Garibaldi Northeast Face
On April 13, 2024 Greg, Jas, Ben and myself set off to climb and ski the Northeast face of Mount Garibaldi. With the incoming high pressure and heat, we knew it was the perfect time to go searching for high north facing powder. GPX track below:
We drove Ben’s sweet 4x4 rig up to roughly 900m (2900’) in elevation, where we were stopped by patchy snow. It was clear that snowmobiles frequented this FSR, so we opted to stop before the snow, as we didn’t want to ruin the track for the sledders. We likely could have been able to drive up to 1000m before stopping the vehicle. The morning started out with a little comedy….Ben accidentally forgot his powder baskets, so we engineered a quick solution…
Ben’s organic pole baskets.
It was a long slog up the FSR until we reached a groomed track up to Brohm Ridge FSR. From there, we continued skinning for another hour or so up to the chalet. Thankfully, the views were nice because there were many clearings. We marveled at the European style chalets, I was a little jealous of my Canadian neighbors.
FSR views of the Tantalus Range.
We were passed by two parties of 3 on snowmobiles, who we assumed were also going to Garibaldi. So much for first tracks :) Above the chalet, the terrain opened up and the skinning became more interesting.
Skinning above the chalet.
The terrain was still flat and after the groomer ended, we continued sidehill skinning and flat glacier skinning beneath the Brohm pinnacle. Most parties go up and over the pinnacle, this adds vertical elevation gain and requires taking off the skis. I’m not sure why this is standard, as this route does not add any benefit, only complications. After skinning up the final bowl, we arrived on the glacier. The Wilson glacier was very filled in and we opted to forego roping up.
Skinning across the Wilson Glacier. Brohm Pinnacle in the background.
Garibaldi’s NE Face above the Wilson Glacier.
We kept our skins on all the way until the bergschrund below the summit of Garibaldi, switching to booting the final 100m of the NE face. The bergschrund was filled in and the booting was straightforward, no crampons required this time. We managed to pass one party who zoomed by us on snowmobiles in the early morning, but I could not quite catch the other party. We all reached the summit at roughly the same time, with a total of 8 skiers and splitboarders on the summit! We enjoyed spectacular views of the North Cascades: Garibaldi Park, Tantalus Range and a plethora of peaks.
Coast range views, Mamquam icefield in the center.
Atwell Peak with the Howe sound in the distance.
The skiing started out a tad bit spicy - The upper section of the face had a dusting of powder above an icy crust, it was slow skiing until the snow transitioned to boot top powder all the way down the face. They were fantastic turns.
The lower section of Garibaldi’s NE Face.
Skiing out was fun, but there were many transitions and tiny uphill sections, just enough to make it exhausting. Overall, it was a pleasant and straightforward day….. I think I’ll get a sled next winter :)
