Navaho Peak Ski - 3/31/02

"sometime fools are spared the consequences their ignorance"

Easter Sunday: Andrew and I set out to ski Earl Peak up the Teannaway River. I'd heard a second hand report that some people were headed up there the day before to look for korn snow. According to my source (Silas) these people thought the road was open to Beverly campground. I was a bit suspicious of this because I knew it is only plowed to 29 Pines campground, but I figured it would either be open or we'd find something else to ski.

I'd been hiking out that way a few years ago and had climbed into the Earl basin from the north side and hiked out Bean Creek. From what I remembered it had a lot of good ski terrain. It would have been best to hear how that other party had faired, but we live in an imperfect world.

We arrived at 29 Pines and the road was definately closed. It was also a long way in to any ski terrain. Andrew and I figured we'd just start hiking and make the best of it. Just then two extremely kind people offered to take us in on the their snowmobile and sled. They were here for skiing as well and said without getting a lift from them we'd just be hiking all day.



We rode with them a ways up the snow covered road and then started skinning up the trail. It was a long hike but the beautiful day made it pleasant enough. Eventually we started skinning up the steep slopes of Navaho. We took off a skins on the ridge a couple hundred feet shy of the summit and looked for the best way down. It wasn't the korn we were hoping for but it was firm enough up high to make for pleasant skiing, eventually turning into deep slush lower down. Skiing out Stafford Creek went surprisingly quickly and then it was back on to "Old Yellow" for the ride out. This time I got to stand up on the back of the sled like a musher.