Non Sled Accessed Touring

I am out in Seattle and was thinking about making a mid week trip out to Idaho for some skiing later in the season (early March-ish). After scouring the TR's it looks like most of the touring in the area is sled accessed. I was wondering if there are any tours that don't require a sled approach. Specifically looking in the Schweitzer area, but am open to driving farther if needed. It seemed like everything from Priest Lake is sled accessed and Pack River road didn't seem like an option without a sled either. Any help is greatly appreciated!
 
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Yeah that was certainly on my mind. Would they care if we skinned up the resort to get to the sidecountry off the top?

I was hoping to get out away from the resort on our touring days though.
 
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From Schweitzer ski patrol...
Alright folks, just a little reminder of Schweitzer's uphill policy. As tempting as it might be to climb and get the goods, Schweitzer is private property and we do not sanction uphill traffic anywhere other than cross country trails. This is for your safety as hazards do exist. Avalanches, control work, on snow equipment and unmarked obstacles are just a few of the surprises you may encounter. Keep in mind that as you take risks in closed areas, there may not be any assistance available if you run into trouble. To be anywhere on the mountain, you must always have a current ticket or pass. We strongly discourage (up to and including trespassing) any uphill ski and foot traffic on operational days from 6am to 8pm. Exceptions may occur during special events, but only with permission from the resort. It is our job to enforce this policy and we would really appreciate your respect as we try to keep our wonderful mountain safe!
 
Major bummer. Thanks for your responses, Mike! I may need to rethink this plan if I can't find any touring up that way.
 
St. Regis basin. You can go around (takes time) or just park at Lookout Pass ski resort and get a single use pass (think it is $10) to get you to the back side and then get after it. Stop for a beer in the lodge on the way back.
 
St Regis Basin would be good for sure, but talking about Schweitzer, what I have done in the past and I have seen other guys doing, is to park near a small parking lot at the top of the condo area above the parking lot, then skin up the out-of-bounds Castle Chute (not really a chute, moderate enough to skin) or up summer roads to the lakeview ridge, then just stay right outside the boundary and skin up the ridge to the top of the Lakeview Triple, then ski the sidecountry from there.

On the map, the blue lines are the two routes to skin up, and the orange line is the Schweitzer boundary line.

Schweitzer skin track to triple.jpg
 
Yeah if you drop in north from the top of the triple it is great, just don't go too far. Also, solar ecstasy is pretty popular off the south and west aspects of the triple (but more mellow). My personal favorite sidecountry tour out of Schweitzer would be the Southeast face of Big Blue, and also the West face, yet the West face would be tough to skin out of without going inbounds.

As for Bald Mountain, I've never done that tour, seems a little far when there's good stuff nearby. But Redneck Ridge, which is in between the Lakeview Triple peak and Bald Mountain can also be really good.
Map (Blue line=cat tracks I always use, Red line=descents, Orange line=Schweitzer boundary)

rsz_schweitzer_map.jpg
 
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St. Regis is a good bet as is the whole area around Stevens Peak. I personally like skiing the West Willow Peak/Lone Lake Basin Area, but St. Regis, Stevens Lakes, and apparently the Copper and Boulder Lakes basins are good, though I've never skied the last two. If you want easy access, it doesn't get much easier than across the interstate from Lookout Pass. Lastly, if you're up around Sandpoint and don't mind putting in a longer tour, Star Peak and Round Top Peak in the Cabinet range are worthwhile tours. Worst case, go to Kootenay Pass... Hope that helps!
 
Star and Round Top are intriguing. Where are the start points for those tours? It looks like for Star it would be right off Highway 200 or up 2292 at the gate for 2293? Approach Round top from the NW from the road up Trestle Creek that goes up the ridgeline over Mount Eagan? Or could you go up Strong Creek drainage and approach from the south?

By the way, thanks for all the suggestions! Getting more stoked by the day to go explore!
 

idsnowghost

Staff member
Approach Round top from the NW from the road up Trestle Creek that goes up the ridgeline over Mount Eagan? Or could you go up Strong Creek drainage and approach from the south?

By the way, thanks for all the suggestions! Getting more stoked by the day to go explore!
Strong Creek approach would be lengthy, but a group did it just last week I hear! Round Top is generally done from Trestle Creek as you guessed, can leave that road (1082) once snow depth provides. It's an all day tour, but the views (and definitely the skiing) are often worth it.
 
road (1082) once snow depth provides.
Ok awesome! Definitely sounds like I will give Round Top a shot. I was just thinking about whether the road is accessible by vehicle in early March. I obviously don't really know what is plowed up there.
 

idsnowghost

Staff member
Ok awesome! Definitely sounds like I will give Round Top a shot. I was just thinking about whether the road is accessible by vehicle in early March. I obviously don't really know what is plowed up there.
Trestle Creek Rd is only plowed to the snowmobile staging area/last few houses. (a few miles up from the highway?) 1082 is gated.
 
Mike is spot on. It's usually only plowed to the staging area. Even if you can drive further up the road, road 1082 is gated. As you guessed Star Peak access is right off of hwy 200. I usually park in the pullout across the highway from Fatman Rd. I start on Fatman Rd. for a couple hundred yards before splitting off on old logging roads that give access to the slopes above the steep open areas. You can kind of see the logging roads in Google Earth but they don't show up on the map.
 

idsnowghost

Staff member
As you guessed Star Peak access is right off of hwy 200. I usually park in the pullout across the highway from Fatman Rd. I start on Fatman Rd. for a couple hundred yards before splitting off on old logging roads that give access to the slopes above the steep open areas. You can kind of see the logging roads in Google Earth but they don't show up on the map.
Have you ever done the traverse to Billard Table and out East Fork Blue Creek? It certainly looks interesting!
 
I haven't but I would really like to give it a shot! I've only skied Star once and it was really intriguing to continue traversing the ridge over to Billard Table. If you ever have the urge to check it out, let me know cause I'd love to make that tour.
 
Old thread revival: That hike up to Star is brutal. 4k in four miles, so adding on a Billiard Table side trip would be pretty rough. You could always bring some bolt cutters and stay in the Lookout tower, lol. I've been eyeing Goat Peak near Tacklebox Pass and Wanless. Nice grade, and free and clear on the southern aspect. I know that road to the Wanless trailhead is super lower elevation, so it might be doable without a sled, not sure tho. If I remember correctly, its roughly five miles to the pass, and then another 500' vert to the summit of Goat.
 
Old thread revival: That hike up to Star is brutal. 4k in four miles, so adding on a Billiard Table side trip would be pretty rough. You could always bring some bolt cutters and stay in the Lookout tower, lol. I've been eyeing Goat Peak near Tacklebox Pass and Wanless. Nice grade, and free and clear on the southern aspect. I know that road to the Wanless trailhead is super lower elevation, so it might be doable without a sled, not sure tho. If I remember correctly, its roughly five miles to the pass, and then another 500' vert to the summit of Goat.
@k.p0w
 
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