Heather Meadows / Table Mountain Backcountry

Heather Meadows sits at the top of the Mt. Baker Highway, the upper parking complex of the Mt. Baker Ski Area at forty-two hundred feet — one of the highest plowed roadheads in Washington. Backcountry skiers use the lot as a launch for short tours onto Table Mountain, the slopes around Bagley Lakes, and toward Coleman Pinnacle, with vertical per lap usually running between nine hundred and fifteen hundred feet.

The terrain ranges from low-angle meadow skiing east of the lot to steeper north-aspect lines off Table Mountain's south face. Shaska Bowl, the Wakeup Cliff bowls, and the saddle between Table and the ski area boundary are common targets. Snow quality follows the standard Baker pattern — deep, often heavy, with cycles that swing between cold powder and dense maritime base.

Avalanche terrain is real and close. The standard NWAC West Slopes North forecast is mandatory reading. Parking on weekends and powder days fills early — winter mornings see lines at the Heather Meadows lot before dawn. Sno-Park permit required during the resort season; access shifts when the resort closes for the year and the upper road becomes the playground for spring corn cycles.