danhelmstadter Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 Trip: Shuksan - northwest couloir Date: 2/8/2010 Trip Report: Taken in the clear afternoon The weather looked questionable as I woke, better than the day before, but there were still clouds. I left the WS parkinglot around 9, and advanced towrds a dark cloud enshrouded Shuksan, in otherwise partly cloudy skys. I had hopes that the weather would clear, as the forecast seemed to indicate for the day from the last time I checked it some days before. I decided to skin up the White Salmon Glacier -- and drop the couloir from the top, as I was weary from the days before, and confident enough in the absense of ice in the exposed upper portion of the couloir... I was relieved when the dark clouds cleared and revealed the beast. Clouds once again wafted in, as I gained the upper Curtis Glacier, and I traveresed the upper Hanging Glacier to the couloir entrance in a almost complete white out. There I waited for perhaps an hour, slowly loseing hope that the clouds would clear -- and they did! I skiied the upper section very gingerly, because I had noticed some reavtive shallow windslab on my traverse of the hanging glacier, and the entrance was no place to get caught in a slide. I found and avoided some windslab, and ice... Snow conditions at the couloir entrance were stable slabby windpack. My knees were shakeing a little as I stared down the exposure below giveing quick considerations to possible slabs or ice... The exposed traverse did have a touch of shallow ice crust, but it was neither a problem or all that difficult to negotiate. Very good snow conditions existed in most of the couloir, although I practiced sluff managment, as I was knocking down quite a bit of snow with every large turn, so I got out of it's way by evadeing fall line after a few turns. looking at the entrance tracks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pilchuck71 Posted February 10, 2010 Share Posted February 10, 2010 You are my hero Dan! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-rock Posted February 11, 2010 Share Posted February 11, 2010 It's crazy to check in here and see the lines people ski. Looking at Shuksan, I never would have guessed that line got skied, ever. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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