danhelmstadter Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Trip: Mt. Shuksan - West Face - ski Date: 2/21/2009 Trip Report: This truely was a sick descent in several ways. The face was 90% covered in shallow powder, and second - I had a pretty bad cold; I mention that not in narrsasistic glory, but rather to tell it how it was. After chugging some cough syrup and sudafed I set out from the White Salmon lot around 5:00am and skinned up to hemispheres in the windless dawn, then skinned the arm for a ways to the point where you can drop past lake Anne (2k from lot). I could see a shadowy west face, storeing it's goods in the cold. beta view of most of face I skiied firm south faceing slopes, crusty and powy east slopes down the 2k to the valley bottom. The crux of the face was low down on it, as it is cliffy there. From far off it looked as though I would have to negotiate a rockband, however no such shenanagins were required. (approaching from lower slopes in the morn) I found powder as I made my way up through the steep lower portion. I had memorized what might be a possible way through the rockband earlier from the arm. I wound up through a chute which led to a shelf, where I found a hidden diagonal ramp leading to another chute which led to the broder slopes above, I found powder in all of it except the diagonal ramp which was faceing south and therefore a little cruty. (looking down from above the cliffy section from later in the day) I continued up following lookers right as best as I could so as to stay in the shadow of the high rocky ridge on the right. Pow was to be found in the north faceing shadow of this ridge. I did stray from fall line here and there as required by various rock features. (mid face) About three quarters of the way up there was about 500 to a k of slightly wind affected snow, here, the wind affect was magnified around small terrain features - where I found some isolated shallow windslab that was very reactive. As I climbed higher and higher, the pow got phater and fater. Winds were light, and the sun was bright. the views were nice I contemplated crossing the broad flat platue to the summit pyramid; however the slopes of the pyramid were looking thin, and I still had to skin up 2k to get back up the arm, so I topped out above the face at around 7.9k. 4.3K of powder awaited me directly below. The turns down were ripper high speed big arcs for the most part. There were a few spots which were a little many due to wind/sun crust, but for the most part - the entire face was 4-8 inch powder. The face (except for the lower cliffy section) was not as steep as the North Face (tr from 2.7.09 zoom for tracks I was surprised at how little my previously "bad" cold had adversely affected me, despite constantly blowing snot rockets, feeling "weird" and my ears unable to pressurize, It had not been that difficult of a hardship to endure. The funky felling grew and I thought I saw ski tracks and people skiing slopes in areas where when I looked closer - it was just a tree, or a wind feature in the snow. The light was getting lower, and I quit oggeling my line, and trying to decipher imaginary ski tracks elsewhere, and skinned in high gear for the 2k from the valley floor at 3.6 up to the arm at 5.6k. The snow in many areas was a little wet down low, so it made fur superb skin gripping. I made the arm as the sun silouetted Baker, and followed it a little ways west where I could get as stragiht of a 2k north faceing pow line as I could back to the lower lot, which I made in low light. I love this high pressure - a gift from the cousin of Urll, but I'm stoked about the storms in the forecast! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
G-spotter Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 this is on the SW face, to the right of the Curtis glacier? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
powderhound Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 What is the grade/name of that ice flow in the middle of the second to last photo? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
danhelmstadter Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 G-spotter - yea it's the next face over to lookers right of the curtis cirque. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thenormanator Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 a cold? that is pretty weak man, try pneumonia for 3 months while climbing/skiing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AllYouCanEat Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Awesome Dan! Way to kill it. I'm so happy to see that line get skied again. It holds a special place in my heart. This and curtis blow, you're a lucky bastard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mzchristy Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Awesome TR Dan!! That looks like an amazing ski I hope you're feeling better! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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