[mountaineer ordinaire]

For various reasons, including a snow-covered road, poor weather, and less than ideal timing, after a month of trying, I finally found a window of opportunity to ski Bean Creek Basin in the Teanaway area. Unfortunately, two regular ski partners, more forgiving than the average message board responder, were occupied. Having no trip reports to go by other than a single one stating only "the road is open", I apprehensively posted messages on TAY.com and WSTC.org seeking backcountry ski partners. Early Sunday morning, Paul (a one-time previous ski partner), Jennifer, Beth, and I drove east and were pleased to see patches of blue sky beyond Cle Elum. Given the weather forecast, we expected mostly cloudy skies, cool temps, and, later, afternoon snow flurries. Instead, we arrived at the Beverly Creek trailhead under a clear blue sky with temps in the upper 40's. My primary route concern -- crossing Bean Creek -- was put to rest once we saw a well-established boot path offering a safe option to cross the creek at its standard point. The low snowpack required us to stow our skis on our packs for about 1 1/3 miles. With little snow remaining, the two major avalanche chutes which cross the hiking trail posed no danger. Just beyond the second and largest of the two chutes, we began skinning up three to four foot deep consolidated (mostly) corn snow.

Hiking up Bean Creek trail

Crossing Bean Creek

how's that go... 1 lb less on your feet = 6 lbs off your back?

Reaching the 5,500 foot level, we stopped for lunch, discussed conditions, and our non-specific destination: a safe point offering an enjoyable descent. A group of three skiers skinned their way to the west ridge near a peak sometimes referred to as "Judy", traversed the ridge toward "Mary, and skied down the NE facing bowl. Despite their well-laid skin track, we opted not to follow them given the angle of the slope, the small cornices on the ridge, and a relatively unsafe runout. We instead chose what appeared to be a less harrowing route to the 6,500 foot level ridge NE of "Mary."

Paul and Bean Peak

Lunch

Heading toward the ridge

Look, those 3 skiers know what they're doing

Despite a contrasting blue sky above the white slope, we were fooled a bit by the angle of the slope's upper section. Within ~300 feet of the ridge, the angle of the slope increased from about 25 degrees to 30-35 degrees. At that point, concerned about the consequences of a fall while skinning in touring mode (despite a mostly safe runout), I removed my skis, stowed them, and "ice-axe scrambled" to the ridge in order to snap a few photos of the Stuart Range. A tempting open bowl and superior skiing skills compelled Paul and Jennifer to hike to the ridge with skis in hand.

Pano Stuart Range

Looking ENE toward Bean, Earl, and Navaho

-2 style points: baseball cap + ski googles

Satisfied with my photos of Stuart, I scrambled down from the ridge eager to escape 30-40 mph wind gusts. Back at my skis, I enjoyed preparing for the descent I was sure would be worth the four hours of windshield time. The corn snow was no less than perfect and the sparse number of trees and gentle terrain allowed for a quick descent. While we hiked out, the four of us concluded nothing would have made for a better outing.

Route

Stats Duration: 3.5 hours (ascent), 2 hours (descent) Cumulative elev gain: 3,000 ft Mileage: 6.75

[Anna Mae]

Nice report, MO. It's fascinating how different winter recreational activity can be from what you see in ski areas and read about in hiking guides. There's a bunch of people playing out there that most folks don't even suspect. Anna Mae

[puzzlr]

Can you elaborate on the condition of the North Fork Teanaway road? Could you drive all the way to the Beverly Creek TH? Did the North Fork road look open beyond the Beverly Creek turn-off?

[mountaineer ordinaire]

We were able to drive the entire way to the Beverly Creek trailhead. The road is 100% snow free so there's no need for AWD. A few drainages in the road don't require a high clearance vehicle but most sedans would likely bottom out. If you drove this road last year with no problems, these man-made ditches are no more difficult. According to this 5/2 note: North Fork Rd is snow free for a mile past the Beverly Creek campground.

[joker]

Nice job. That's a fun tour. Earl is a great ski as well, with multiple worthy lines, though overall a tad steeper and a teeny bit more complex to get to the top of. I always love seeing the avalanche lillies and such on the hike back out at the end of the day too. Ski crampons are a wonderful thing in the spring, eh? (I think I see some in one of the photos...) It's also amazing how quickly this tour tends to melt out. Might be OK this weekend still, though, given this week's cool wet weather, but I've seen one week make a massive difference.

[mountaineer ordinaire]

[Layback]

Nice job MO.

[joker]

[mountaineer ordinaire]

[Mtn Man]

Nice TR! We were talking about doing this one last week. Looks like we may need to revisit that discussion! B)

[joker]