Three Fingered Jack (OR) - Southeast Bowl

Coming off of a tour at Mount Thielsen which was fraught with sketchy cornice travel, poor visibility and breakable crust, I was itchin’ for another backcountry tour with better conditions. Luckily for me, my buddy Rich (who I had met in avy class) was also looking for some adventure. As we were discussing options I received an email from Andrew, a guy I had corresponded with a few times about doing some touring together. In his email he suggested Three Fingered Jack, which I knew very little about, other than seeing it off in the distance while driving along Hwy 20 between Eugene and Bend. I decided I'd better do a little research before committing, starting with some internet queries and followed by a deeper analysis using topo and aerial maps. I became quite intrigued by what I found, and after running it by Rich I replied to Andrew to let him know that we were in.

With the forecast showing unseasonably warm temps, we decided that we would need to get an early start so that we could catch the corn window and get in a lap or two before it turned into slush and raised the wet avalanche danger. After some back and forth we agreed to meet in the Santiam Sno-Park lot by 7am, which meant that Rich and I would need to leave Eugene by 5:30am – ugh… The day of our trip I woke up on time, made a quick breakfast and met up with Rich at the edge of town. Being early morning, the traffic was light and we made it to the sno-park around 6:45am. Andrew, who was coming from Salem showed up about 20 minutes later and after quickly gearing up we were on our way.

Early start to the day

I had been nervous that the night time temps wouldn’t drop below 32°F and the snow wouldn’t have gone through a freeze cycle the night before; therefore I was pretty happy to be skinning along a pretty solid layer of crust, which was only now being touched by the rising sun. The first part of the approach was super easy going, as it led us through a burn area with wide openings between the graveyard of charred trees. This section also provided us with some pretty nice views back to the south, and eventually the tip of Three Fingered Jack (3FJ) to the north, which we used to help guide us in the general direction.

Some nice skin tracks to follow

Rich warming up in the morning sun

Getting our first glimpse of 3FJ

The long sight lines made navigation fairly easy

Right around the 2 ½ mile mark we reached the ridge overlooking the Summit Lake basin, which we’d planned to follow all the way to the summit of the south bowl. From the ridge we had a spectacular view of the craggy peak and the south bowl. After dealing with the corniced ridge at Mount Thielsen the week before, I was nervous that the ridge up to 3FJ would also be sketchy and slow going – unfortunately this ended up being the case and our progress up the mountain soon began to suffer. Not only was the ridge heavily corniced along its eastern edge, some of the cornices had recently broken free and slid down the hill, likely due to the recent warming trend. Along with having to safely navigate around the cornices, the snow had really started to soften up and I had to work hard not to dig in my tips on the steep up pitches. It was at this point that I started to think that we didn’t get an early enough start and we might miss the corn, even for our first descent.

Rich takes in the view from the ridge above the Summit Lake basin

Nice view of Black Butte

Getting into the cornices

Cornice debris, just below the ridge. 

Giving the edge a wide berth

Rich stops for a photo op on the way up

Andrew closes in on the south bowl

Before long we reached the base of the south bowl, where we decided to traverse up and across instead of continuing up the ridge along the cornice wall. The main concern with us traversing up the head wall was the cornice breaks, especially with evidence of recent activity, however, based on their smaller size, the reasonable slope angle and the fact that the snow hadn’t yet absorbed too much solar radiation, we felt it was safe enough to proceed. The skin up the face was certainly slow going, with the side slope requiring a few aggressive kick turns along the way. The south bowl itself actually looked like it would make for some fun turns, especially if you were tight on time and got in a few laps. As we reached the east side of the bowl, the degree of the slope lessened and we found a nice opening between cornices to navigate to the top of the ridge.

The south bowl

More cornice breaks

Making our way east across the bowl

Rich takes in the view of the summit, from the top of the south bowl.

Now at the top of the south bowl we had an amazing view of the summit peak and the southwest bowl, which also looked like it had some really fun line options. From this point we couldn’t see into the southeast bowl, which from my research was considered the best. With that we headed northeast along the ridge until it started to drop down along the saddle that connected us to the summit crags. From this point it became apparent that we had chosen wisely with this decision of our trip – there were multiple line/aspect options forming the southeast bowl. The south end of the bowl, where we were currently standing, actually had an amazing face that was quite tempting, but after some discussion we decided we needed to hit the money line, which dropped down from the saddle just below the crags. The real benefit of this line was that we would get in nearly 1,200’ of uninterrupted/treeless descent!

Making our way to the drop zone

Looking back toward the south end of SE bowl.
Some really good line options on that side as well.

Before dropping down the saddle we could see a boot path, so we figured someone must have made the same decision as us or was planning to summit. It wasn’t until we got down there that we discovered that they were tracks from a mountain goat. Looking up we actually spotted him standing on a small bench just down from the summit, looking out toward the east – pretty cool! Unfortunately, by the time I got my camera out and ready, he had left his perch.

It was now time to get down to business. Once we had transitioned over to descent mode we discussed our plan of attack. Since I wanted to take photos from both above and below I would go second, with Andrew going first and Rich third. For safety reasons we’d also be breaking up the descent in two parts, regrouping at a knoll about halfway down. Once I had my camera ready I gave Andrew the all clear. He dropped in, cutting in some beautiful lines on the way down. Once he reached the pit stop I strapped into my snowboard and painted some lines of my own, through a perfect layer of spring corn! As soon as I reached Andrew, I unstrapped from my board and grabbed my camera for some shots of Rich, who came down soon after with some nice lines and a big smile on his face – what a great first pitch!

Andrew drops in for the first lines of the day

Working his way down to the first pitch of the SE bowl

Rich drops in for his turn on the first pitch

For the second half of the descent, the route dropped down and around the knoll. Once again Andrew went first, followed shortly after by Rich. Once both were out of sight, I quickly strapped in and headed down myself, with the mellower slope offering up some really nice turns. At the bottom of the descent we regrouped, celebrated, and ate a quick snack before figuring out how the heck we were going to get back up to the ridge.

Andrew drops into the second pitch

The author partway down the second pitch
(photo by Rich Dana)

Based on the map it looked like the best way to get back up to the ridge and avoid boot packing was to traverse south until we reached the southeast ridge, which we’d use to make the ascent. Although we’d be side slope traversing with little elevation gain until we reached the ridge, we did have to do a few steep/short pitches, which weren't large enough to show up on the map. Of course the map also didn't indicate how corniced the SE ridge would be, which took us a little time and effort to find a safe passage up and onto.

Safely atop the SE ridge

Now at the SE ridge, we decided it would be best to stay off of it and instead continue traversing as it wrapped around to the base of the south bowl. It was on this section that we discovered how wet the snow had become from solar radiation, at least on this aspect. As our skis cut into the side of the hill, small wet sluffs would break off at our feet and slide slowly down the hill. At one point I actually witnessed a small loose/wet sluff break free on its own. Based on these new observations we decided against trying to get in another lap like we had planned.

More amazing views toward the south
(Broken Top, The Sisters and Mount Washington)

Reconnecting with the south bowl

With our new objective of getting back to the parking lot, we continued our traverse, finding shallower slope angles to reduce our avy exposure. Eventually we made it back to the southwest ridge and our ascent tracks. To avoid traveling back on the corniced section we had traveled up along, we dropped down the west side of the ridge, knowing that we would still be heading in the direction we needed to go. Since I am not the most skilled downhill skinner/skier, I struggled with the concept of four edges as we made our way down from the ridge. I intentionally kept my skins on to help keep my speed in check, although this did little to counter my lack of balance.

Following the breadcrumbs

Andrew takes in the view

Before long, the slope degree lessened and I was able to make much more efficient progress, especially with the wide and multiple line options that were a result of the charred forest. The sparse vegetation also allowed for really nice views of Mount Washington and Hoodoo, which we used to guide us in the general direction of the car. Once we hit the PCT, the ski and snowshoe tracks took over as our navigation tool, leading us back down to the Santiam Sno-Park, which for me couldn't come soon enough -- I was pretty spent at this point. Taking off your boots after a daylong tour is always wonderful and this time was no exception. After changing into our street clothes and throwing back a celebratory beer, Rich and I parted ways with Andrew as we each made our way back to our respective cities.

