On West Pearl Peak in Pearl Basin, May 1 2012, looking easterly at Star Peak.
Up there yesterday with Scott N., quick report. Easily drive to footbridge at 10,180 feet elevation on Pearl Pass jeep road. Need ground clearance, but Scott never had to pull the fun lever in his Tacoma. Patchy for a while after footbridge (park near creek crossing, before footbridge), continuous snow begins after ‘sun torch’ switchback above Mace Chalet. Good coverage above there, but thin snowpack as expected, won’t last long. Yesterday was not a thaw day, and snow up high stayed icy and hard well into noon. Recommended for the next few days, after that, will involve lots of dirt hiking. We skied West Pearl Mountain, 13,317. A few powder turns but mostly frozen semi-corn and breakable crust. Sunny day will change that quickly. It’s May.
Congratulations to the folks who caught the lines up there a few days ago when the snow was better. Nice sets of tracks everywhere. And nice snowmobile stuck-pit on the side of the cliff down there on the road (grin)!
WildSnow.com publisher emeritus and founder Lou (Louis Dawson) has a 50+ years career in climbing, backcountry skiing and ski mountaineering. He was the first person in history to ski down all 54 Colorado 14,000-foot peaks, has authored numerous books about about backcountry skiing, and has skied from the summit of Denali in Alaska, North America’s highest mountain.
