November 1, 2024 – Mt Bachelor

With a flight scheduled for first thing in the morning out of Portland on November 2nd for a trip with the family to Maui, I didn’t want to chance waiting until we got back to get November turns in, so I made plans to head out on the 1st and see what I could find. The weather forecast that had looked so promising earlier in the week for dropping a load of snow at the Pass didn’t pan out, so I decided to head over to Mt Bachelor to see what I could find. I took the Cascade Lakes Highway and then cutoff Road 40, enjoying some good music and nice morning colors before pulling into the parking lot a few minutes before 8:00 am.

Bringing home the rain…
Parked and ready to head out

Approximately 24 to 28 inches of snow greeted me, and I wasn’t surprised to see a hundred other cars in the parking lot. Not having a lot of time to kill since I needed to get back to head to Portland in the evening, I donned skins quickly and started out towards the Cone, before deciding to head off towards Pine to leave the crowds behind.

Skiers heading up towards the Cone
Looking off towards Red Chair

The skinning was taxing and the snow was deep, but soon I worked my way over towards Old Skyliner and headed up from there. When I reached the bench about halfway up, I snapped a picture, sent it to Dan, and then called him with a report before continuing up. A couple of other folks came down as I continued up, and eventually I stopped near the top of Pine. After switching over from skins to ride mode, I pulled out the tripod, fired off a few shots, and then stepped into bindings to enjoy some soft and fresh November turns.

Tripod shot near the top of Pine

The turns down were fun, and the snow was great. It wasn’t that epic 20 degree blower powder, but it wasn’t too heavy either and it was pretty damn fine for the first of November. I enjoyed turns all the way down to the bottom and back to the truck. After checking my watch, I figured I had time for one more lap so I headed out again with the goal of exploring some of the snow beneath the Red Chair.

Back at the truck after a first lap

I skinned up towards the Cone like the first lap, and then cut off again part way up and worked a few hundred feed higher to a suitable point where I could enjoy a cold beer while pulling the skins. My offering for the day was a tasty Mooncrusher Porter from the Obelisk Beer Co. and it hit the spot. I always look forward to that first porter or stout to start the season that marks the beginning of the powder season!

A cold Mooncrusher Porter from Obelisk Brewing

After getting my board halves back together and downing the rest of my beer, it was time to enjoy some more turns and that’s exactly what I did. After making my way back down to the truck, I wasted little time before heading out, super stoked to have November turns in the book. The road home was a bit dicey, since it had snowed about 2-3 inches on Road 40 since the morning, but I made it back to Highway 58 unscathed and the rest of the drive was easy.

A quick stop on Road 40

A few hours after getting home, we had the car loaded with our travel gear for Hawaii, and made it to the hotel later that evening. Our flight left at 8:00 am the following morning, and by 11:15 (Hawaiian time), we were enjoying beautiful Maui. It was definitely a trip to remember, with our trip to Hana being one of the many highlights. I’m already looking forward to heading back! Below are a couple of shots from the trip…

A beautiful morning at Hamoa Beach
The family at Waimoku Falls

October 1, 2024 – Mt Hood, Palmer Patches

After enduring a long, hot summer, I was happy to see the calendar approaching October, which is one of my favorite months of the year. The transition to fall is something I look forward to each year, along with getting October turns in early in the month. This year was no exception, and Dan and I made plans to head up to Mt Hood and ski on what was left of the Palmer patch. I’d been watching the Timberline webcam for the past couple of weeks, and the snow was going fast, but it looked like it would hold out for turns in the first few days of the month.

Hood from the Climber’s Lot on 10/1/24

We met early along the freeway at the Harrisburg exit, and made good time to Sandy, where we got a quick charge for the Tesla and a coffee for ourselves before heading up to the mountain. Pulling into the parking lot revealed a much different scene than a month prior, and there were only a few other cars around. After getting our gear organized and packs loaded, we headed up, and made good time up to Silcox.

The view south to the lodge and beyond
Silcox Hut

Just above the Silcox, we found snow in the Palmer canyon, which allowed for some easy hiking, but the quality of the snow was just a notch below hideous. Neither of us were too stoked on the extremely bumpy and filthy snow, but held higher hopes for the Palmer above.

Dan hiking up the Palmer Canyon
Looking southwest from the mid-station

We worked our way up to the mid-station, and after negotiating a mix of scree, glacial till and dirt, we were able to don skins a couple hundred feet higher and skin the to within about 50 feet from the Palmer top shack. Once at the top, it was time to get a my beer on ice (after the obligatory photo). My first offering for the day was a tasty Big Juicy IPA from No-Li Brewery that I’d picked up in Washington a bit earlier in the summer on a trip with the family to Mt Rainier.

Big Juicy IPA
Looking down the Palmer

We sat around up top for awhile, enjoying the views while the snow softened some. A bit later, we got ready to head down for a first lap, and Dan snapped a “sponsor shot” picture of me before we clicked and strapped into our bindings and headed down.

