A hidden gem perhaps? Not to Local’s, but if you’re just passing through I don’t think you’d ever know how much backcountry was out there without doing your research. Situated across from Snoqualmie Ski Resort, this backcountry tour starts right off the highway.
- Distance: 5 miles
- Time: 3-4 hours
- Elevation gain: 1700+ ft
- When we went: Feb 4, 2022; Noon
- GPS for trail start: GPS
- Can you ski back to the car?: No, but we did not have to put skins back on
- Route Finding Difficulty: Intermediate
- Physical Exertion Difficulty: Intermediate
- Map
Getting there: The parking lot for this tour in the winter is at the Summit West Ski Area, off interstate 90. It will be the northernmost parking lot. After you have parked, you may feel like you are not in the right place, but don’t worry! Carefully cross the road and walk under the interstate. Right as you come out from under the road, you will see skin tracks up the hill to your right. Follow these, and within minutes you will forget how close to civilization you are.
When we went, there were already skin tracks. You will follow the general direction of the PCT trail after you hit the snow-covered parking lot and head southeast. You’ll be going through trees, but don’t turn up too early or they’ll get really tight.
As you make your way up, it does get steep at times, but we never had to bootpack. See the map for details on where we started up. You will eventually hit a snow-covered road and you can follow that as well, it will appear to be a turn to your left, and there is a sign.
Once you’re on top of the peak, there are a lot of ways down, but we were aiming to get down to our car. I must say that the research we had done did not line up for us in real life.
We descended through the trees, eventually met back up with our skin tracks, and walked out another 0.3 miles. Looking back, I think the top was fun, but once we crossed over our tracks and headed down past the 4100 ft range, the trees got very tight, and there were a lot more ups and downs than we expected. It wasn’t a smooth run down!
We definitely learned some lessons on this trip, as it was one of our first outings to somewhere we had never been on splitboards.
- Weather does in fact change fast, even if you’re not on “big mountains”. We started in the sun and finished in wet snow / rain. Always bring a waterproof jacket!
- We started looking more seriously at topo maps and elevation lines, instead of just finding some ‘easy beginner routes’ in a guidebook with a small photo of a map and going for it.
- We decided to always bring our avalanche gear even if what we are doing seems small!
GEAR: Pallas Epiphany Splitboard, Jones Solution Splitboard, Union Explorer Bindings
PROS:
- Beautiful Views
- Easily accessible by any car
CONS:
- Not a straightforward descent
- Need route-finding skills
- Could have some potential wet slides at the top in the wrong conditions.
THE SPLIT DECISION:
Jay’s Take: “The skin up was fine but wow did I hate coming down this mountain. The weather quickly changed on us and it was almost a white out at the top. The snow quickly turned to PNW concrete and I kept getting stuck. There were also some hazards like stream beds that we almost fell into. I was not a fan.”
Tyese’s Take: “I don’t think I need to do that again (laughs) unless I’m with a local that has a secret way down that’s incredibly fun.”
Final Words: Our uphill route is worth following, our downhill route, not so much. Looking back I think we would stay more to the skier’s left on the way down, and then just accept the traverse out.
