Stevens Pass in Washington

Mount Fernow Outside of Holden Village

Looking at the North Face of Mount Fernow outside of Holden Village
Looking at the North Face of Mount Fernow outside of Holden Village
Looking at the North face of Mount Fernow which we snowboarded down

Mount Fernow is a stunning and massive mountain on the Eastern Side of the North Cascades. Situated right above Holden Village it is one of the ten highest peaks in Washington State. Bordering both the Entiat River to the south and Railroad Creek to the north it offers numerous potential ski runs. With a summit elevation of 9,249 and with Holden being at 3,228 that means there is over 6,000 vertical feet to potentially ride. Knowing all of this Jason Hummel and I made plans to spend a week in the area to ride some of the bigger peaks around. This was the first mission of two that went down that week.




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Eightmile Lake Camp and Ski Tour by Icicle Creek

After scrolling through Google Earth for days on end I stumbled across Eightmile Lake. With North facing slopes almost 3000 vert off the directly from shores it would be great skiing. Being near Leavenworth and on the Eastern Side of the Cascades it would be a much colder climate. After a warm up during the week we hoped this side would still hold powder. With one final weekend in the Cascades my friends Ben, Scott, Seth and I went on an overnight camping mission.

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Rock Howard Mastiff Traverse

Looking at Rock Peak near Stevens Pass
Looking at Rock Peak near Stevens Pass
Looking at the Rock, Howard and Massif traverse near Stevens Pass

The Rock, Howard and Mastiff Traverse is a tour near Stevens Pass that links together some of the highest peaks. Starting from the Rock Mountain trailhead and ends at the Merritt Lake Trailhead. It’s a west to east ski traverse riding the southeast facing slopes of 3 of the biggest peaks on Nason Ridge. This was a tour both Scott and I had been thinking of doing for years. Finally the time came along when it was a early spring day with good snow. It was finally time to put together the topographical lines and see what the area had to offer.




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Monte Cristo Range Winter Ski Tour

Looking at Columbia Peak in the Monte Cristo Washington
Looking at Columbia Peak in the Monte Cristo Washington
Ski touring across Twin Lakes in the Monte Cristo

The Monte Cristo Range is a secluded area within the North Cascades of Washington state. While driving by the place going to Stevens Pass of to Highway 20 the area was of little attention. Though a few years earlier Scott McAlister and I had made our way out to Kyes Peak I never returned. Being earlier March we were looking through maps and trying to come up with a unique ski tour. Chatting with Scott he had checked out a route that he wanted to explore further. Soon enough we had come up with a plan to head to the area for a 3 day trip.


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Mount Stuart and the Cascadian Couloir Descent

Looking at the Cascadian Couloir on Mount Stuart
Looking at the Cascadian Couloir on Mount Stuart

Mount Stuart is one of the more stunning peaks within the Washington Cascades. On the North side it is near a vertical descent down to Mountaineers Creek while the south side it is covered in chutes that drop 4,200 feet to Ingalls Creek. Being early in the spring my friend Boot and I decided to head in for a run down the Cascadian Couloir. It was our hope that heading in late March we could potentially find powder snow. The plan would be a long single day push but if everything turned out right it would be a great day.


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Rock Mountain and May Powder on Stevens Pass

Looking back at our snowboard tracks
Looking back at our snowboard tracks
Climbing up Rock Mountain in the Stevens Pass Backcountry

With weather conditions looking dismal throughout the Cascades Scott and I decided to head up to Rock Mountain on Stevens Pass. Situated barely east of the cascade crest, the forecast in this region seemed the most promising. Once arriving at the trail we found it to be straight to the point. Exactly 99 switchbacks over a 5000 vertical foot gain led us directly towards the alpine. Within 2 hours we were skinning through snow-covered trees from Stevens Pass’s power-line, clear-cut and road-littered terrain below.

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A Comprehensive Tour of the Stevens Pass Corridor

Stevens Pass Backcountry Ski Tour

It’s not unusual to have the occasional spring storm here in the Cascades, but the past few weeks have been ridiculous. With cloudy skies and a few inches of fresh snow Scott (Ale Capone) and I opted to head into an area he was familiar with. The determining factor of the terrain we chose was that it had to be treed slopes for potential whiteout conditions. Our options for the immediate Stevens Pass area were Heather Ridge, Lichtenburg, Union and Jove Mountains. We opted to do all of them.

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Cannon Mountain in the Icicle Creek Area

Crossing Icicle Creek
Looking at the North Chute
Crossing Icicle Creek after snowboarding Cannon Mountain

Cannon Mountain and the Icicle Creek area right outside of Leavenworth, Washington, is in my opinion, a diamond in the rough. With peaks in every direction reaching over 8000′, and dry Eastern Washington snow, this area, though relatively unknown, is in many ways a backcountry mecca.

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