[TR] Rampart Ridge - Main Summit to Gold Creek 2/9/2010

[ilookeddown]

Trip: Rampart Ridge - Main Summit to Gold Creek

 

Date: 2/9/2010

 

Trip Report:

Today I skied a line off the main summit of Rampart Ridge. I started out at the Gold Creek just after 9am under blue skies. I trudged up the heavily used road under icy conditions. I took an old logging road after about a ½ mile that took me up to about 3k ft I left the road and toured up to the south shoulder of Rampart ridge to about 5360 ft. Snow conditions improved above 4k. I took the skins off and traversed north beneath cliffs and then skied down to Laura Lake at 4400 Ft.

 

Lake Laura with traverse and slope above

 

I strapped the ski to my pack and climbed up a drainage to Lake Lillian. I crossed the lake and the toured up to a col above the lake at 5370 ft

 

Col above Lake Lillian

 

Looking down from col to the south

 

Tree at col

 

From the col I had a short but beautiful ski down a north facing slope to a small pond.

 

Tracks down from col

 

From here I put the skins back on and headed for the summit of Rampart Ridge at 5810 ft.

 

Slope I skied and the summit of Rampart in the distance on my way up.

 

South summit of Rampart with some great looking mellow lines lines.

 

The ski from the summit was interesting. The snow was a bit sun affected. It was 1:15 at this point. After skiing a nice open slope I then made my way down around a few cliff bands and found myself on a shelf above some what seemed like large cliffs. I tried to traverse skiers left to a line I saw on my way up that I knew went through but it was a dead end and still too high to get to it. I usually don’t ski a line like this blind.

 

The dead end.

 

I found a suitable sapling and rappelled down to safer ground.

 

Rapelling down

 

Pulling the rope

 

The line I took. Red is the ski, yellow is the rappel and green is the way I should have gone. The main summit is not in view. It is behind the large rock face.

 

From here I had a great ski down to Gold Lake.

 

Looking back from Gold Lake.

 

From the lake the skiing started to suck. In a normal year and with good snow this would be a very enjoyable line but on this day it was a nasty, cliff riddled gully covered in avalanche debris for 1800ft. Toward the bottom I had had enough and decided the steep icy treed area would be more enjoyable. After getting spanked I opted for the brush covered sun crust slopes. By the time I mastered the sideslip things turned to breakable slush. Finally I hit the Gold Creek Trail and skated the mile back to my car where a ticket was waiting for me for not displaying the Sno Park Pass that was in my glove box.

 

Nasty Gully

 

Fun Brush

The tour was about 4400ft in elevation with just over 7 miles traveled.

 

Approximate Route

 

Gear Notes:

Touring Gear

Harness, 1.8mm 60m 1/2 rope

 

Ski and boot crampons not used

Edited February 10, 2010 by ilookeddown

[summitchaserCJB]

Sorry to nitpick, but I have never heard of a 1.8 mm 1/2 rope. 8.1 perhaps?

[ilookeddown]

Must have been an 8.1 because it was way too heavy to be a 1.8

[genepires]

I want some 1.8 mm rap lines! or is that shoestrings?

[plexus]

Very pretty. Funny but some of the most picturesque ski tours I have done ended up having the worst ski conditions at the time. I guess you do have to pay one way or another.

 

Sucks about the Sno-Park ticket. You can fight it though.