Matt at the top of the Palmer
Dan dropping in on lap 1

I headed down first, and setup to shoot a few pictures of Dan as he came down, before he grabbed the camera to return the favor for me. The first hundred feet or so was “ok” snow, but after that both of us were surprised by how smooth and fun the turns were. Several pics are below…

Dan harvesting some October corn
Working through rock islands on the Palmer patch
Enjoying some October corn on the Palmer
Turns on the Palmer

We skied down a finger of snow on skier’s left, milking it until it ran out, and then donned skins to head back up for a second lap.

Skins on for another lap
Dan headed up

A short stint on the skins brought us back up to the top, and we ran into a fellow turns-all-year enthusiast and ski patroller from Utah named Darrell. As it turned out, Darrell had a one-month longer streak than Dan, at 349 months. The three of us chatted for awhile, and then Dan and I headed down for a second ski.

Dropping in for lap 2
Working down the Palmer patch on lap 2

The snow on the second run was nice enough to warrant heading back up one more time, so we decided to make one more climb. As we were getting ready, Darrell came down and I snapped a few pics of him enjoying the turns, including the shot below.

Darrel working the Palmer patch

Before we headed out, I pulled out my second (and final) beer of the day and snapped a picture of it, before placing it into a snow hole to make sure it would be chilled and ready when we returned after skiing a third lap. I’m generally not a big fan of pilsner’s, but I have to say the Phil’s Pilsner from Wild Ride Brewing was a beer that I would go for again.

Phil’s Pilsner on the Palmer

For our third climb, we elected to forgo packs and skins, and booted up to a couple hundred feet below the top of the Palmer with the intent of enjoying the smoothest snow on the patch. A few minutes later, we did just that…

Third lap turns on the Palmer patch
Enjoying some “packless” turns on the Palmer patch

We skied back down to our packs and gear, and after loading our gear and approach shoes, made a couple of final turns down to the end of the snow. I caught a picture of Dan making the final slide on the Palmer patch, as well as a picture looking to the south towards Mt Jefferson. The Bingham fire, which had blown up in the last few hours, created an all-too familiar scene 

Mt Jefferson and the new Bingham fire
Final turns on the Palmer patch

At the bottom of the Palmer, we elected to head down and ski some of the smoother looking snow in the canyon below us, rather than returning immediately to the Palmer Canyon with it’s rough and dirty snow. A long carry through scree and till brought us to a couple of dirty but smooth patches of snow, and we made some enjoyable turns.

Skiing a patch below the Palmer
Headed down the canyon

At the second, longer patch, we found some really dirty snow. A short section of it proved to be too difficult to slide on, so we booted across it. Dan snapped a couple of pictures of me showing just how filthy it was…

Looking down at the rest of the good “skiing”
Looking back up what we came down

Below our dirty snow, we managed to eek out another hundred feet of turns before calling it and making the traverse across the scree to the Palmer canyon. We both agreed that the final couple hundred feet of snow in the Palmer canyon was some of the most unenjoyable turns we ever made in our lives, but we managed to get down without injury or wipe out.

Dan looking small in the canyon
Hiking out the Palmer canyon just above Silcox

A short hike brought us out to the Silcox, and from there it was an easy stroll back down the road to the parking lot. As usual, it felt good to get the packs off our backs, and get the brats on the grill. While we waited for the meat to cook, I pulled out some of the season’s offerings from my garden, including some hot salsa as well as a new batch of tomatillo sauce made fresh a few days earlier. Both were great, but the tomatillo sauce was excellent and might become a new staple on the menu for fall ski trips. 

Grillin’ and chillin’ in the parking lot

A bit later the brats were ready, and we enjoyed them after a fun day of burning calories and making turns, before packing up and making the long drive back home to the southern Willamette Valley. All in all, it was another great day on Mt Hood, and it felt good to have October turns in the books. Below are a couple of parting shots from the day…

Dan enjoying some October turns while Darrell looks on
Parting shot from the Palmer

September 1, 2024 – Mt Hood, Palmer Snowfield

Labor Day weekend in Oregon brings a pretty good likelihood that turns-all-year seekers will be heading out in search of the remaining snow patches, and this year was no exception as Dan, Joe and I made plans to head to Mt Hood to get some snow-sliding action in. As usual, I met Dan early at the Harrisburg exit at I-5 and then we headed north to pick up Joe at the cop shop in Albany, before heading to Sandy to charge up. After our stop to charge, as well as a quick additional stop at Safeway since the Fred Meyer was closed due to the Kroger strike, we made our way to the mountain by about 8:20am and literally got the last parking spot in the climber’s lot.

Mt Hood from the Climber’s Lot on September 1
A full climber’s lot on Labor Day weekend

Not only did we get the last spot there, but the entire parking lot was full. Turns out Timberline had a big all-day event going on, and people were parking down the road below the lot since everything was full. On the bright side, the snowpack was looking pretty good, and we were stoked to see snow come way down in the canyons. After gearing up, we shouldered packs and made our way up to the Mile canyon.

