Trip Date: December 10, 2020

Black Crater Ski Ascent & Ski Descent

Black Crater Landslide
Black Crater / Lookout (7251 ft)

Trip Report Summary

Region: Oregon

Sub-Region: Central Oregon Cascades

Sub-Sub-Region: Deschutes Mountains

Area: Three Sisters Wilderness

Starting & Ending Point: Trout Creek spur road junction (Elev. 4130 feet)

Way Points: Trout Creek spur road end & Black Crater Landslide scarp edge & Black Crater Lookout/summit (ski tour & rock scramble)

Summit: Black Crater (ski ascent & ski descent via Northeast Spur Road—Northeast Slope)

Approximate Stats: 6.0 miles traveled; 3400 feet gained & lost; 5.4 hours elapsed.

Full Trip Report

While spending a few days in the Bend area, I joined locals Doug and Greg for a ski tour up nearby Black Crater. This ancient volcano stands demurely between better-known Mt. Washington and Three Sisters but is quite prominent when viewed from the nearby town of Sisters.

We started our tour at a 4130-foot road junction, just west of Trout Creek, and followed a snow-covered spur road westward to its end at 4500 feet. From there, we proceeded upward through open, burned-out forest on hard, crusty snow. The weather was unsettled, but skinning conditions were good.

At 6300 feet, we came to the edge of a giant scallop-shaped depression in the mountain’s eastern flank. Doug and Greg explained that this is an ancient landslide that cut through the many layers of volcanic rock. The resulting scarp measures nearly a mile wide and rises a full 1200 vertical feet above the slide floor!

Continuing onward, we switch-backed up a broad snow ridge that ended at a rocky summit block. I doffed skis and awkwardly scrambled up the broken lava in my telemark boots. On the summit (3.3 hours + 3300 feet from car), there were remnants of a fire lookout cabin that previously sat here.

Despite a low overcast sky, I was able to see many of Central Oregon’s volcanic giants, including Three Sisters, Mt. Washington, Three-Fingered Jack, and Mt. Jefferson. I was astounded by their sharpness and ruggedness—in great contrast to the heavily glaciated domes of Washington’s volcanos.

Upon beginning our descent, we quickly found the crusty snow to create challenging ski conditions. Nonetheless, Doug and Greg were able to power through and carve sweeping telemark turns down open slopes. I, on the other hand, found my mediocre telemark skills and equipment to be completely overmatched by the snow conditions. As a result, I ended up having to do wedge turns down the entire mountain—possibly establishing a new world record for the longest snowplow descent! You can probably imagine how relieved I was to finally reach the car (1.5 hours from summit).

Equipment Comments

For more information regarding the various equipment that I used for this particular trip—or wished I had used—see my gear reviews on the following pages:

>>> Backcountry Telemark Ski Touring Gear

>>> Backcountry Ski & Snowshoe Packs

>>> Wintertime Comfort Accessories

Route Map & Profile

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Photo Gallery

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