Backcountry Ski/Snowboard - Mount St. Helens/Worm Flows

Overall game plan for the day is to head up the trail starting at 6:30 and aim to reach the crater rim +/- noon.

We will not head over to the true summit on this trip.  At the crater rim we'll eat, transition, and wait for the snow to soften (if necessary) and then ski down the primary worm flow skiers left of the uptrack.

We may spread out on the ascent since the route is straight forward and we can descend the uptrack if necessary.  So radios will be quite helpful if you have them (trip leader will have one extra).

Ski and boot crampons may come in handy if the snow is hard in the morning.

On the night of arrival I would encourage everyone to go take a look at the travel conditions at the trailhead to make a judgement around showing up in the morning wearing approach footwear or in their ski boots.  If the former, we will hike up the trail until continuous skinning looks viable and stash our footwear along the trail.

If you are interested in this trip, hit me up with an email addressing your AIARE education, current level of conditioning, a description of your backcountry set up (the "one quiver" crossover setups will be too heavy and slow you down), and ski touring/splitboarding experience so that we can collectively determine if this trip is a good fit for you!  I lead this trip multiple times each year and one or more times each year someone ends up on the trip when their current fitness or skills are not ready for the demands of a 1,000 ft/hr pace on a 5700' climb.  Totally understandable and we'll work together to ensure this is right for you!

Leaders, if you're going to a "general" area to ski, please add specific details about the route you have planned and its difficulty. View the Backcountry Skiing Activity Overview page for ski difficulty ratings.

Arrive at the Marble Mtn Sno-Park Tuesday night for car/parking lot bivy.  We'll meet up at the Worm Flows trailhead at the far side of the warming hut at 6:15 Wednesday morning and plan to start hiking/skinning up the trail at 6:30 sharp.