Sugested ski tours on SR20?

[chris]

Some friends are wanting us to go up to SR20 this weekend and do some ski tours and/or good descents. But no one has any ideas what's possible. Sugestions?

[mattp]

(1) Mt. Hardy is pretty good. It must be about a 3,000 foot run, south facing, and it is moderate in steepness but steep enough to really rip. I believe you park at "Swamp Creek," and head into the woods and stay generally up and left to treeline, with some crawling over logs. For some reason, we started on the right side of the stream and quickly crossed over left. The upper slopes lead pretty much directly to the summit, with about 50 feet of step-kicking. You may want to bear sligthly right (westward) for the lower part of the descent and come out about a mile down the road from where you start. But it's probably easier to find it the way I describe here.

 

(2) A classic highway 20 tour is Silver Star Mountain. If the snow is consolidated on N. Slopes, I'd recommend going up Burgundy Col, for 3000 feet of kicking steps. Then drop onto the glacier and ski up right to it's head. The run down is great, and the bowl into Silver Star Creek is good too. You'll find it nasty going out Silver Star Creek but it isn't far. You end up 5 miles down the road. This is a fairly full day for most parties, but not at all unreasonable if you are experienced and even reasonably fit. I'm not sure this would be a good tour for the snowboarder, because there may be too much flats involved, but it is a scenic ski tour with one of the areas highest peaks involved if you can scramble class 3 rock with snow on it in your ski boots.

 

(3) The broad gully directly above the hairpin below S. Early Winter Spire is a great run, right next to the road. It's a good, straight up - straight down shot, and may have a staircase of foot steps already in place. If you have extra energy, you can drop into Copper Creek on the other side of the little peaklet above and left at the top of the gully. If you do this, then climb out the end of Copper Creek to get back into creek leading down to the hairpin, you'll have done the "Birthday Tour," one of the areas more famous day trips.

 

(4) The South Slope of Cutthroat is another roadside run that is quite nice. There's usually a wide spot where you can park and look directly accross at it. If the lower slopes are not bare, it is a good and straight forward trip.

 

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[klenke]

This pic kind of shows the run for Mt. Hardy (and where you'd park). Swamp Creek is sort of in a canyon when it nears the freeway. If you happen to still be on its north side when returning to the road, you'll find yourself in some steep sidehill forested terrain. Crossing to the south side before proceeding to the highway would be better.

[mattp]

Coming down from Mt. Hardy, I don't think you'll hit Swamp Creek but, as I said, veer right (west) down low and end up in a small drainage that runs of the center of Hardy's S. Face (rather than Swamp Creek). You could go up that way, too, but you may or may not find it right off.

[chris]

Thanks for the beta - you guys rock!