TR: March Radness in the PNW

[pipedream]

"Spring Break is not a period of time, but rather a state of mind." - Unknown

When most folks hear the phrase "spring skiing" they think of warm, cloudless days on sun-softened snow, a beach-like atmosphere at the base and maybe a few daring bikini-clad babes and shirtless dudes ripping around. When folks in the PNW hear it, they think snow and lots of it. That might be because March is the best month of the year to slide downhill in this corner of the country. Lines are filled-in, the days get longer and the snow just keeps on stacking. Sometimes it comes down a little wetter than whiter, but that helps sandwich everything together and preserve the snowpack into late spring, an effect locally referred to as the snow sponge. On average, our snowpack reaches its maximum depth right around the first day of spring.

Despite an abysmally late start to the ski season, this March proved to be no different. It was the wettest March ever in Seattle, which on its own is impressive, but moreso on the heels of one of the snowiest Februarys in the Cascades on record. As if to apologize for the dry December and slow January, Ullr dumped foot after foot (sometimes multiple a time), with just enough clearing between storms to allow for some settlement and good visibility. Of course, there was plenty of storm riding to go around, too. It wouldn't be a classic PNW powder day if it wasn't > 30F and puking white stuff from the sky.

This TR begins on March 1st, when I ventured into the Stevens Pass backcountry with a coworker to examine the results of a massive slide triggered by 40 lbs. of explosive delivered via helicopter:



The slide hit Lk. Susan Jane so hard that it cracked the ice and displaced the water beneath, significantly dropping the lake level and exposing a massive crack along its perimeter:



So, the weak layer from late Jan. was there. And with enough force, catastrophically reactive. As the snow began to stack, decisions were made to stay inside the ropes for a bit and let the stability play its course. Sunday, March 2nd was spent lapping powder in the afternoon at Hyak, the furthest east of the Summit at Snoqualmie's base areas. The resort was a ghost town, as the state DOT shut down the pass in the early afternoon to do routine avalanche control work, something they'd been doing almost daily for the previous 2+ weeks. The following Monday, March 3rd, I celebrated the anniversary of bursting forth from between my mother's knees over 16" of new, albeit heavy snow, in Stevens Pass.

The snow levels slid up and down for the remainder of that first week of March. I'm sure my boss was happy to hear it was raining above 4000' because he knew I'd be in the office actually getting things done for a change. The first weekend of March was a washout, with a warm tropical river (aka pineapple express) dumping inches of rain up to 8k. Crystal Mountain's ski patrol lowered a 25 lbs. bomb on a saucer sled the following Monday and with a single boom, wiped-out an iconic chairlift older than the resort itself:



The skies cleared and the daytime temperatures spiked, sending snow safety contingents into high alert after Monday's massive avalanche. A popular line out the lower gate at Alpental underwent its annual climax to the smooth rock below:



Tensions were high amongst the skiing community but fortunately as the weekend approached the freezing level dropped and complements of the Puget Sound Convergence Zone, the passes picked-up substantial new snow heading into the weekend. A foot of new fell overnight between Friday, March 14th and Saturday, March 15th. St. Patrick had done it again, delivering a fresh dump just in time for his annual holiday. With ski lessons over and most minds scarred from the week's earlier events, nobody seemed to notice the new snowfall and I eeked in a handful of laps without crossing a single track, riding straight onto the chair after each run down Stevens' backside:



As quickly as it came in, the tide went out. Snow levels rose just shy of 6k overnight and ski areas were reporting rain from top-to-bottom. However, by the late afternoon of Sunday, March 16th they began to plummet, dipping below 3k by the time the lifts shut down at Alpental. With Alpental closed on Mondays, things were shaping-up nicely for a legendary Fat Tuesday:



Tuesday, March 18th did not disappoint. While there was a firm bottom underneath, the top of the padded seats of chair 2 received upwards of 18" since Sunday's closing bell and an impressive 8" at the bottom. After shaking-off my hangover from the previous night's faux-Irish revelry, I caught the 4th chair to the top and was not disappointed when the ropes dropped into the legendary back bowls by lunch:



The following Thursday, however, was even better - esp. for being the first day of spring. Another 16" fell overnight Wed. at the top and another 8" at the bottom. On top of Tuesday's leftovers, the conditions felt bottomless and upright, good enough for an earlier opening of both the upper mtn and backcountry gates. The only thing lighter than the crowd was the snow and the sun made an appearance for just long enough to afford excellent visibility without turning the snow into glue:



On the heels of what was possibly the best day at Alpental of the season came a week of fair weather. En route to Mazama for a day of heli-served riding w/ North Cascade Heli, we stopped at Stevens Pass on Saturday, March 22nd for what we expected to be a few spring-y groomer laps. We were surprised to find plenty of knee-deep leftovers in the usual sidecountry locations:



Finally, the day I'd been waiting years for had come. Time to get in a bird and send it in the North Cascades. Conditions were superb, with bluebird skies overhead and knee-to-waist blower underfoot. For the hefty price tag of a grand a head, three coworkers and I bagged 8 laps totaling over 15k vert on an iconic spring powder day. It was everything I'd dreamed it could be and more:











And that's all I have left to say about that. Less than a week later and it was time for the annual Mt. Baker Splitfest. While everywhere else in the Cascades was getting rained on, at Baker it was 34F at snowing sideways:



With questionable stability we played it safe in the trees above Swift Creek all weekend, nailing great lap after great lap. Some would argue that there isn't much turning to be had back there, but with the snow as thick as it was you couldn't turn anyways:





After picking-up 24" in 24 hours, the clouds parted after the lifts stopped turning on Sunday. On the drive down from Heather Meadows, the clouds lifted from Mt. Shuksan providing a fitting conclusion to an utterly rad month in the Cascades. Here's to hoping April will be just as good, maybe we'll even get some of that "spring skiing" that the rest of the world is talking about.

[Mike Pow]

Fabulous read and watch. Thanks.

[tjb]

Way to spread the stoke! Thanks for the write up.

[LightRanger]

great stuff.

[pipedream]

For some, that is all that matters.

Say what you will about a slow start, thin coverage, sh!tty conditions and grooming, but the handful of weekdays I've had at Alpental in Feb. and March have been enough to convince me to renew my pass for next season

[meter-man]

Great TR. Thanks.

[cuseo]

This is a fantastic TR! You rock. I think you got a sweet deal on the heli-skiing (seriously), a day like that is *priceless*

I was feeling pretty confident about moving back to CO from WA this winter but I felt a faint longing while reading your thread. There's nothing quite like the PNW, and you nailed it with this thread (the wets and drys, if you will).

[raisingarizona13]

Dang. The PNW terrain looks so freaking dope. That Alpental chair lift shot is awesome. Someday I will get there.