Patarero

Standard south side pearly gates were decent on 6/1. Clouds and cool breeze kept it cool, stayed solid all morning. Should be some creamy turns off the top through the old chute this weekend though.

NWAC is your friend. Looked like a PDXer went up this past weekend. Go up the 80/8040 if you go, you will be closer and might be able to hitch a ride on a sled.

Sad situation. Curious if the "beacon" was a spot.

Chill dude, nothing against you. BS answer from the forest circus. In January the reason for the closure was that the "road could not support wheeled vehicles", now they say it is because of logging. Logging that has been ongoing all winter during the week. Not on the weekends.

This is a BS answer. Earlier this winter the gate was open from Friday at noon through Monday morning. We were able to drive to the cold springs trail head around New years, so I can guarantee it is drive-able now with clearance and 4x4. The full closure started mid January. I have not seen logging ops going on up there on the weekends at all this winter. In any event, you can get closer to cold springs by going in from the mid point of the snipe trail, which you can drive to. 2 miles as the crow flies, but you have to go over the lava bed. Perhaps if enough people voice some complaints about access maybe we could get the weekends back. We ran the buck creek loop yesterday, no snow was observed.

For a guy @ 6ft @ 200# I wouldn't go any shorter than 178, unless the skis are just for approach and not for enjoying the down. 90-100 underfoot (more float on the down, more grab on the up; trade off between weight, friction , etc.). Something with camber to deal with ice on the down, rockered skis suck on the up. Leashes, tech binders w/o brakes, ski crampons, dynafit/scarpa/La sportiva boots. My 2cents.

You should be fine given the below avg snow pack, however there is a hairpin turn that goes into a shaded north facing slope that might make it dicey. Skinning and hiking from FR23 sounds sadistic. Only other way would be to go up another trail to the south and hook into the round the mountain trail and go north. Lots of goats in that area... Roads in the GPNF are typically 'closed' due to downed trees and patches of deep snow that are impassable with a sedan. So you might have a 35yrd patch of deep snow with miles of clear road on the other side from you.

Would guess mid to late June this year. Think killen is the easiest/shortest.

Yeah road is probably in the best condition that has been in the past few years. Water bars are marked with flagging or at least they were. I would not hesitate to take my impreza up there if my truck were not available. I did find a jetta with a hole in the oil pan over near stagman a couple weekends ago.

Found some "gear" way lookers left of the old chute yesterday (31 Mar2013) a few hundred feet down. Give me a holla if you lost something up there.

Enough that it will be another week or two at least before its melted out.

Looking for someone to climb with in the gorge area. After work local (bulo, french's, etc) or weekends longer range (smith, vantage). Usual partner gone for summer. Lead sport and mix 5.8,5.9. Follow easy to mod 5.10. Have rack and a couple ropes.