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[TR] Mt Elinor - Elinor Couloir 2/4/2013


chris

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Trip: Mt Elinor - Elinor Couloir

 

Date: 2/1/2013

 

Trip Report:

Just a quick TR and road condition report. Skied Mt Elinor on Friday with DF in surprisingly good conditions. 4 miles of the 7 mile drive to the lower trailhead was passable, adding a small amount of time. Since neither of us had been here before, we followed the lower trailhead along the ridge, then traversed across into the meadow. Climbing up the couloir was a mix of skinning and booting. The summit was so iced up that we opted to boot the last few hundred feet, and I was glad I hadn't brought the dogs along. The skiing from the summit was a great mix of hard and softened crust all the way to the bottom of the couloir - the remaining skiing through the trees was a mix of crust and soft with a lot of tree debris mixed in. A real typical PNW descent. Three miles of road skiing led back to the car.

 

Next time, I'll continue on the road past the lower trailhead to the first drainage, then head up along the left edge of the clear cut into the trees. From there I'd climb steadily up and right until I reach the rib that the higher trailhead follows, join that trail, and continue as I did Friday.

 

Its a fascinating area, with a lot of potential to explore and none of the traffic that I've grown accustomed to in the Cascades.

Edited by chris
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Thanks. Are two lanes passable or just one? The last time I skied it, the top bowl was worth a few short laps but spring climbers crowded the chute.

 

Yes, fascinating. Supposedly there once was a ski cabin at Flapjack Lakes so I've been curious about touring around the Gladys Divide, playing around Mt Gladys and the Black and White Lakes. Or, approaching from Staircase, climbing over Needle Pass (might as well climb Cruiser) and returning via Mildred Lakes on a multi-day ski tour. Challenging approaches from either direction (I'd certainly lose my way :blush:) and unlikely for the stars to align with perfect avy, weather, etc conditions but fun to dream about. Perhaps this is why the ski cabin never worked out...not worth the maintenance.

 

Also wondered if anyone has skied any of the inner peaks accessed via the Dry Creek Trail? Or approached Cooper Mountain from Mt Rose's backside with skis??

 

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