97 m away
8812 Bowl
Glorious 620m beeline down to Connaught Creek
Difficult Ski Touring
- Distance
- 12 km
- Ascent
- 1.2 km
- Descent
- 1.2 km
Entry Level Steep Skiing
Ski Touring Difficult
The north bowl of Mount Cheops is a quick and easy jaunt from the visitor center at the Rogers Pass Summit. This low-commitment line delivers excellent skiing with a terrific long run out. Starting early is recommended as the route gets tracked out quickly. While the valley base is unrestricted, the south side where Cheops sits is not. You will need to do your due diligence and go through the proper Parks Permit system to ski this line.
To get to the north bowl, start at the Discovery Center and follow Connaught Creek to Balu Pass. While the valley is unrestricted, the south side where Cheops sits is not. You will need to do your due diligence and go through the proper Parks Permit system to ski this line. If you don't have the annual restricted permit pass, however, it's a good idea to check in and make sure the Grizzly Shoulder and Ursus are open just in case you change plans. It's also helpful to know if and when there is blasting happening.
The route leaves on the northern corner of the parking lot and passes behind the old Glacier Lodge, through scrub, and behind the radio tour. A short road heads up the creek and eventually crosses a bridge before continuing over rolling terrain above the creek. Keep with this for a few hundred meters before the skin track breaks out into the Connaught Valley. From here it's an easy skintrack that gently ascends the valley. You'll pass by Grizzly Bowl runout, Teddy Bear Trees, Frequent Flyers Gulley, Dispatch Bowl runout, Ursus Trees, and then Hospital Gulley.
From here it's strait into the gentle rolling slopes of Balu Pass. Once at the pass you take a sharp turn back east and head up the flanks of Mount Cheops. This section can get tricky, and ski crampons can be nice to have as the southwest facing shoulder gets hammered by sun and wind. Despite the trees, wind slabs can form, and the terrain is steep. Take precautions here. Be aware of current conditions and of past accidents.
The shoulder levels out and a small prow sits above the drop section. This 50-meter convex roll into the route is the most serious section as it quickly becomes quite steep. The prow makes for a good spot to observe your partners skiing down in safety and is also good for photos.
The slope of the steep section ranges from 31 to 35 degrees, and it becomes quite gentle after about 200 meters. From here the bowl opens up. A steep cliff in the middle forces you to either the skier's right into another steeper section with a good runout or to the left down gentler but longer slopes underneath STS Couloir that exit via a wide fan. You get more turns coming out on the fan, but they are less steep...not more than 25 degrees. From here it's a straight shot down the valley whence you came.
As ever, this route changes based on conditions. Being a north facing bowl, it's popular as things heat up later in March and April. On the Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale this area is rated Complex, and an Avalanche Skills Training 2 should be considered the minimum required experience to ski this route.
Difficult
Serious gradient of 30-38 degrees where a real risk of slipping exists.
97 m away
Glorious 620m beeline down to Connaught Creek
Difficult Ski Touring
110 m away
A true Rogers Pass classic
Difficult Ski Touring
157 m away
Classic treeskiing in Connaught Creek
Moderate Ski Touring
195 m away
A 700-meter north-facing couloir from the Cheops West Ridge
Severe Ski Touring
198 m away
Simple Touring but Complex Terrain In Rogers Pass
Moderate Ski Touring
201 m away
Pillow-y tree skiing along the western shoulder of Grizzly Mountain
Moderate Ski Touring
203 m away
An absolutely massive face of sustained 40-50° skiing that lasts for more than 400m
Severe Ski Touring
204 m away
A mellow but exposed walk up the Connaught Valley
Moderate Ski Touring
206 m away
A steep descent into the lesser-known Ursus Valley and the Bruins Glacier
Difficult Ski Touring
206 m away
A naturally gladed, easily-accessible skier's paradise on the Grizzly Shoulder
Moderate Ski Touring
7 routes · Ski Touring
26 routes · Ski Touring