Mountain Descents

There's nothing quite like watching the sunlight illuminate the foothills and glacier-carved valleys as it stretches across the horizon, gradually melting the surface snow into soft, forgiving, and surfy corn snow. In the spring, skiers and riders travel from near and far to the Pacific Northwest for the Cascade Volcano corn harvest. Simply put, skiing or riding from the summit of a Cascade Volcano is a life-changing experience that requires a solid foundation of mountaineering and backcountry skiing or riding skills.

Trillium Alpine Guides offers spring summit descents of Mt. Hood, South Sister, and Mt. Baker. We also guide descents from many other volcanoes, although not from their summits. These include Mt. Jefferson, Mt. Washington, Three-Fingered Jack, Mt. Shuksan, and North Sister. If there’s a peak on your list but not ours, reach out, and we will work with you to make it happen!

Mountain descents are advanced-level trips for those with prior mountaineering and backcountry skiing or riding experience. Mountain descents can vary in length from 1 to 3 days depending on the objective and are priced accordingly. We often require participants to take our 1-day Ski Mountaineering course before a 1-day mountain descent.

Duration: 1 to 3 days

Max skier-to-guide ratio: 3:1

Location options: Cascade Volcanos

Price per person per day: 1 skier $650
2 skiers  $450
3 skiers $350

Dates: Custom, private dates are available from December through July. The best conditions typically occur from April through July.