It looked like high pressure would hold on for another day or two, and the stars aligned such that both Dan and I were able to get a day off work mid-week to try and harvest some mid-winter corn. Mt Thielsen was our selected destination, and we met at Dan’s house at 5:00 am for an early start. We made quick time to the trailhead, as the roads were dry and bare, and our drive was reminiscent of summer. We pulled into the trailhead at 7:30 am, quickly sorted gear, and started skinning on crunchy snow. The temperature was in the low 20’s, but we knew it wouldn’t stay that way for too long.
The weather was absolutely gorgeous, with bluebird skies and bright sunshine. The first couple miles of skinning were efficient under the firm snow, and eventually we worked our way through the forest and started getting some glimpses of our objective…
A short bit later we worked our way up to the ridge separating the northwest bowl from the southwest bowl, and were (not all that) surprised to find some soft snow on the north facing slopes that hadn’t received any direct sunlight in a number of days.
Skinning along the ridge was somewhat slow, and the windlips made progress even slower as we had to do end runs around the larger ones. As the slope steepened, we made the call to switch to boots and crampons, which immediately made the traveling more efficient.
We continued up the ridge, pausing periodically to enjoy the views back across the frozen Diamond Lake and out over Mt Bailey. The temperature was starting to warm considerably as we worked up the ridge and out onto the south facing slope. Traveling up the ridge, I had my eye on the northwest couloir. It looked like it would go. Dan was skeptical, but after a little discussion, we agreed and started to get stoked on the line…
We continued our climb under the sun, eventually working our way to a high point below the summit pinnacle which was a nice place to change over, get a quick rest, and offered good views of our objective in front of us as well as the Crater Lake Rim and associated country to the south…
We didn’t hang out long after making the changeover, as the sun was warming the upper pitches of the couloir and some rockfall was starting. I donned my helmet and ice axe, and stayed up top to snap a few photos of Dan who agreed to drop in first and check out the conditions. His first few turns looked money, so we decided to commit to the line.
As we worked our way down into the couly, the slope steepened and the snow became hard. The soft snow we were hoping for in the deep shade of the line didn’t materialize, but we were already committed so we had to put our alpine riding skills to the test. It was a mix of jump turns, a bit of side slipping, and a few good turns, as we entered the heart of the line…
Once we made it to the bottom of the couloir proper, we enjoyed some chalky turns on the apron before heading into the main bowl. Dan grabbed the camera from me and snapped a few pics from below of me coming down…
At the bottom of the couloir, after riding the apron, both Dan and I were stoked on the line even though we didn’t score it in optimum conditions. The riding wasn’t done however, as we still had most of the northwest bowl still to carve up….
If there’s one thing that both Dan and I can do well, it’s sniff out good snow, and even though the couloir wasn’t as good as we’d hoped, we found the one area in the bowl that was still holding and milked it for all it was worth….
To our right and to our left, the snow wasn’t prime, but right down the gut it was holding in a swath that was about 30 yards wide and 600 feet long. We hooped and hollered all the way down…
We worked down to the bottom of the bowl, eventually switching back over to skins for a short skin out to the ridge above to make our exit. Sitting atop the ridge, enjoying the warmth of the sun while eating some lunch and drinking a beer, I felt pretty fortunate to out in the mountains on such a beautiful day. My beer of choice for the day — a Divine Shine by Hop Valley — seemed fitting for the day.
We switched back from skins to ski mode, and headed down the ridge for the exit back to the car. The turns along the way were a mix of soft snow up high and then firm, quick snow down low. I was stoked on how quickly we were able to ski out, especially on the crack headed portion of the trail down low, and soon we were unloading our gear at the car, enjoying another beverage in shorts and flip flops.
All things considered, this was a fun day in the Oregon cascades that neither Dan nor I will soon forget. Here’s a parting shot from the day….
