Sahale Mountain via the Doubtful Lake Gullies is one of the most scenic lines in the North Cascades of Washington. Once the road is melted out enough on Cascade Pass road it is one of the best easy access mountains around. With a semi mellow climb up the Sahale Arm and a few steep steps you have a sweeping view of the North Cascades and North Cascades National Park.
Highway 20 and the North Cascades Ski Tours
Burly terrain and more isolation around every turn makes the North Cascades off Highway 20 hold some of the most remote mountains in the lower 48 and gave me gives both Splitboarders and Skiers endless options. Here is a through list of my explorations in the relatively unknown.
Frisco Mountain in the North Cascades
Frisco Mountain is one of the numerous options off of Rainy Pass to the southeast. While it would be a great ski during Midwinter the road doesn’t open until mid April. With Highway 20 just opening we made our way up the road and set up camp next to the snowpack. After riding Black Peak the previous day we were looking for another option in the area. Studing the map we decided that Frisco Mountain would be a great option. We would get to check out some new mountains right from camp. Being a nice looking northwest face hopefully we would also get some good turns all the way back to Highway 20.
Black Peak via the South Face
Black Peak is one of the bigger lines off of Highway 20. At 8,975 feet it is the 20th highest Peak in Washington State. Being in close proximity from Rainy Pass it is popular with both hiker and skiers. With an open south face the drains towards Bridge Creek it is a great ski run. The north face runs towards Fisher Basin and is much more remote. With the opening of Highway 20 for the season Joe Bell and I decided to make our way north.
The Suiattle Traverse of the American Alps Part 3
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The Suiattle Traverse is a high route from Holden Village near Glacier Peak Wilderness to the White Chuck Road. Over 4 days this was the third part of a continuous traverse of the North Cascades from Highway 20 to Glacier Peak. Being the 11th day of our trip we had just finished both the Isolation Traverse and the Extended Ptarmagin Traverse. By now we were exhausted and racing against a forecast that promised rain for the foreseeable future. We had four solid days to complete the Suiattle Traverse and in the end finish off the American Alps Traverse. This section would link up Stevens Pass to the Sauk River to the South and the Pickets Traverse to the North. In the large scale this trip would tick off a huge chunk of our goal to traverse from Mount Rainier to Mount Baker.
Extended Ptarmagin Traverse American Alps Part 2
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The Extended Ptarmagin Traverse is a ski tour from Cascade Pass through Glacier Peak Wilderness to Holden Village over 7 days in Washington State. Traveling through the Cascade Crest it passes through some of the more isolated Mountains within the Cascades. While the standard Ptarmagin Traverse ends at Downey Creek this is an extension that reaches Railroad Creek. Roughly the route is around 45 miles with numerous climbs along the way. This was the second section of the American Alps Traverse and linked both the Isolation Traverse to the north and the Suiattle Traverse to the south. This route was pioneered by Lowell Skoog via Miners Ridge but we decided to make a different route heading through Bannock Lakes.
The Isolation Traverse American Alps Part 1
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The Isolation Traverse is a ski tour from Highway 20 in the North Cascades National Park to the Cascade River Road over 4 days in Washington State. Usually the trip starts at the Eldorado Trail Head we started at the Pyramid Lake Trail head as this was part 1 of the American Alps Traverse.
The Concept of the American Alps Traverse
The American Alps Traverse was something Jason Hummel had talked about over the years. Season after season we had gained experience doing ski traverses but this was something I would just laugh it off. It seemed like a mission beyond what I could/wanted to do as it entailed endless sidehilling, massive backpacks and bushwhacking. The stars would align in the Spring of 2014 with an email we both received from Forrest Mcbrian. With a subject stating “Let’s go for it guys” Jason was already hook in and kept trying to persuade me to join.
Soon enough I gave in and we set plans to head out in May. It wasn’t until 2 weeks before the trip that Forest bailed for a Ranger job on Denali and it was now just Hummel and I. The goal was to do a single push from Highway 20 to Glacier Peak following the Cascade Crest. The whole concept of it was created by Lowell Skoog many years before and attempted a few times but never done in its entirety.
Mount Logan via the Douglas Glacier
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Mount Logan in the North Cascades was the final peak I needed to snowboard to complete the 9000 foot peaks in Washington state. Jason Hummel and I came up with a plan to camp at the base of it and climb and ride Mount Logan via the Douglas Glacier. Here is the trip report below.
It all started 3 years ago. A random invite landed me right into the heart of the North Cascades heading up Cascade River road. The previous year my focus had been on riding volcanoes and I was looking for a taste of something different so I jumped at the chance to go ride the North Face of Buckner Mountain. What the peaks lacked in elevation they made up for in personality. Over the years I was fortunate to travel to numerous deep valleys in the North Cascades and each one had a different feel. Logan was the last in a project that slowly came together in mid-June 2012.
Picket Range Splitboard Traverse
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It all started with a near death experience. The last time I attempted a ski traverse of the Picket Range, I slept–alone– within 100 feet of a debris pile that nearly killed me. Last time, I chose, three days into a six day trip, to bail after almost losing my life to a skier-triggered slide that poured down on me from above.
Last time, I hadn’t trusted the snow. It was warm enough that things were heating up quickly, but it had been cold enough recently that the snowpack was far from isothermic. In my opinion we were toying with spring conditions on top of winter layer cake. Constantly triggering loose, wet point releases was fine, but when those had started to step down to a deeper layer, causing full-on wet slabs, things started to get scary for me. Having one such wet slab miss me thanks to a serendipitously-placed boulder, well, that was an experience that screamed, “lucky,” and I didn’t want to stick around to find out if there would be many more second chances.
My route had been slightly different than that of Jason and Forest: they were on skis, and I was on a board. Jason had said that a snowboard, “just wasn’t the tool for the job.” We snowboarders–and splitboarders– often do look at terrain differently: traversing doesn’t hold quite the appeal that it might two our two-planked compadres, and sometimes slashing and spraying is more of our style than a series of hop turns. Nonetheless, despite my slightly alternate micro-route-finding techniques, I knew that a splitboard was actually the perfect tool for the job of traversing the Picket range. But that, for everyone’s safety, it made more sense to return with a few like-minded men (or women, though is often the sad reality of my life, more men turned up eager for the job), who also happened to be on snowboards.
Jack Mountain via Nohokomeen Glacier Headwall
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I first set my eyes upon Jack Mountain and the Nohokomeen Glacier Headwall when I was attempting the retreat of the Picket Range. I was attempting to do what took two days of travel back in one long push. Making my way up to Sourdough Ridge I decided to take a water break. I’d gone to use my stove but it wouldn’t work. There was fuel and it had been working earlier, but it just wouldn’t work any more. Quickly I realized I had no access to water, and all I could think was “here I am in the Pickets, alone and without water, good work Kyle”.
With this mindset I looked off to the East and saw the open slopes of Jack Mountain. From my vantage point I could see the Nohokomeen Glacier running down the north face. It looked awesome and I knew before long I wanted to make it out there.
Magic S Loop via Cascade Pass
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The Magic S Loop has been on my radar for a long time as it always seemed like a great ski tour. With both its proximity to Cascade Pass and the quality of lines it was only a matter of time. Being on the edge of North Cascades National park it offers steep and scenic runs. With a nice weather window and some time on our hands Jason Hummel and I made our way north. The plan originally was to have no plans but before long we were at the end of the road. Looking at options we had already skied numerous peaks in the area. One thing that we hadn’t done as a crew was the Magic S Loop. Things kind of fell together as it was a late start and before long it became our mission.