The Sheep Lake Couloir is one of the main gems out of the Crystal Mountain Ski Resort Southback. It’s an aesthetic line that runs down the face of Shepard Peak over 1000 feet to Sheep Lake below. It is a decently long distance to make it out to the area so it is usually a spring touring mission. With clear weather and great snow Ben, John, Boot and I decided to head out there on New Years Day. Being the start of winter it was cold and the daylight was short but what we lost in time would be made up by the quality of snow.

Snowboarding into Crystal Lakes Basin

We started around first light making our way through Silver Basin. We wanted to be out of the area before ski patrol was potentially bombing the Southback. It was a brutally cold day as we were moving. Even the sun wouldn’t warm us up and we put on layer after layer. Making our way up to the edge of Silver Basin we didn’t wait long before descending into Crystal Lakes. It was just to cold to stand around. Within minutes of being on top we were dropping in to perfectly spaced trees and bottomless powder.

We followed the sun as we made our way down near the shade line. The sun was slowly rising above the mountains of Crystal Lakes basin being so low on the horizon. Fortunately the route we choose would not be in the shadows as we rode as far as we could across the flats.

Climbing up Crystal Peak Towards the Sheep Lake Couloir

Climbing up Crystal Peak we decided not to mess around with skinning and just boot pack straight up. Though the snow was soft it was a bit wind packed which made for excellent steps. Once someone had put in the original effort it would be easy for everyone else. So the skis went on the backpack and I lead the way up attempting to keep warm on the south face.

Arriving on the low col of Crystal Peak it was time to get moving. Hanging out for a few minutes we took our skis off the packs and back on our feet. If the plan worked out smoothly there would be no more bootpack. We were within 30 minutes of our main descent of the day.

After wrapping around the west face of Shepard Peak we were on the summit and minutes from dropping in. Careful not getting to close to a cornice we were looking down into Crystal Lakes and our previous run. It was a stunningly clear day and you could see all the way into the North Cascades.

Snowboarding into the Sheep Lake Couloir

After a few minutes of transitioning we were standing on our boards and looking into the line. I was used the Sheep Lake Couloir later in the season when the snowpack was at its deepest.

Since it was the first day of January the line was quite a bit more narrow but amazing looking. It still had the main features that I had come to love but best of all it was powder top to bottom.

After a game of “who wants to go first?” I was dropping in. As we had thought it was dry and sheltered snow all the way down to Sheep Lake. It had been worth all the effort to get out there early in the season and ride the Sheep Lake Couloir.

John dropped in as I was riding down the lower apron and was in a safe space. The slope was quite stable as there was no sluff at all even though it was steep. Before long we were racing into the sunlight and taking a quick break before yet another climb.

Time to Head Back Towards the Crystal Mountain Southback

We had two options as we made our way out of Sheep Lake Basin. Either we could head up to Sourdough Gap or the other past east. Sourdough would be a faster route while the east slope would be bigger. We looked at our watches and decided we had more than enough time as we put in the skin track to the east.

Soon enough we were back out of the sun and into the shade. The temperature dropped almost immediately as we started making our turns towards Placer Lake. Below us was over 1,500 feet of wide open north facing slopes as we charged down racing the sunset.

The bowl was big enough for each of us to have our own tracks. Looking back up you could see the different personalities by the tracks they had left behind. By now it was starting to get dark so after a quick look back we were heading towards Morse Creek Basin.

Sunset Over Crystal Mountain From Dogleg Peak

It was a race against the sun as we climbed towards the summit of Dogleg Peak. Fortunately this was a climb that I had done so many times in the past. It is a easy route to get lost on with the thick forest down low. Fortunately we were back near the summit as the last of the light dipped under the horizon.

Looking off to the east the moon was almost full and we could see the shadow of Rainier. It’s a stunning sight as the mountain rises over 7000 additional feet and leaves a pyramid shaped line on the horizon. If you didn’t know what it was it would be quite confusing.

Looking down towards Crystal Mountains we were excited for the line below. Knowing it would be good powder we transitioned and raced the darkness. Being so late there was no reason for photos and before long it was dark. We had one final run down the Quicksilver groomer and we would be back to the car.

After transitioning we were making our final descent in the dark. We could see the light in the valley and we just pointed towards it. Though doing any of the previous lines in the dark would have been horrible we had just made it out in the nick of time.

In Conclusion

A few minutes later we were back at the car and driving back home enjoying the heaters. It had been a cold but amazing day and we had found the elusive Cascade Champagne. There were so many things that went perfect in the day and I’m very great full for a solid crew. It was the perfect mid winter day in the Crystal Mountain Backcountry.

Thank you for reading this trip out to the Sheep Lake Couloir. If you want to see more ski tours within Crystal Mountain Backcountry check out this link.