevasses were quite interesting.  The snow itself was far less than perfect - dirty, very suncupped and was frankly some of the poorest snow I've skied in some time.  I had been unable to make a positive identification on a route through the lower glacier and instead traversed out onto the lower NFNWR and then back onto the Adams Glacier at a crucial snow bridge.  A couple more crevasses to pass and I sailed out onto the flat lower glacier.

This is an engaging and elegant ski route and I think would be extremely enjoyable in good conditions.  After skiing the lower part of the NFNWR, I'm glad I backed off it - I could see the suncups from the North Ridge and simply didn't feel confident about the snow conditions.  If I had started down the Northwest ridge, I'm certain I would not have committed to the NFNWR and in choosing the Adams Glacier I got a more continuous, more enjoyable run.  Despite the poor skiing, this was a very satisfying trip.

I've never been to Adams before, and I must say I was impressed by the north side. It is quite beautiful with green meadows contrasting with snowy glaciers, but a bit unlike most places in the Northern Cascades. With the 30+ miles or so of flat log roads and the scenery completely devoid of any alpine character save Rainier, one really does feel as though they are on a big volcano. The only other people I saw were two hikers about a half mile from the trailhead on the way out. Complete solitude.
thanks for reporting.

Nice trip report.  I had been wondering about timing on the N side, since I intend to go back myself for sure.  When we skied it on the 29th, the snow was much better than you describe, mostly smooth with little to no sun-cuppage.   But the pictures that Charles posted from early June seem to show the route in even better condition.  Out of curiosity, when is that TH accecible on average?

Suncups on NFNWR?  Is this right?  Just on the top?  I'm sorry to be questioning you, I am just surprised to hear of these suncups on a steep, north-facing slope.  I could imagine them on the lower-angle stuff near the top of the mountain, with more direct sun, but on the meaningful part of NFNWR??  

Feel free to call me a disgraceful idiot for questioning you, but I just had to ask.



Perhaps I wasn't clear enough in my trip report:  I didn't ski the NFNWR (except a tiny portion at the bottom) and instead skied the Adams Glacier.  The picture (the same photo Charles has posted on the main page, I hope it's OK to use it like this) shows my approximate ski descent in red.  The lower portion where I traversed out onto NFNWR is shown circled in blue.  The suncups here were huge, larger than any part of the Adams glacier.  Perhaps 1-2 ft across and fairly deep.  They were all filled with dirt.  I traversed out for one turn shown by the dashed red line looking for better snow but it was the same, so I traversed back and skied down looking for the crucial bridge to cross.  This lower section isn't quite as steep as the section just above it, but still approaches 40 degrees I think.  Perhaps steeper, I dunno.  From the north ridge, I could definitely see some texture on the upper NFNWR, of course can't confirm that it was large suncups like this, but I suspect so.  FWIW, the glacier was considerably more broken than in this photo.

Thanks for clarifying.

I skied the Adams Glacier a week after that photo was taken, and I wasn't thinking of trying it again this year, but I  was considering another look at the NFNWR.  Hopefully with more beta, I will be able to find a descent with the LARGEST suncups possible, just to maximize my late summer skiing experience.

Soon, with fall, comes the much-sought-after water ice, and then a few more months to...

POWDER

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ski_photomatt
2003-07-11 06:46:24