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moderate XC suggestions?


forrest_m

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Looking for a good place to take an out of town guest x-c skiing tomorrow. Not interested in a groomed or maintained area. Criteria:

 

- accessible with 2-WD low clearance

- below treeline

- some road or trail but also offers opportunities for “skiing off through the woods”

- has something interesting to look at, like waterfalls, gorges, etc. With this weather, pursuing big views will probably be a waste of time.

- Some opportunity for gentle turns is ok, but we’ll be on touring skis, not telemark gear.

 

I had been thinking about something like Jumbo Mt. up by Salmon le Sac, but with the snow level so low, I’m thinking maybe there’s something closer to Seattle? TIA

 

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The MT Catherine loop has many places to take off into the woods. From Windy Pass turn left up the gentle clear cut or woods towards Silver Peak or right to Nordic Pass and a nice tour folowing the blue dimonds thru the woods. If you take a left at Windy pass and cross the creek you can explore the woods on the other side. It's common access on the groomed road to Windy Pass (FREE). If you have a snow park permit Blewit Pass has an area that's off limits to snomows.

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It has been a long time since I've been up there, but I bet this would still be a good, easy tour: from the Gold Creek snowpark, head up the road on the W side of the Gold Creek valley and it will turn left, then climb up to a knob on a subsidiary of Kendall Ridge. This is all clearcut, but here you get to an overlook viewing the pass and the ski areas. Then head up hill and left and you'll end up on a frozen lake in the woods, and I believe it is a reasonably easy climb to the second lake but it seems to me that the climb to the third lake may be rather steep.

 

If you don't like clearcuts, you more quickly enter big timber in Commonwealth Basin. Approach through the private ski area accross the street from the Washington Alpine Club (they will yell at you and threaten to call the police for tresspassing) or approach from the back road off the north side of the highway there at the first Snoqualmie Pass exit but this way, you will have a short but somewhat difficult climb up a steep hill with thick second (third?) growth trees. In the basin, there are lots of big trees and a couple of frozen waterfalls.

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