Post by Philip on Feb 19, 2017 17:50:23 GMT -9
Sunday Feb 19
Today I snowshoed a long loop behind Bells Flats going up the 4th of July Peak trail, then following the obvious ridge of mountains behind the Flats that marks the watershed boundary between Elbow Creek and the Bells Flats side, and then coming down the Cope Mountain ATV trail. It's about a 12-mile loop and also a lovely hike in the summer with lots of goats and wildflowers (if you time it right). Anyway, I was expecting a lot of wind affected snow and crusty conditions but what I found was anything but. Most northerly aspects and all low spots were about a foot of fluffy or wind-packed powder. Some ridges or southern exposed knobs were a crust of rime ic, but I'd estimate that 80% of the snow cover was actually amazingly good. If you have the energy to go up the Cope trail from Little Kosovo and tour back to ski the slopes that drain into Elbow Creek you will find lovely and reasonably uniform snow. Even the west and north facing slopes on the way in will make you happy. The slednecks are cruising around the area coming over from Anton Larsen Pass, but there is still TONS of untracked terrain to play on. Just go up the Cope trail and tour back to the SW-NE range of mountains behind the flats and find your private stash. It takes more effort than Pyramid but the conditions are more consistent and better if you get in there a ways. I was pleasantly surprised and ended up wishing I had brought my splitboard rather than snowshoes.
Hiking in the 4th of July trail over The Hogback/Halloween Ridge. You can ski in from the end of Sargent Creek Road pretty much all the way:
At the foot of 4th of July looking up into the saddle between the peaks. There was a crown face just below the ridgetop from an old avy and new cornices forming, so I'm not sure I'd be excited to climb up the gully in image center, but most northerly aspects had very nice snow:
Up higher southern exposures had wind-erosion that exposed and old rime crust, but on the Elbow Creek side it was all good:
Looking down the Elbow Creek side. Pretty much everything on the right half of the image was yummy snow:
Today I snowshoed a long loop behind Bells Flats going up the 4th of July Peak trail, then following the obvious ridge of mountains behind the Flats that marks the watershed boundary between Elbow Creek and the Bells Flats side, and then coming down the Cope Mountain ATV trail. It's about a 12-mile loop and also a lovely hike in the summer with lots of goats and wildflowers (if you time it right). Anyway, I was expecting a lot of wind affected snow and crusty conditions but what I found was anything but. Most northerly aspects and all low spots were about a foot of fluffy or wind-packed powder. Some ridges or southern exposed knobs were a crust of rime ic, but I'd estimate that 80% of the snow cover was actually amazingly good. If you have the energy to go up the Cope trail from Little Kosovo and tour back to ski the slopes that drain into Elbow Creek you will find lovely and reasonably uniform snow. Even the west and north facing slopes on the way in will make you happy. The slednecks are cruising around the area coming over from Anton Larsen Pass, but there is still TONS of untracked terrain to play on. Just go up the Cope trail and tour back to the SW-NE range of mountains behind the flats and find your private stash. It takes more effort than Pyramid but the conditions are more consistent and better if you get in there a ways. I was pleasantly surprised and ended up wishing I had brought my splitboard rather than snowshoes.
Hiking in the 4th of July trail over The Hogback/Halloween Ridge. You can ski in from the end of Sargent Creek Road pretty much all the way:
At the foot of 4th of July looking up into the saddle between the peaks. There was a crown face just below the ridgetop from an old avy and new cornices forming, so I'm not sure I'd be excited to climb up the gully in image center, but most northerly aspects had very nice snow:
Up higher southern exposures had wind-erosion that exposed and old rime crust, but on the Elbow Creek side it was all good:
Looking down the Elbow Creek side. Pretty much everything on the right half of the image was yummy snow:
