Sahale Mountain via the Doubtful Lake Gullies is one of the most scenic lines in the North Cascades of Washington. Once the road is melted out enough on Cascade Pass road it is one of the best easy access mountains around. With a semi mellow climb up the Sahale Arm and a few steep steps you have a sweeping view of the North Cascades and North Cascades National Park.
Our friend Scott Yorko arrived in the Cascades for a few days and was looking to get out ski touring. We looked over the maps for a little while before settling on heading out to Sahale Mountain. Once arriving in the Car park early in the morning we were surrounded by towering mountains. Passing by the CJ Couloir it reminded me of how steep of a line it is and my previous wild adventure riding it.
Climbing up Cascade Pass
Once at the base of Cascade Pass it was time for the mini crux of the trip. For most climbs it is the upper face that is technical but when heading toward Sahale Mountain it’s getting up to Cascade Pass. Soon enough our boards were on our backpacks and we were carefully kick stepping up to Pass.
Once on Cascade Pass we were finding semi firm snow so we decided to keep climbing up to the Sahale Arm. With each step the views of the North Cascades were getting better.
Looking back I was reminded of a sketchy traverse Jason Hummel and I did while doing the Extended Ptarmagin Traverse of the American Alps. In the photo below you can see it on the left side below the summit and above the cliffs.
Ski Touring up the Sahale Arm
It wasn’t long before we made our way up to the Sahale Arm. From here on out the route would be straight forward. Collecting our gear and transitioning to skinning we took a quick break before moving again.
Skinning on the Sahale Arm was straight forward and scenic as we climbed. The weather was coming in and out as we enjoyed sunshine one moment then clouds the next.
Looking up at Sahale Peak we noticed that the face on the right side looked nice. Our plans were to ride to Doubtful lake via one of the gullies.
Once past the Sahale Arm we were skinning on the upper face, a long ramp that seems to go forever. It was mellow enough to keep skinning but still firm as the sun hadn’t softened the snow yet.
Climbing up the Sahale Glacier
Looking back I was reminded of old ski tours in every direction. Behind Ben was the Magic S Loop that Hummel and I did a few years prior and far in the distance I could see Glacier Peak which I had climbed numerous times.
Once the slopes got steeper on the upper headwall we took a break and a quick break. We chatted back and forth about whether to skin or to bootpack. Both would be relatively easy and we were already standing a few hundred feet below the summit of Sahale Mountain.
As we took a quick food break I had to laugh. My cliff bar was telling me to head for the hills but I was already there. You have to laugh when you notice these little things.
In the end we decided it would be faster to bootpack. The snow was starting to soften up and we found it perfect for kicking in steps to the summit.
The final bit was a bit steeper as we switched turns putting in the steps. We were moving fast and everything was going smooth. There was no wind and the snow seemed to be softening up. We could tell it would be perfect conditions for snowboarding.
Before long we were standing on the summit of Sahale Mountain. Below us was 4,000 feet of fall line snowboarding. Around us was endless mountains within the North Cascades standing proud. We stood around on the summit for 20 minutes before it was time to descend. Saign was excited and ready to drop in.
Snowboarding down Sahale Mountain
Our line would take us all the way down to Doubtful Lake before a final skin back up to the Sahale Arm. The snow was in perfect condition and we knew it would be great corn skiing.
Soon enough we were dropping onto the upper face one at a time. We had timed our descent perfectly and from here on out we let gravity take over.
After riding down the upper face we did a mellow traverse before it was time to ride onto the Sahale Glacier.
The slope above Doubtful Lake was mellow before the final descent. Riding together we milked the turns riding at the same time and heading to the entrance of the lower gully.
Above the lower gully we stopped for a second to chat about our entrance. We had seen it on our way up and we wanted to make sure to ride into the right gully.
Making our Descent to Doubtful Lake off Sahale Mountain
Feeling confident we were heading for the proper line we started riding again. Since it was getting much steeper we decided to go one at a time. Ben was happy to go first and make sure the line went.
Putting in first tracks Ben made his way down the steep gully. This was the highlight of the ski tour and we were sure the line went down to Doubtful lake.
Once Ben was at a safe spot it was time for Saign to drop in and loosely follow his tracks. While we were creating small rolling balls of snow we weren’t causing avalanches.
Once they were down lower Scott dropped in and rode all the way to Doubtful Lake where Ben and Saign were waiting for us.
Riding down to Doubtful Lake we were happy with our choice of lines. If we had chosen to ride the Sahale Arm it would have been a low angle line but this was much steeper. Things had gone smooth and the weather hadn’t closed in.
Exiting via the Sahale Arm
It was time for our final skin back up to the Sahale arm before our descent down to Cascade Pass. Making our way up the mellow slopes we would occasionally look back towards the Stehekin Valley where I had an epic a few years prior.
Looking toward Sahale Mountain we were happy with our choice of line. We had rode down the gully in the middle of the photo but could have easily enjoyed numerous lines in the area. Sadly there wasn’t enough time in the day and we needed to head back.
Soon enough it was time to do our final descent back to the car. It was an easy run as we followed our bootpack through the crux of Cascade Pass. We had a great group of fun and competent riders and enjoying the best of what the North Cascades had to offer. It was time for the long drive back to the Puget Sound so we could plan what to ride the next day.
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