We finally decided to go for it. The snow on top was relatively soft and the suncups were gone. The top 500 vertical feet was a great warm up for the steeper sections to come. We all seemed to handle it pretty well. I felt better knowing where to go. We skied more or less non-stop down to the top of the rockband. I made a few stops just to catch my breath. There really is no such thing as a stop on this type of face. You're basically poised in-between turns on a 40 to 45 degree face. We kept an eye on each other because it wouldn't take long for one of us to slip out of sight. Troy and I both paralleled because we didn't feel comfortable in a telemark turn on steep ice. We made it through last year's crux with relative ease.

At the top of the rockband we had to decide whether to go left or right. Last year Charlie and I went left because the snow was more forgiving on that side. This year the snow was the same on either side. The right has a little more exposure and we were all feeling pretty good so we decided to go for it.

Two climbers were perched on a small rock in the middle of the face. Tygh skied towards them and they took a photo of him as he skied by. I imagine they were pretty surprised to see three skiers descending the same slope that they required crampons, ice axe and rope to get up. Anyway, they were a long way from the top but I think they made it. The standard descent for most technical climbs on the north side of Adams is the North Ridge (what we went up). You'd have to be crazy, stupid or desperate to descend the NFNWR on foot. Skis are a great tool for stuff like this.

 

Tygh makes turns down the right side of the rockband. The two climbers are stopped on a rock below and to the right of him.

 

Troy and I gave the climbers a wave as we skied by. I ended up skiing back to the rockband where I felt safe to stop and take a few photos. Troy and Tygh hugged the right side of the face near the Adams Glacier for maximum exposure. There wasn't much of a traverse to exit onto the glacier because we had stayed so close.

 

Tygh exposes himself.

 

We regrouped at the exit onto the glacier. Our easy line through the crevasses turned out to be sketchy crevasse hopping event. We were able to keep our skis on the entire way. If it looked like it might work, we went for it. We felt pretty confident by now and the snow kept getting better. I couldn't help but take a few photos despite the risk of icefall from above.

 

Troy exits the face onto the Adams Glacier.

 

Tygh shows us what spring skiing is all about.

 

Troy does a little crevasse hopping. The NFNWR is on the upper right. You can see the line we skied. You can also imagine what would happen if we fell.

 

The rest of the day was without incident. We didn't even get a parking ticket. Troy and Tygh were pretty stoked to have skied the legendary face. I was even more stoked to have skied it twice. Our new line is a bit more bold but they both demand attention. In the end it all comes down to the snow conditions and your willingness to commit.

 

A look back. Our ski descent of the NFNWR from the top of the West Peak to the base of the Adams Glacier. My route branches off near the bottom of the face so I could take photos. Definitely a classic.

 

The Hummels have yet to ski it so I'm sure I'll be back in Spring 01.

 

 

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