Heading up to the Mile Canyon
Dan skinning up the Mile Canyon

We were able to get skins on early, and were able to skin all the way to the Silcox. There was one or two spots where we had to skin over really dirty snow, but it appeared that the ski down the Mile canyon would be a nice treat on the way out.

Crossing a dirty section
Looking up from the bottom of the Palmer

At Silcox, we crossed the road with skins on to access snow in the Palmer canyon, and then it was an easy skin to the mid-station, where we took a quick break to grab a snack and re-hydrate, before continuing on to the top. Upon reaching the top of the Palmer, we put beers on ice and enjoyed the views, which included several other fellow turns-all-year enthusiasts climbing up the Palmer. My beer of choice for the day was a tasty Oregon Sunshine IPA from Silver Falls Brewery, which I’d picked up on a date night trip to their Eugene location a few weeks earlier with my wife. It didn’t disappoint!

At the mid-station
A tasty hazy IPA from Silver Falls Brewery

After hanging out up top for awhile, we readied to drop in for a first lap. I headed down from our position about 30 feet above the crowd that had gathered at the top of the Palmer and stopped to chat with a few of the folks while waiting for Dan and Joe. Turns out several of the skiers were with Nikki’s group from Washington and doing a two-fer for August and September. A few minutes later, Dan and Joe rolled up and we headed down.

Joe enjoying some turns on lap 1
Dan cranking turns on the Palmer
Enjoying September turns on Mt Hood
Joe harvesting some September corn 

At the bottom of the Palmer we regrouped to head back up for another lap. As we were donning skins and packs, Nikki and the Washington crew set off from above and began ripping some really nice turns down towards us. We watched as they enjoyed a great corn harvest. I pulled the camera out of my camera bag and fired off some shots as they skied, including the few below.

Nikki ripping the lower Palmer
Nikki and crew enjoying September turns
September corn harvest on the Palmer

After the Washington crew passed by us and headed down, we skinned back up and found our half-full beers cold and waiting above the top of the Palmer. It felt good to relax in the warm sun and enjoy the views for a bit, and then it was time to get ready to drop in for a second lap.

Back at the top relaxing before lap 2
Sponsor shot at the top of the Palmer

Dan dropped in first for lap 2, and had the camera. After he set up, I headed down and he fired off a few pictures before handing the camera back to me. After the handoff, I headed down and fired off several pictures of Joe enjoying the corn.

Matt dropping in for a second lap
Joe enjoying lap number 2
All smiles on the Palmer
Heading down the Palmer

I caught a couple pictures of Dan skiing out the mid-station road, and then we regrouped at the mid-station before heading down to enjoy turns in the Palmer canyon.

Dan exiting the Palmer
Skiing out the mid-station road

The turns in the Palmer canyon were nice. The snow on the sides of the canyon nearest the wall was pa bit dirty, but thankfully enough folks had skied the canyon over the last several days to keep a nice white path open down the center. I shot lots of pics as we descended, including several below…

Dan dropping into the Palmer canyon
Heading down to the Mile
Enjoying great snow in the canyon

Halfway down from the midway station, Dan took the camera and snapped a few shots, including the two below…

Matt riding in the Palmer canyon
September cruising

We eventually popped out at the Silcox, and after a short portage across the road, were back on the snow sliding tools and making turns in the Mile canyon. The snow here was quite a bit dirtier, but again there was cleaner snow to ride on nearer the middle which made for pretty good turns.

Skiing out the Mile canyon
Joe enjoying the Mile

We were able to ski to down below where the cats normally park, which was awesome for September — it’s been a couple of years since that was possible. It made for a short walk back to the parking lot, which both the skiers appreciated since they didn’t have to change out of ski boots!

Skiing the lower Mile
Looking back at the mountain on the hike down

Back at the lot, it was nice to change out of ski boots and into shorts and flip flops. There was still a bunch of cars in the lot, and the live music was just about ready to begin. We got the brats on the grill and enjoyed another cold beer. My second beer for the day was one I’d picked up in Sunriver with the family a few weeks earlier while vacationing, and the easy drinking King Crispy pilsner from Deschutes Brewery was just right after a day of skiing and riding.

King Crispy from Deschutes
Apres in the parking lot

A few minutes after we put them on the grill, the brats were done and they hit the spot. As we were eating them, the wind picked up substantially, especially on the upper mountain. The three of us were glad we decided against heading back up for a third lap, since it looked like a pretty dusty storm. In fact, it was so dusty that I hiked a few feet up from the lot just to snap a pic!

A dust storm on Mt Hood

A little later, with the beer and brats gone, we loaded up our gear and hit the road, making it home just in time for me to take care of some needed hive manipulations with my bees before it got dark. All in all it was another great September ski on Mt Hood! Here’s a parting shot of Dan from the day…

Parting shot of Dan getting some September turns on Mt Hood