1 miles of hiking • 1250' elevation gain •
I heard that higher elevations had a chance for some fresh snow on Friday night. So I woke up early to check the web cams and sure enough there was some snow in the parking lot at Paradise. So I figured there had to be freshies up at Chinook Pass as well. I quickly packed my gear and grabbed Mindy since we would be hanging out in the Wenatchee Forest side of Yakima Peak. The drive up was nice and we made good time. It's amazing how fast of a drive 410 can be....without all the Crystal Mt traffic !!! There was definitely signs of fresh snow at the pass, but the visibility was poor. I skied this area a few times last year, so I felt comfortable with heading up into the grey abyss above. Cold temps kept the snowpack firm and the fresh snow was schmooooey. It got a little better on the North facing bowl, especially at higher elevations. I took in a few laps just before it started to rain and then I decided to call it. The ski back down to the car was sloppy, but all in all a great day out and nice way to start the memorial day weekend.
