Juneuary

WARNING: The following contains a full-on complain-fest. 

Beautiful Bulletproof Ice

“Now is the winter of our discontent.” I have no actual recollection of what Shakespeare meant by that line, but it probably had to do with really marginal snow conditions. Most of Oregon is hovering around 15% snowpack, despite average precipitation. January produced hardly a flake of snow, and most of the snow from those Christmas Storms has melted (at least below 6000 feet). We were left with little more than uninspiring spring-like conditions, but without the warmth or sunlight to get an actual corn cycle going. Meanwhile, the flatlands of the East Coast were pummeled by snowstorm after snowstorm. What a waste.

Mt. Bailey Hut Trip 2014

Hemlock Butte Cabin

There are few mountains in Oregon with terrain comparable to Mt. Bailey. The mountain has 360 degrees of skiable aspects; trees, open bowls, low angle, steeps...you name it, Mt. Bailey has it. Located just North of Crater lake in Southern Oregon, Mt. Bailey is a hike from the Portland area. But, a trip to Mt. Bailey and the Hemlock Butte cabin has become something of a tradition for me, and I hope it continues long into the future. 

On this particular trip, snowpack was a significant concern. Southern Oregon has suffered a miserable winter, with many areas holding less than 50% of their regular snowpack. However, in the two weeks leading up to our trip, the weather patterns changed, dropping around 40 inches of snow in a very short period. The combination of significant snowfall, variable temperatures, and high winds lead us to be pretty nervous in our preparation for this trip. Avalanches are always a risk in the backcountry, but this weekend the risk seemed considerable. We developed a plan that focused on conservative route selection and low-angle skiing in order to mitigate the risks of what we expected to be an unstable snowpack. 

Mt. Bailey Hut Trip 2013

You never know what you're going to get with the Oregon Cascades. Rain. Blower Pow. Sun. Sometimes all within the same day. We had booked our stay at the Hemlock Butte cabin at the base of Mt. Bailey in the fall, not knowing what sort of weather would greet us when we finally made the trip in March. Leading up to the trip, the weather forecast was for clouds and rain. We went for it anyway and, overall, we were pleasantly surprised.

Photo Credit: Gordon Levitt