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[TR] Cashmere Mt.- South Side 3/14/2004


forrest_m

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Climb: Cashmere Mt.-South Side

 

Date of Climb: 3/14/2004

 

Trip Report:

Spring always seems to appear suddenly, though if you were paying attention, you would’ve seen the signs earlier. One day, all the trees are in bloom, it’s still light out when you get home from work and the focus of ski trips changes from slopes to summits. Winter is all about searching out the powder shots or yo-yos on the best aspect. But with longer days comes the desire to only pull your skins off once, even if it means skiing through zones of poor snow in the course of a top-to-bottom run.

 

That was the story Sunday. We left the car at Bridge Creek Campground (1,880’) and were able to ski continuously up the road to the Eightmile Creek Campground. From there, we followed the gated road that cuts off to the right up past one switchback and then up steeper slopes towards a gap that gave access to a second, parallel valley below Cashmere Mountain. This steep slope, which was covered with only a few feet of snow, was in perfect shape for turns… at 9:30 in the morning. The slope kicked back as we skinned into the narrow valley above, traversing the steep sides of a stream gully until we could cross to the south side of the drainage and work our way up a scenic rib that climbed up to timberline through an old burn. The silver trunks hummed in the gusty wind, but it was warm in the sunshine.

 

cashmere01.jpg

 

It got downright hot as we climbed through a series of open bowls, working our way west across several small ridges. The wind became stronger as we entered the steep slopes of the couloir leading to the ridgeline below the summit. We put skis on our packs and let the gusts push us up the icy avalanche debris, past a free-hanging frozen waterfall, to the col. The terrain on the far side leading in to the Doctor Creek valley looked amazing. We tagged the summit (8,504’) at around 1:30, assuming it counted if you merely touched the summit with your extended ski pole. It was downright cold and fairly exposed, so we didn’t dally.

 

The descent involved the good, the bad and the ugly. As usual, the most difficult, highest-stakes turns were the first ones of the day, and took place on the worst snow. Andreas started on an icy shoulder about 50 feet below the top; I shot pictures as he skied the exposed 45 degree slope. The Stuart Range loomed snowy and stormy looking in the background. Chatter, chatter, edge, jump. Definitely scrappy, even for Andreas on AT gear, and I was glad I’d left my tele boards a bit lower. The couloir below the col was equally icy and only a little lower angle, but had a much more palatable runout.

 

cashmere03.jpg

 

cashmere04.jpg

 

Around 7,800 feet, we exited the bottom of the couloir and relaxed into 2,500 feet of effortless corn. Creamy hero snow encouraged us to treat the bowl like a terrain park, hopping and banking off snow-covered boulders. Lower still, we surfed through sloppy snow in the open trees where snow snakes lurked, hunting for a telemarker’s unweighted back foot to grab on to. By the time we reached the lowest slopes, we were skiing in bottomless isothermal glop that let you sink down all the way to dirt, but we managed to make it to the road without major base damage. Another half hour of shussing saw us back at the truck, though in places the road had less than an inch of coverage left. As we changed clothes in the afternoon sunshine, I thought to myself, “Yup, spring is definitely in the air.”

 

Approach Notes:

all in all, a good alternative to the mostly north & east facing runs in this area (i.e. colchuck glacier, n. side cannon, etc.)

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It was 4th down and 34 so we punted.

Yep, Sergio and I punted on Cashmere today. I got to 5,200 feet. Sergio got to maybe 6,000 ft. The snow was crap down low. Unconsolidated crap! Crap! Crappy unconsolidated crap! Crappy crap crap! Creamed crap with a side order of mashed potatoes.

 

Other reasons for punting:

A. My new (used) AT boots gave me blisters right off the bat

 

B. The weather was rolling in anyway. On the return, a few very light sprinkles hit us (but not strong enough to dampen us)

 

Specific information:

 

1. The gate is open for the road up to the Stuart Lake Trailhead

 

2. Snow patches on the road for the first 1.5 miles or so (to 2,900 ft) can be driven through with a high-clearance vehicle. Beyond 2,900 feet the snow is still fairly deep and consistent on the road. I expect a few more weeks until the road is drivable all the way to the Eightmile Trailhead. Maybe a week longer for all the way to the Lake Stuart Trailhead.

 

3. The logging spur that leads up to Eightmile Creek is mostly snowcovered but several bare patches do exist. At Pioneer Creek, the snow is still all over the place. However, much of the steep slopes above leading to the upper Pioneer Creek basin are now snowfree. Unlike Forrest & Andreas, there is no longer a way to ski all the way from the basin to the road. If the rocks don't a get you then the bramble-like bushes will

 

4. Dragontail's Triple Couloirs ice runnels look thin this year (more dark rock showing compared to last year). The Colchuck Glacier looks good though

 

5. Henry Weinhard's Northwest Trail is a better post-climb beer than Budweiser. bigdrink.gif

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