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Trip: Mount Jupiter - East Ridge (standard) Trip Date: 05/08/2020 Trip Report: My trip down 2020 memory lane continues! We've moved up to May now. The pandemic is still slowing unfolding but people are going back to work and the lockdowns are easing. Public land is open in some instances (Olympic National Forest) but closed in other (MBSNF, national parks, etc.). Your friends were likely in two camps- those still locked down and those that were straining for the freedom of the hills. Quietly, I rallied @therunningdog and @Trent, two of the chossdawgs who were straining at their tethers. It didn't take much cajoling to convince them to launch across the sound for a quick strike to the east side of the Peninsula. Growing up around Seattle you can't ignore ol' Jupe, it is right there on the Olympic skyline, standing proud at sunset like an Olympic version of Mt. Pilchuck. Jupiter is small, beautifully shaped, and larger looking than it really is, sitting at the edge of the range like it does. We were all smitten, or at least mildly interested. Beggers can't be choosers! The Brothers (L) and Jupiter (R) from the Edmonds Kingston ferry We drove up to the trailhead from the ferry the night before, finding an excellent spot to throw down our gear in the dirt for the night The next morning dawned clear and crisp and we climbed on the bikes for the punishing grind up to the normal TH. Recent logging has made this section view rich, but also has meant that the public is no longer allowed to drive the few thousand vert to the proper trailhead (which has been logged over anyways). We opted to take the road a bit further to the ridge crest then go cross country to the trail. It might not have saved much on the way up but meant for a longer descent on the bikes. And so we began the long hike to the summit. A former lookout site, Jupiter has a well graded trail all 7 miles to the summit. It was just what we needed after many weeks of limited mountain access. Steve hiking the scenic trail with the Brothers beyond Another great look at the Brothers It was a glorious day with 360 views of the Olympics, Puget lowlands and Cascades. You could easily see from Canada to well south of Rainier! A long break was called and observed with some well earned R&R. Way sooner than we would have liked (we had a ferry to catch) we began the descent back to the bikes. We hadn't seen anyone all day and that theme continued on the exit. I think many are scared off by the long distances involved in doing this in a day, but bikes make is quite reasonable with a trailhead bivy. Just make sure you have disc brakes and suspension! It was an adventure on my bike.... This view is just leaving the summit, looking down the ridge that is ascended. The trail roughly follows the ridge east, all the way to the clear cut in the distance. From there bikes will take you steeply down to your car deep down in the trees. Now, when I watch the sunset from the park by my parents house, I can look Jupiter in the eye and tip my hat to a fine peak. And to the memories of a perfect day in the alpine with good friends. May is coming soon, best be ready! Gear Notes: bikes are key since the road is gated low these days. Approach Notes: Follow the descriptions and drive as far up the road as you can

I am preemptively (and prematurely) starting this thread in an attempt to consolidate ice conditions beta here. As the seasonal stoke is building, I have been involved in many offline conversations about the best way to share condition info. My vote is to not reinvent the wheel, and do it here; solely or in addition to any of the numerous (and ephemeral) Facebook forums. Since I am aware that posting to an internet-based forum is way too time consuming for many, next best would be to strongly encourage that you tag your local social media ice posts with #WAice. Last we talked, Kyle M was redesigning the internet to create a better ice conditions mousetrap. Even if he dazzles and amazes again, this can be the repository for unpolished beta that he later shines and geocodes up. To not be a complete tease, here is all I got now: Mt Baker seracs and the lower flows on Heliotrope have received a decent amount of activity in late Oct/early Nov. I don't think Cosley Houston fully formed and was climbed before the snow switch flipped ON the second week of November and access become challenging, but the early season skiing has been the best in years. My #WAice season began on Nov 13. Tom and I were hoping for some semi-alpine ice in the WA Pass zone but the deep, unconsolidated snow pack (21" fell the day we were there) meant cross country travel, even with skis, was nearly impossible and the pass closed for the season (very early) a few hours after we left. The consolation was getting the rust off on the practice roadcut ice along the highway below the Liberty Bell group: This morning (Happy Thanksgiving), I skied around Alpental Valley (can you say concrete) and as expected there was nothing/nada, nary a drip or drab to be seen. The snow is deep but the temps have been consistently too warm to get anything more than a few icicles forming. Based on the long term forecasts, it will be several weeks before any pick dulling may be possible in the Alpental zone. Mazama is reportedly all dry now too. It is still very early. Happy ice hunting.

