Lassen Peak (N California; 10,457')

Lassen Peak is Exhibit A in Lassen Volcanic National Park, which is very impressive in many respects. The peak can be ascended via a trail on the south side that often takes until August to melt out. Earlier in the year the east side provides a good snow climb and ski descent.	Coming soon: Lassen Peak from the east in mid-June
Topo Map
Routes: NE Ridge (II, moderate snow climb) NE Face (II, moderate to steep snow climb, moderate to steep ski descent) S Side (trail/easy snow climb, easy ski descent) References: A.A. Author, Find a Reference , Publisher

Date: June 16, 2017

Party: DB solo

Route: NE Face

Equipment: AT skis, crampons, whippets

Time: Snow Gate at Emigrant Pass - Base of summit pyramic 5 hrs 15 mins
Snow Gate - Summit 5 hrs 45 mins
Summit - Snow Gate 2 hrs
Roundtrip from Snow Gate 8 hrs

Comments: Snow line at 6,700'. Climbed to the base of the summit pyramid at climber's left, snow climbed to true summit, skied from base of pyramid.

Trip report: 2016/17 was the first decent snow year in the Pacific Northwest in a very long time, and to make up for that it was a record snow year in California. Given that, I figured that mid-June would not be too late for skiing Lassen. I had climbed the NE Ridge before, on foot a long time ago, and I was eager to go back and ski the NE Face proper.

Manzanita Lake Campground was full, so I camped at Butte Lake, which makes for quite a drive. I started from the snow gate at Emigrant Pass, and went straight towards the summit, staying just to climber's left of the deepest gully in the Devastated Area. At some point in the bowl I switched from skins to crampons and headed for the snow ridge to climber's left of the summit. A better skier than me could have skied from just a few feet below the true summit, but I decided to leave my skis there and snow climb the remaining exposed 45-degree slopes. It was windy and cold on the summit, and Shasta had a lenticular cloud that I had already seen while driving in the morning; to my surprise it had not gone away.

After carefully downclimbing the steep stuff (I hate steep descending traverses) I put on my skis, warmed up by descending the ridge for a bit, and then dropped into the bowl. It was just steep enough to be interesting, but not steep enough to be scary, and I was able to ski to within 200' vertical of the highway. A short hike got me back to my car. It was a very cool trip, and I'm glad I finally did a true ski descent of Lassen (okay, of 95% of it), as my South Side trip on X-country skis in 2002 did not really count as a ski descent.

The next morning I hiked the Cinder Cone near Butte Lake, which provides for a superb view of Lassen Peak, in addition to a superlative volcanic landscape in its own right. Sadly, I forgot to bring both my camera and my phone!