Artist Point/Table Mountain Circumnavigation Ski Tour (March 2023 Trip Report)

3/18/2023

7.57 miles

2,321 feet

The route begins at Mount Baker Ski Area. From the southern end of the parking lot, skin south on the west side of the groomed track. Keep right and avoid downhill traffic. Climb to the ski area boundary at Austin Pass (4,700 ft). Continue southwest to the large flat Artist Point (5,080 ft).

To cross the southeast slope of Table Mountain, ski a descending traverse (to 4,800 ft) and then climb the south shoulder (5,200 ft) to the base of Ptarmigan Ridge. There might be a high traverse option, but these steep slopes are avalanche prone (and may already be littered with avalanche debris), so the lower route is often both safer and more efficient.

From the shoulder, enjoy the beautiful views of Mount Baker. Then, ski down to Iceberg Lake (4,800 ft). Traverse the lake, then climb Mazama Dome to Herman Saddle (5,300 ft). The easiest descent is fall line from the saddle, following the main drainage into the valley. Carry your speed as much as possible across the valley floor before skinning out from Bagley Lakes Basin back to the parking lot.

While the skiing itself is very moderate, this route does pass through and underneath avalanche terrain.

We arrived to the lot to plenty of parking around 7AM and started skinning just after 7:45AM.

There was a skintrack highway up to Artist Point. The trail was great, and due to our early start time, still uncrowded.

In two quick miles, we were at the famous Artist Point!!

Departing from Artist Point to continue on the Table Mountain Circumnavigation, solitude increased. We didn't see anyone else until we crossed Iceberg Lake.

It felt magical to look up at beautiful, snowy, intimidating Mount Baker... and know that we would be up there in a few short months!

Spring was in the air! Blue skies, sunshine, powdery snow, perfect temperatures, and old wet loose slides galore.

We crossed beneath these steep slopes (you can actually see our track in the bottom right, at the toe of the slides in the photo above). Since it was early in the morning, the snow hadn't had much time to warm and still felt stable. While selecting terrain for the traverse, keep in mind avalanche conditions and overhead hazard.

We made some fun, powdery turns down from the saddle and then traversed down towards Iceberg Lake. The skiing was very moderate, save for crossing the icy chunks of old wet-loose avalanche debris.

The climb up Herman Saddle was pretty steep, even in the trees. The old skin track was icy and it was often more efficient to just make our own in the untouched snow.

Topping out Herman Saddle was amazing. There were two other groups up there and everyone was enjoying the gorgeous views and sunshine.

We ripped skins and skied down the main fall line from Herman Saddle. We glided along the valley floor for as long as possible before putting our skins back on and skinning out from Bagley Lake Basin.

This entire area is gorgeous, with an inspiring line for a future tour everywhere you turn. These are the days that remind me why I live so far away from my family in New York, in beautiful Washington state.

The Table Mountain Circumnavigation is suitable for a strong intermediate skier (with off-piste experience) and avalanche skills.