Trip Report - Snowcrest Mountain - 02.15.06
The crown jewel of St. Mary's daytrips, Snowcrest's elusive East Face has foiled all of my attempts to lay tracks on it. It has been a long-time dream of mine to ski this magnificent piece of Kootenay real estate, but co-ordinating safe conditions, good coverage, and partners work schedules has always stood in the way of a successful trip.
The magic combo for success on this descent is mid-season high pressure with a deep and stable snowpack. Late-season attempts are generally not possible due to large sections of the access road melting out. A trip up to a nearby route on Monday the 13th revealed that conditions were looking ideal for another attempt so partners were coerced, sick days were arranged, and we were set to have a go at it on Wednesday February 15th.
A pre-dawn departure from town followed by a half hour drive and then a freezing cold hour on the sleds found us gawking up at our objective gleaming in the early morning sun:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53647.jpg
We were all a little nervous as we discussed routes and alternatives and a tiny bit of doubt about bagging the most classic line started to creep into our conversation. We eventually decided that we'd just have to go up there and have a closer look before deciding exactly where to ski.
We dropped one of the sleds at the creek that drains the east face and continued up the road to a spot that provides better access to the summit. It was a bit of a mad dash to get the skis skinned up and get moving as things were a tad nippy on this bluebird morning. After about an hour and a half of skinning and bushwhacking through mature forest, we were rewarded with our first glimpse of the remainder of our route:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53648.jpg
The east face proper (our intended descent route) on the right side of the photo and our climbing route on the left. The snow looked fantastic and not nearly as wind-effected as we were expecting. We dropped down a short distance and entered the winter wonderland that we'd spend the rest of the day in.
Going up:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53649.jpg
And up:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53650.jpg
And up:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53651.jpg
And finally a bit of a bootpack to get past the crux of the climb:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53652.jpg
We spent a bit of time on the summit discussing our options and eventually decided that the snow quality and stability were suitable to give'er. Looking down it sealed the deal:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53653.jpg
That's just under 1100m (over 3500ft) vertical to the runout zone at the bottom. The whole run back to the sled is about 1400m (4500ft).
The crux of the downhill portion of our day:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53654.jpg
Nice powder snow on the lower part of the descent:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53655.jpg
A foreshortened view of the whole face:
http://www.biglines.com/photos/norma...ines_53656.jpg
A bit of a bushwhack back to the sled was followed by high fives and a Kootenay Classic is finally bagged.