One of our final views of the tour

Conclusion:
Three Fingered Jack definitely exceeded my expectations, with its quality terrain and amazing scenery. Blessed with beautiful alpine bowls on all aspects, there is plenty of terrain for multiple trips within a single season; heck, the views alone are worth a trip! Although the approach is nearly four miles, it travels through a burn area that makes it fairly painless, at least until you reach the corniced ridges. In hindsight and on future trips, I'd plan accordingly to avoid these sections of the ridge, even if it means adding a little bit of distance.

As for snow conditions, we were treated to a perfect layer of corn for the descent, at least up high. It did start to get a little slushy for the last few turns down low, but even then it still held an edge nicely. Unfortunately with the warm weather the corn window was very small and we weren't able to get in another lap, which is maybe a good thing since I was wiped by the time we got back to the car after just one. All in all it was a great tour and it was a great intro to spring skiing on one of the Cascades' many volcanic peaks and it certainly whet my appetite for what’s to come over the next few months.

The tracks from our tour:

Entire route

Route on Three Fingered Jack

Tombstone Pass - Cone Peak (OR)

Ever since my buddy Randy told me about the great tour options at Tombstone Pass, I'd been anxious to check it out for myself. Of the peaks in that area, he specially mentioned Cone Peak, telling of treeless runs from the summit down the south face. Armed with this bit of information I started scouring topo maps and pre-scouting in Google Earth to start planning a route. The biggest obstacle I ran into was the lack of snowpack in this particular area -- even though we had been getting plenty of precipitation the passes along Hwy 20 didn't have cool enough temps to produce the white stuff like it had in some of the other surrounding areas. Although I had to put this zone on hold, I was ready to get to it as soon as conditions allowed.

Fast-forward to last weekend. After we were hit with a cold front and a rather a large storm that dropped a healthy amount of snow at Tombstone Pass, I knew I'd better act fast since it was now mid-March and this would probably be my last chance of the season. The next challenge, as always, was finding some folks to join in the adventure. In the end, my buddy Brian ended up being the only one that was available. Once I had filled him in on the particulars we agreed to meet up in town at 7am. We wanted to get an early start since the weather called for fairly warm temps and sunny skies, bringing with it the possibility of loose wet avalanche conditions.

It was now Saturday, and from Eugene it took us about an hour and a half to reach the Tombstone Sno-Park. By the time we had gotten geared up and starting hiking down the short bit of road to the Cone Peak trailhead it was a little after 9am and the temps were already starting to warm up. Within 100' of the start of the trail we reached a clearing where recent free water melt had etched an impressive array of runnels across the surface of the snowpack. Although it indicated that the quality of the snow probably wasn't going to be very good it was still firm enough to ease our concerns over avy danger. Along with the runnels we also found a couple pairs of skin tracks carved into the snow, which we decided to use as breadcrumbs for our ascent.

Gettin' skinned up

The start of our ascent

Brian cuts across some crazy runnels near the start of the climb

As we continued on a little further, the tracks lead across a small running stream and headed off in a westerly direction. Not sure if we should continue to follow them, I consulted my GPS which had our pre-planned route overlaid onto it. Since I wasn't sure where exactly the other tracks would lead us, we opted to head back in the direction of our original plan, which sent us up and through the trees. Navigating through the maze of trees certainly proved to be more challenging than in the open meadows. Before too long we reached the ridge that would lead us to the bench about halfway up and into full view of Cone Peak.

Route finding through the trees

Our first good view of Cone Peak, from the bench at the base. 

Some good looking lines off of Iron Mountain 

South Peak, from the bench

Looking up toward the summit of Cone Peak, the southwest ridge that we had originally planned to climb was a patchwork of thin snowpack and exposed ground, hardly optimal conditions for skinning up. Since there was still plenty of snow on the main face, I suggested that we just zig-zag our way up, while spot-checking the snow to make sure we weren’t putting ourselves in avalanche danger. As we worked our way up using a series of traverses and kick turns, the slope got steeper and steeper until we were forced to boot pack up the final 200 vertical feet.

