Jeff's Corner - Mt Baker, Washington

Mt. Baker is a rather legendary ski area in the Cascades not far from the Canadian border. It sits about an hour east of Bellingham at about 5,000 feet. Mt. Baker itself is a dormant volcano rising to 10,000 feet. The ski area sits below it, adjacent to spectacular Mt. Shuskan.

Baker's claim to fame is its snow -- one year it received more than 1,000 inches. The day I skied there, in February, their base depth was 206 inches. Typically, Baker has the deepest snow depth of any ski area in North America, and often in the world. Most of this snow falls at temperatures just below freezing, meaning a slight warm spell can also mean large quantities of rain. Luckily, this is a problem mostly in the early season. For evidence of just how deep the snow can get, check out some of the photos in the Heather Meadows lodge -- unbelievable.

It's also known for its throw-back atmosphere and its legendary Banked Slalom ski race, held in a natural half pipe.

Baker has two base areas and the lower area operates mainly on weekends and holidays.

The ski area has two distinct areas: the mellow upper and lower mountain and the very steep terrain in between.

From the upper Heather Meadows day lodge, Chair 1 makes an unusual crossing of Chair 2 as it climbs Panorama Dome, or PanDome as it's also called. The front face of PanDome is a line of inbounds and mostly unmarked cliffs. When the snow is very deep, as it usually is, these fill in to be very tight chutes. Downslope from base of Chair 1, Chair 3 is another unusual lift -- it goes up then down in each direction and can be ridden to the midway summit in either direction. It serves beginner terrain.

From the White Salmon base area, Chair 7 serves beginner terrain and gives access to Chairs 4, 5 and 6. Chair 4 is the same as Chair 3 on the Heather Meadows side. Chair 6 climbs up to PanDome and serves a narrow bowl of expert runs. Chair 5, meanwhile, serves a series of very steep runs and more
cliffs and chutes.

The highest chair is chair 8, accessed from chair 5. It serves a beautiful subapline bowl of intermediate runs and loose glades. This is the busiest part of the mountain and home to the terrain park, which seems to often not be open due to the heavy snow.

The area also has a couple of beginner rope tows.

The vide at Baker is a bit aggressive. It attracts a big group of core skiers and borders who are serious about riding the deep snow and going hard.

If you're lucky enough to be at Baker on a clear day you'll be treated to astounding views of the wilderness of the north Cascades and the glacier-draped slopes of Shuskan.

Most services for Baker can be found in the vicinity of the town of Glacier, about a half hour away.

Jeff Schmerker
Waynesville, NC

Shuksan from Mt. Baker ski area