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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Location
    Bellingham WA
    Posts
    4

    19 April 2015 Goode Mtn NW couloir

    Don't post here much (jong!?), but appreciate the info sometimes available, and seems some of you guys might be interested in this line. Also, good BSing with BigSteve in the parking lot before we launched on this--hope you enjoyed the stellar weekend.

    Here in the Pac NW, the relatively early opening of SR20 has yielded a surprisingly good late ski season this year. The lower elevations generally suffer from below-avg snowpack; but the slightly above-mean precip totals for the Rainy Pass Snotel encouraged a look at Goode, which sports a lot of high N-facing relief to slake the ski-mountaineering thirst. I was hopeful that NW-facing aspects would hold acceptable snow on a weekend fraught with warming concerns. A view of Goode and Storm King as we crested the col SE of Black Peak:



    And a picture of the upper half of the face, courtesy of John Scurlock. We skied the NW couloir, which drops down from the high (8700’) NW col immediately right of the summit block--maybe half of the business district is visible:



    The NW col is a special place to collect your wits. A tall drink of cool water, the line below sports quite steep skiing for 1500+’, then another ~4000’ to our bivy in the hole of Bridge Creek. Recommended. And, with this week’s low-ish snow levels, sometime soon you folks might like to have a look at this and/or the line (east face/gully) Lani and teleross established to the east of the summit, back in our previous “worst ski year” of 2005.

    EZ-E joined me for this 3-day mission and adventure. Together we made a lot of good decisions, and a couple minor bad ones, and had a blast in a spectacular setting. We scored a supersweet bivy on an aberrant patch of dry ground next to a big tree right on the N Fork Bridge Creek. As hinted above, we approached by passing Black Peak and dropping down to Woody then Grizzly then finally Bridge creek. A short portage of skis required at around 3400’. We returned—and here EZ gets credit for a great idea—via Grizzly-->Falls Creek, Last Chance Pass, and Maple Creek-->Pass.

    This tour is an instant classic through inspiring terrain.

    We enjoyed settled powder for the majority of the steep and sustained upper section, owing to its high, relatively sheltered, and NW aspect. A thrilling ski! The sun does get on the line in parts lower down, but there are a couple route options to mitigate exposure to sun effects. And still lower we enjoyed hippie corn skiing.

    EZ taking a route option lower down:



    Here’s EZ following some encouraging powdery booting:



    Last climbing shots. Here’s an EZ pic of me working up steep snow near the col:



    And EZ finishing.



    A shot looking south through the col at Spider and others:


    Time to ski. The upper conditions were variably smooth and textured pow, with copious sluffing running far and fast—management required. EZ sends some down from the top:



    EZ apparently stoked for the lower turns to come:





    Out of the business district, briefly weave through a couple avy paths (a big slab ripped out to immediately east of our line), then tons o’ corn. Our line trends up and left from EZ (you can see the crown to the left of our route):



    Memorable ski, topped with celebratory comestibles and combustibles--simple gentlemanly pleasures including good food, cigar and music by the creek, soaking in the day and the magnificence of peaks around us. Adventure fix accomplished.

    Skinning the scenic Falls Creek portion of our Monday return, we could look back at our line and other sources of inspiration:



    Get it while (and if) it lasts!

    More pics here.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Nov 2007
    Location
    Eburg
    Posts
    13,243
    Excellent! You pulled it off. Nice to meet ya

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Location
    Baltimore, MD
    Posts
    5,667
    Dyshe.


    Thanks for sharing.
    They think I do not know a buttload of crap about the Gospel, but I do.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Couloirfornia
    Posts
    8,871
    That was super sweet. Beautiful line. Thanks for posting up.
    Quote Originally Posted by Ernest_Hemingway View Post
    I realize there is not much hope for a bullfighting forum. I understand that most of you would prefer to discuss the ingredients of jacket fabrics than the ingredients of a brave man. I know nothing of the former. But the latter is made of courage, and skill, and grace in the presence of the possibility of death. If someone could make a jacket of those three things it would no doubt be the most popular and prized item in all of your closets.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Bellevue
    Posts
    7,431
    Oh man, thanks! Good to see there's still good skiing being done.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Nov 2009
    Location
    CA
    Posts
    2,904
    so damn goode. well done!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Location
    Vanity Fair
    Posts
    2,720
    woooo rad looking line and area.
    Ich bitte dich nur, weck mich nicht.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Sep 2008
    Location
    Not Brooklyn
    Posts
    8,319
    Strong work. Thanks.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    May 2009
    Location
    inpdx
    Posts
    20,197
    Quote Originally Posted by e dub View Post
    You don't post much...but when you do...dang!!

    Thanks for sharing with us mere mortals!
    I'm pretty sure I will never see a line like that in person

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jan 2008
    Location
    Paper St. Soap Co.
    Posts
    3,303
    Wow! Thanks for the tr.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
    Posts
    3,173
    That is sick! I feel like a pussy now.
    "The skis just popped me up out of the snow and I went screaming down the hill on a high better than any heroin junkie." She Ra

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Jan 2011
    Location
    E >>> W
    Posts
    3,653
    Wow, great trip - excellent to see some cascades stokage
    Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Natures peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop away from you like the leaves of Autumn. - John Muir

    "How long can it last? For fuck sake this isn't heroin -
    suck it up princess" - XXX on getting off mj

    “This is infinity here,” he said. “It could be infinity. We don’t really don’t know. But it could be. It has to be something — but it could be infinity, right?” - Trump, on the vastness of space, man

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Apr 2011
    Location
    Spokane, WA
    Posts
    834
    Skied that thing on ski blades in 2011. Didn't feel the need to brag about it...

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
    Location
    NorCal
    Posts
    2,573
    Wow - great TR! Beautiful pictures and that looks like an unbelievable area.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    Posts
    15,780
    Awesome terrain. Great TR!

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
    Location
    SW CO
    Posts
    5,588
    Saw this on skisickness a few days ago; glad it's posted here so I can comment! Thanks for the excellent words and beautiful photos. Really amazing line.

    Guys like E_$ and ryanl are my heroes.
    "Alpine rock and steep, deep powder are what I seek, and I will always find solace there." - Bean Bowers

    photos

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