Brian scouts out an ascent route

Partway up the south face of Cone Peak

Brain poses for a photo on the south face of Cone Peak

Climbing up the eastern ridge toward the summit
(photo by Brian Watson)

Making the final push

The view at the summit did not disappoint, and we had an amazing 360-degree panoramic of the surrounding landmarks, including almost all of the Oregon Cascade peaks. Although it was a little breezy the temps were mild and pleasant. We spent about 10 or 15 minutes taking in the view and eating a snack before we started our transition into descent mode. The snow, which was getting a heavy dose of solar radiation, was starting to get pretty wet – we weren’t getting any major red flags but I was certainly getting anxious to get in our turns before it loosened up too much. From the summit, we slowly worked our way down the southwest ridge and looked for a good place to drop in, which essentially came down to the place with the most snow and longest bit of uninterrupted turns. I offered to go first and after doing a few test cuts/jumps on the snow I pointed it downhill and threw in some nice toe and heel-side turns. I made sure to pull off to a safety zone that was still within eyeshot of Brian and once I had my camera ready I signaled him down.

Made it!

Mount Jefferson, from the summit of Cone Peak.

The Three Sisters

Mount Washington

Looking down the western ridge towards our drop-in point

Brian makes his first turns of the descent

From our meeting spot we would have to traverse either a little to the right or left, since an island of volcanic rock sat just below us. With a good view to skier’s right we opted for that route, and once again I dropped in first so that I could set-up for some photos from down below. I was now about halfway down the south face where a hard heel-side turn kicked off some rollerballs that gathered snow and speed as they made their way down the hill in front of me. Although I still felt confident with the snow conditions, I threw in a couple more test cuts before settling into a few more flowing turns to the next safety zone. After getting the verbal to Brian, he painted his own lines down the mountain and we were once again reunited.

More treeless turns

Brian reaches the second pit stop 

Now, we were faced with a decision, continue west (skier’s right) toward the bench or drop down to the east to extend our line a couple hundred vertical feet. Since I really wanted to get in some more turns I proposed we go with the second option, which Brian agreed to. With that, I packed up my camera and started down, making as many turns as I could. Eventually the trees closed in a bit and we were forced into some reactionary navigation. As we made our way down the slope, we knew we’d have to skin a couple hundred feet to make our way back up to the bench, but I accidentally led us down a little further than I should have. We ended up getting stopped by thick trees and flanked by a small stream drainage on either side of us. Once it became obvious that continuing on our path would be a bad idea we consulted the map to figure out how we were going to dig ourselves out. With no great options, we ended up boot packing up a steep crotch-deep slope that eventually brought us back toward the bench at the base of Cone Peak. Without going into too much detail, it sucked pretty badly and I’m glad that Brian wasn’t too pissed at me and took it in stride.

Looking down into the second (east) option

The author heads east for an extended descent
(photo by Brian Watson)

Kickin' up rollerballs

Funneling down to the point of no return

As soon as we had reached a point where we could skin again, we made the transition and worked back toward our original ascent route, which we planned to use to get back down to the road. Before too long our old skin tracks came into view, which certainly brought a bit of relief. Instead of using the exact path back, which would have sent us though some pretty steep/dense trees, we tried to link the snow covered meadows, like playing a round of golf. Toward the bottom, the slope flattened out and the trees once again closed in around us and we were forced to hike out the remaining ¼ mile, following the sound of the road traffic. Eventually we reached the highway and made the final leg of the trip back to the car. Although we hadn’t put in an extremely long day or very many miles, I had burned nearly 3,500 calories and was certainly feeling it.

Time to skin again

Runnel art

One final view of Cone Peak

Enjoying some turns in one of the lower meadows

The last bit of skiable slope

Conclusion:
For being within 1.5 hours of Eugene, I can see Tombstone Pass becoming one of my go-to zones, assuming conditions allow. Cone Peak itself offers up some really nice turns down from the summit, but as always the ride is over way too quickly. In hindsight, I should have stuck to my original route plan and not have gotten greedy, leading us into the drainage of which we had to hike out. I also would have stuck to our original ascent route as well, or at least done a better job with the pre-planning and built in a couple of options. As for the snow conditions, they certainly weren’t the best but still provided some nice turns on the face; albeit a little wet. There are also some other good looking peaks in that zone like South Peak and Iron Mountain, which I’m really looking forward to putting some tracks on.

Our tracks:

Red = Ascent
Yellow = Descent