Corey skins up the cleaver with Mt Shuksan in the background

Corey Bloom and I left Seattle together late Monday night. We decided to stop at the hot springs before getting some sleep at the end of the road. It was raining as we drove to the hot springs. While we were sitting in the warm water relaxing, it sounded like it was raining, but it was only drops falling off leaves in the forest; the rain was finished. We finally got to sleep after midnight. I was amply motivated by the early light before sunrise and a strong desire to ski more than one route. We were out of our sleeping bags shortly after four. The first thing I did was brew a liter of hot chocolate, then I threw a big bag of coffee grounds into the pot and let it simmer for a minute. We were well motivated as we threw our bags and pads into the jeep and headed up the trail.

The trail had only really small patches of snow up to the marsh. There weren't many patches of snow along the trail, but there was a good snowpack when we exited the trees around 4,500'. For an easy two hour hike we were rewarded with 6,000+ continuous vertical feet of skiable snow to the summit of Mt Baker. I was ecstatic.

There was a Californian who was by himself. He asked us how far we would go. I told him we would go to the summit. He did not seem interested in venturing so high alone. I was only interested in charging up the mountain for some killer lines. Corey was with me.

I put on boots and crampons where the cliffs were melting out of the snow, just before the toe of the glacier. The snow was great. Once off the toe of the Boulder Glacier, we skinned up the remainder of the snowfield to the Boulder Park Cleaver. I usually don't like skinning on exposed slopes so much, but the snow was perfect and we sailed as I laid a track and Corey followed for 3,000 vertical feet. Due to recent heavy snowfall, possible shallow snow over crevasses, and some close calls I remembered from May, we roped together at the top of the cleaver. I made a direct line for the Park Headwall.

The bergschrunds posed no problem at all. I skirted the rockbands on the right, and we continued up the headwall without bothering to remove the rope. I just didn't want to stop. The headwall seemed smaller than before as I climbed it.

Park Headwall and Sky Chutes Corey

June 15, 2004