I hiked up pine creek over the summer and thought that it would be a very nice Alpine Tour in the winter given enough time to climb. I am worried that it might be too much for a single overnight. Does anyone know how far back the road is plowed to the base of the mountain? How long does it take to get to the upper lake? Is the skiing from the lake back down to the trailhead worth it in the spring? What about black mountain, is it skinable or does it require more technical mountaineering skills? Avy danger? Any advice would be welcome.
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S. fork PineCreek = Good
Howdy Lincoln,
Pine creek is good in winter. The road can be burly at some times of the year- it has to do twith wind drifting very low down, in the valley, If yer rig gets past that, conditions generally allow one to drive well into the Pine Creek campground- close enough for any ice climber!
The standard ice climbs are Blue Gulley or Green Gulley- about a mile up, visible through the trees, on the right.
The main trail goes past these, and past Pine creek falls, up the N. fork of Pine creek drainage. Butot getto the really good climbs in Pine creek, hike up the South Fork path- which leaves the main trail just about 100 yards BEFORE Pine Creek Falls.
Up the South fork of Pine Creek, you will find good climbs like Das Vokables, Neptune, Pluto, and a couple other random climbs, on both sides of the drainage.
Have fun!
Black mountain
There's a skiing route description and map available for Black Mountain in the Bozeman & Big Sky Backcountry ski guide that you might want to check out too: http://bozemanskiguide.com
There are also a couple of other places to ski in the Abasarkoas that are worth checking out in the book too.