Trip: Mount Hood - North Face Right Gully Solo Trip Date: 11/21/2020 Trip Report: X-posted from PNW Mountaineers on FB for those not on there. Stoke: The gullies are in! Skied to the bergshrund with Evan and Andrew and then solo'd the R gully. Hardest climb I've done both physically and mentally, but it was so rad! Snow conditions in the gully were overall great, ice was fat (albeit a little brittle), and sticks were generous. Carried over skis and had a sunset ski down Old Chute back to Timberline with my quads telling me to go fuck myself the whole time. Evan and Andrew brought me a surprise burrito after driving back around, winning the most thoughtful and amazing climbing partner awards for at least the next year! Conditions: **Given the new snow starting today, this will be theoretically obsolete by the time the weather turns nice in a few days, but this week looks eerily similar to last week (little more wind), so shouldn't be too far off for the window next weekend.** Skinnable snow from the trailhead Tilly Jane, pretty firm and tracked out and an easy skin to where we dropped onto the glacier. The descent onto the glacier was fairly rocky where we went down (about a hundred yards up from the cairn), but the smart move would have been to keep skinning up the ridge towards Cooper Spur and there were some great, rockless lines to ski which also would have cut off some down and up. The snow on the glacier was pretty deep so skis or snowshoes are mandatory, post-holing would have been up to the thighs or waist. Sticking to the left of the glacier avoided any obvious crevasses and those that were still open were mostly filled and only about 20 feet deep. Just before the bergshrund, I punched through into what looked to be a fairly deep cathedral while I was testing a suspicious spot. The bergy was open but on the right it was less than a foot across, though the unconsolidated snow made for a tougher crossing for those heavier than about 200lb (gear included). The L gully entrance was near vertical for probably 40m, but looked fat. Also a few nice flows along the L cirque that looked to be in very climbable condition. Once in the gully, the snow was overall waaaaay more ideal than the unconsolidated Eliot had made us think it would be. For the first 2/3, I was able to kick in enough to have a platform to the arch or my foot or heel, but it was consolidated enough that the kicked steps fully supported my weight. There were some areas where I had to find the certain line that was consolidated enough, but it was never difficult and rarely had to move more than a few feet to either side. Towards the top, it got steeper and less consolidated and I was swimming for the last five hundred desperate feet to the summit. The last step (staying R after cathedral rock) was super thin with some mixed moves and I was way to gassed to feel safe on it, so traversed to the left and topped out at the top of the L gully. Check out the pics for descriptions of the three steps I got on. Summited about thirty minutes before the sun set and enjoyed a ski down in the twilight and then dark, quads screaming at me the entire time. The snow in Old Chute was fantastic and I was able to find at least a few inches of powder the entire way back to the lot. First step, WI3+. 25-30m. Took the line just to the right of the snow (60-70 degrees) and then traversed over the bulge to the right (a few vertical moves) to stay on the water ice. From the top of the first step looking at a small AI2 step before entering the main snowfield. Don't think this is typically ice. Main snowfield with the third step (2nd?) in the distance. Nice ice! Steps were kickable, post-holing wasn't bad, and made for easy rests through the main section. Third step, WI/AI3+, 25-30m. Some sections of water and some alpine ice with great sticks throughout. Again, 2-3 vertical or near vertical moves. Third step, beginning was about 60 degrees before becoming more vertical. Final snowfield before cutting left to the L gully. To the R of the buttress is the final ice step, was so burnt that I forgot to take pics of that step. Second favorite Hood summit (proposing to my fiance has to take the cake). Last light halfway down hogsback, great snow. Stats: 12:25:41 Tilly Jane to Timberline 7300 ft ascent 5410 ft descent Max speed 49.4 mph Gear Notes: Skis, glacier rope, two North Machines Approach Notes: See TR.

Trip: Mt. Goode - NE Buttress Trip Date: 07/18/2020 Trip Report: Climbed the NE Buttress with Steve July 18-20. The trail from Highway 20 was largely brush free until Grizzly Creek, which we crossed easily on a log. From there, it was a brushy caterpillar orgy. The direct approach, climbing just right of the leftmost waterfall, was easy and fast. Glacier navigation was simple, although we did cross some blue ice and bridges. We were able to gain the buttress just below the red ledges via a collapsed snow moat. Climb was great! Plenty of snow patches on the route to fill our bottles with. From the summit we scrambled NW to the next notch and found a huge patch of snow which we melted for abundant water. Descent was a long day but not too bad. Once down at the 7400 ft heather benches, keep traversing skier's right until reaching the burned ridge that divides the drainages between Storm King and Goode, take that down to the Park Creek Trail. https://climberkyle.com/2020/07/18/mt-goode-ne-buttress-5-5/ On a side note, it appears from the summit logs that quite a few parties have climbed Megalodon Ridge. Most mentioned that they never found the 5.10 pitches, so perhaps it is easier than 5.10 or these difficulties are simple to circumvent. Goode Glacier and NE Buttress. On lower route. Le Conte and Sloan. Forbidden, Eldo, and the Twin Sisters. Sahale and the sound. Silver Star. Douglas Glacier on Logan. Rapping down. Gear Notes: Trail runners, aluminum crampons, and ice ax for the approach. Climbing/approach shoes on route. 60 m 8mm rope. Cams .4-2, 9 slings, tricams, nuts. Oh, and 10 lbs of camera gear (including a full sized tripod) for Steve. Approach Notes: When you reach the open valley beneath Goode, ford the river, ascend up easy boulders/snow. Climb the 4th class slabs just right of the leftmost waterfall. Continue upwards through the magical alder tunnel. Eventually you'll emerge into wildflower meadows and then the camps atop the lateral moraines.