Now that Hyak is closed, it is possible to pull skiers up with a snowmobile and let them ski down? If so, what is the preferred route for the ascent? If not, what are the penalties?

Snowmobiles are illegal everywhere at Hyak except for those used by the ski area. If you are going to use snowmobiles for ski access, across the street on Rampart Ridge and on east to Stampede Pass they are ok.

If you ride and get caught in forest service areas that restrict snowmobiles I think the penalty was something like max $5,000 and/or 1 year jail though I have never heard of anyone getting these sort of penalties. If someone rides the hill the local residents usually call the sheriff so it is very rare to see one. It is also dangerous because of the amount of hikers/skiers/dogs that use the area after it closes for lift use.

FWIW.....

Hyak Ski and Snowboard Adventure
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If you take your sleds over to Gold Creek and go up to the ridge there is some riding there that surpasses anything at the ski areas, same at Crystal Springs/Stampede, the backcountry has some great terrain that is readily accessible and hardly anyone is boarding or skiing back there. I plan on doing some this week with the sleds

Thanks!! we are first-timers at the particular adventure. I think it should be a great time to get up there though... tons of snow and nobody around!

Let me know how this works out. I am interested in doing this next season (once the new ACL is working) and will be looking for partners.

So we went last Wednesday at Gold Creek. Rob's snowmobile is new, fast and fun. The track was terribly washboarded and very dirty.

The dirt quickly contaminated the bases of the skis, making them VERY slow. This meant that our arms and backs were working hard. The washboarding pounded the crap out of our legs. Overall, it was a LOT of work!!

If you were wanting to really do this very far, I'd suggest (at minimum) making a custom tow-line with built-in shock cords. The snowmobile accelerates and deccelerates much more quickly than ski do, and that would be a big help.

If you REALLY wanted to get into it, I would suggest making a stand-on trailer hooked to the snowmobile at the bottom, with the shock-cords built in. I've riden a LOT of rope tows and pomas, and this was a lot more work. Mostly because the track was so rough and dirty though.

We will definately try it again next year!!

Thanks Rob!

1) How many of folks per snowmobile?

2) What slopes did you ski?

3) Would it be possible to have two folks riding on the seat instead of towed behind?

4) I was thinking the initial trails to the slopes would be rough, but were the trails up the slopes rough as well? Was it possible to make your own trails up the slopes?

5) What kind of sled did you ride? I see there are these "mountain" sleds that seem to be tuned for going up slope with longer tracks and deeper paddles.

Sounds exciting!

The way to do it is two ride on the sled carrying boards/skiis. The lower part of Gold Creek looks bad but thats how all the trails are this time of year as they no longer groom. I am sure it would be better at Crystal Springs. There are some good areas to ride ski by the radio tower, about 10 miles in. I went to French Cabin Creek (Cooper Pass end of Lake Cle Elum) this weekend and it was great, the snow up high is still great and lots of it. I just rode the sled as that was fun enough, lots of good hills and open areas to ride off the trails. I would not tow someone up, thats a tough way to do it. What do you have for a sled?

heres a pic I took up by Cooper Pass on Saturday, lots of snow;

I am thinking that I will rent a sled a couple of times next season to see how I like the sled ski experience. If things go well, I would likely buy a machine near the end of the season next spring. I think the rental place in Easton has shut down for the year or I would rent one now.

Thanks for the tips!