Lost Lake: Western Slope

Type: Backcountry or Sidecountry

This is a fairly sustained line above Lost Lake that has open glades, good trees, as well as an option for above treeline turns.

Use the standard Lost Lake approach. At the lake, turn off the winter/summer trail and head for the obvious snow line lookers right (west) above and to the right of the lake. You can skin directly over the lake and up this slope, generally just keep trending south and west. The trees are steep and a fairly challenging skin, but once you pop above treeline the slope is much more gradual.

Return the same way you came, keeping the lake in front of you on the entire descent. There are two flat sections that are obvious on the map; the first is the saddle above the main chutes into Lost Lake, the other is a marsh west of Lost lake that you may ski into and need to pole out of and back to the main trail.

This option makes for a good alternate descent at Lost lake that will finally take you away from the hordes you've likely been subjected to on the entire rest of the skin up from the Hessie.