My first ever visit to the Mount Baker ski area was brief but fun. I'd hoped for a crunchy layer of icy snow we could hike on with microspikes, but conditions were so soft that we needed snowshoes the entire journey.
We made it as high as the summer Artist Point parking area, but didn't snowshoe atop Table Mountain or to Artist Point proper. A thick layer of fog began to swirl around the top of our climb, obscuring views, and we figured there wouldn't be a ton of value moving onward.
Having never been here before, it was tricky at first to identify the simple and safe way up the mountain; we were the first folks to break trail today. Eventually, some backcountry skiers overtook us, allowing my party to follow their tentative leave.
Trail goes left of the bathroom but right of the ski boundary. I find snowshoes to be cumbersome and slow, but once we knew the way things became easy and fun. Just be sure to check weather and avy conditions and to layer properly.
Snow was soft and slushy today, so I'm glad we woke up early to hit it before rain began to come down heavy. We saw a handful of fellow snowshoers, but many, many skiers.
The parking lot had roughly two dozen cars when we arrived near 8 a.m. and was hopelessly jam-packed by 10:45. Numerous cars parked on the side of the snowy road, resulting in at least one short stretch of one-way pavement. Two bathrooms, both in so-so condition.
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