[TR] Davis Peak - South Route - Skiers Variation 04/23/2025

[geosean]

Trip: Davis Peak - South Route - Skiers Variation

Trip Date: 04/23/2025

Trip Report:

After reading this recent TR on a skiable route to Davis Peak in the NCNP we had to give it a try. My buddies and I had attempted Davis in January of '22 so we knew what we were getting into with the approach, but a skiable route to the summit that avoided the difficult scramble near the summit sounded awesome, plus it's always great to do a 3000' bushwhack with skis on your back. So the next time we were too sick to work but not too sick to go skiing we hit it up, Wed the 23rd.

The bushwhack is bad, but not terrible, there is little undergrowth, just deadfall so it's mostly just navigating. Above 2600' it gets much better. The track Ryan Stoddard and Nick Roy posted is pretty much perfect, when we deviated from it by more than 30’ we regretted it.

We hiked to the start of a boulderfield at 4200’ before we could start skinning, which was a bit farther than optimal, but not much, the 4000'-4200’ traverse below cliffs was postholing intermittently, so not ideal.

Above 4200’ we cruised on firm snow, making great time skinning. The route up is straight forward hooking around to the west and up to the summit.

We didn’t spend long on the summit as the snow was calling, naturally the skiing was over WAAAY too fast and we had to swap out for shoes and walk down, down, down.

12 hours after we started we were back at the car for a hot beer (not used to this spring thing yet). It was a nice route, rugged for sure, but an amazing peak in a spectacular position with views from an interesting angle into the Snowfield group and the southern pickets. Everyone should go do this!

 

Ryan has a GPX on NWHikers

 

No snow in sight, lets get it!

 

Dylan and the Pickets.

Gear Notes:
Ski gear. Carried avy, axe, crampons. Dark clothes, the forest is sooty, I found work gloves to be nice for the deadfall and burned forest.

Approach Notes:
Park at the Gorge Creek overlook, at the east bridge abutment there is a trail up, go up.