Skiing Baker

[salbrecher]

Trying to plan a ski trip to Baker but my last exam isn't until the 13th of June , just wondering how late in the season Baker is usually skiable till(if even in June)? Would crevasses be a problem skiing unroped that late? Oh ya planning on skiing the Coleman Demming.

[Stagger_E]

You can ski year round on Baker. And you can ski just about any peak in June. Check Burgdorfer's book. Cravasses a problem only if you ski into one in the cloudy drizzle of a June afternoon.

[mattp]

I agree with Stagger about the "season" for Baker -- year 'round sking can be had there. As to skiing unroped, you will have to decide for yourself. There have been several discussions about the safety of travelling unroped on a glacier on this board and the only real conclusion that can be drawn is that people fall into crevasses some times. In June, you are likely to see some sagging bridges over some of the larger crevasses but you should realize that a tiny crevasses is enough to break your leg while skiing (as a friend of mine learned on Mount Ruth, one spring day many years ago). Many back-country skiers are be comfortable taking that chance, but don't completely dismiss the danger. Have fun and pay attention.

[Norm]

I’ve skied Baker in June (Coleman-Deming, Easton, Squawk) on several occasions and never needed to rope up for the ski down. Make sure to mark any hazards on the way up and you should be fine. If you’re worried about crevasses the route up between the Easton and Squawk glaciers is fairly benign. I skied it last year around Memorial Day and didn’t bother taking the rope out of the pack.

[JERRY_SANCHEZ]

My partner fill in up to his neck last February and we were'nt roped up. It was a low snow year but anything can happen so be careful...

[dbb]

It seems like if you know the route's crevasses well and you wand or mark gapers, you should be fine for most of the year. As I recall, last year around that time (well, memorial day) there were tons of skiers unroped and very few (one?) open crevasse on route.

That said, the conditions play a huge factor in how safe it would be to ski. We came down in hot slushy conditions and poked through no less than 5 times (4 of us), one time up to the armpits. We were, of course, on foot, but it's something to think about even on skis. Be careful traversing too, esp. around 7,000 on the coleman-demming. There are big ones there just off the "track".

Have fun