splattski

Vrry nice. Waddaythink? Is this the right time of year to plan for in upcoming years?

Really great report and pics. Thanks for posting.

There's still lots of snow in the range. Normal. The Sawtooths saying goes, "You can't go high til the 4th of July" (applies to hikers, mostly, but you get the idea- Warbonnet would be an ordeal). Here's a look across Redfish Lake, pointing toward the Perch: http://new.discoversawtooth.org/webcam Here's a bunch of Sawtooth trip reports, with dates. This year isn't unusual, although there is a lot more snow than last year: http://www.splattski.com/overview/idaho_ranges.html#sawtooths Note that there are some fun couloir climbs that should be in great shape about now.

Here's a list of trip reports for a few McCall area outings. http://www.splattski.com/overview/idaho_ranges.html#lickcreek

March in the Sawtooths means sub-zero temperatures and loads of snow. Approaches all start at the highway, so plan on 5 miles or so just to get to the mountains. Here's a TR from a March trip in the valley: http://www.splattski.com/2009/casino/index.html Skiing in the Sawtooths lasts well into May (or even June). Here's an example: http://www.splattski.com/2010/parks/index.html

This is on SummitPost, from last week: http://www.summitpost.org/view_object.php?object_id=528215&confirm_post=16&obj_name=Add+another+Image++to+Borah+Peak+

We did the traverse in late July, 2002 as part of a bigger event. We did the red line on S. Sister, and it wasn't nearly as bad as it looked. TR includes a separate page for each peak. North Sister (our first of the traverse) is here: http://www.splattski.com/2002/peak_week/north.html

You can also approach from the other side, which follows water the whole way and allows a much less lightning-exposed campsite: http://www.summitpost.org/route/160092/southwest-couloir-route.html

On November 8, we climbed White Cap Peak which is about five summits south of Borah. There isn't a lot of snow, and only some of it is consolidated (right under the lip of the cornices). You an see Borah nicely from the summit of White Cap. Trip report: http://www.splattski.com/2008/white_cap/index.html

The Willow Creek cam is also good: http://birice.vaisala.com/photos/02DA39EF_05C41D33_cam1.jpg

http://www.network54.com/Forum/105717/message/1210647833/Borah+Peak+-+NF+Direct

It's a 9 mile ski to Slick Rock. McCall currently has over 3' of snow on the ground. I've not been to Slick this year, but based on previous experience would expect a large (4-8') wall of snow standing perpendicular to the rock where the avalanches break.

I did this many years ago on skate skis. The road down was an icy skating rink- without metal edges, scary. Then I skied *past* Devil's to hook into a series of rising meadows heading sort of NW back onto the main south-side route. At some point I took off the skis and hiked to the summit in my skating boots. When I got back to my skis, the snow had softened enough that I could tele back down, taking a shortcut that got a bit brushy as I approached the Green lakes trailhead. This was a very long day, and skating back up the hill to the ski area about killed me... YMMV

Actually, the tram only ran from Government Camp to Timberline. It opened in 1951 and closed two years later. It was very slow. This comes from "Mount Hood, A Complete History." An excellent book for Hood trivia, but out of print.

My old man tells the same story- Dad worked for Darr in the 1940s-50s and was on the ski patrol. As I recall, they also got a quart of milk. People have been married on the summit. Someone rode a bicycle there. And there used to be a lookout, of which you can still see remnants when the snow is low..