Throoping in October
The one and only Al Preston talked me into leaving my sofa for Throop Peak today, and unlike last week's Pinos foray, there's real skiing to be had in the San Gabriels.
First, please, be aware this rare combination of October snow + low sun angles means absolutely treacherous snow is lurking all over the place.
Your timing has got to be perfect, and even so, you'll need to make very good routefinding choices to ski safely right now. If you don't have expert-level familiarity with SoCal mountains and snowpack, just say no.
I was not expecting to see so much snow. I think there's easily a consolidated 2' snowpack on Throop's north aspect. I don't think it's going to melt out before winter, which means at least theoretically our ski season has begun.
And...I feel myself veering back into warning territory: if you go bring crampons. Bring your A-game and expect technical, consequential skiing even if you're being careful. Use sunny aspects to your advantage. On firm, treed slopes at Throopy angles you are continuously exposed!
I ascended the north ridge from Dawson Saddle, wanting the safest possible ascent route. After surveying things on the way up, I felt comfortable descending the main/west gully, but let me tell you, delight kind of alternated with terror for me even so.
It is tricky out there—and most of us are not exactly dialed in for high-risk skiing in mid-October.
I did stay on skis all the way down. At the road, I found a little safe steepish patch of snow in the sun, so I played around with steep turns for a bit. Then I threw my skis on my shoulder and hiked along the highway singing Oasis songs until I got to my car.
I like this SoCal October skiing thing! We should do this more often! Also: if you go out there in micro-spikes, you will die.
— October 20, 2025
Andy Lewicky is the author and creator of SierraDescents
Ray October 20, 2025 at 8:38 pm
Throop was a favorite of Mitch and Big Tim from Telemarktips. were you able to drive to Dawson? I thought the road was closed again?
Dan Conger October 21, 2025 at 7:09 am
Some people bagged turns in the Mammoth backcountry, too.
https://www.instagram.com/reel/DQCKrTmkXRA/
Max Eagan November 10, 2025 at 8:18 am
Hello Andy, I am curious on why it is so dangerous? Can you please explain? Really interested in why you think its so dangerous right now? Thank you!
Andy November 16, 2025 at 6:43 am
Max sorry for the slow reply: it's the combination of slope angle (fairly steep) and hard snow which doesn't soften despite warm temps because of the low sun angle. I tend to describe this kind of snow as "ice" but in reality it just looks like snow. So in a typical scenario, you click in atop Throop, where the snow angle is low and the sun has softened the snow. You ski into the trees and the slope angle quickly increases to where your ability to set an edge becomes unpredictable. If you fall, you will slide at high speed until you stop -- likely by hitting a tree or going over one of Throop's many small cliffs. That all assumes the snow's edgeability is constant, but it's not: some of the snow will be harder, some will be softer. So just moving around in this context means constantly getting surprised/fighting to keep your grip.
When this happens, probably your best bet is to ski/skitter to the nearest small tree, belay yourself with that tree, and then switch to axe and crampons and climb the hell out of there.
These conditions can be very deceptive. That's the "danger" part--this combination of fatal exposure but apparent harmlessness