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Trip: Southern Twin Sisters Traverse - Kloke Peak (register placed), Twin Crest, Saddle Slab, Shirley, Trisolace, Barbara, Nancy, Last Sister Trip Date: 08/03/2024 Trip Report: Ever since our climbing mentor Dallas Kloke died on the Pleiades in 2010, @Trent, @sepultura, @Kit, @John_Roper and others in the local climbing community have been thinking of ways to honor a man who had given much during his 50 years of pioneering ascents in the Cascades and beyond. These dreams became a reality in 2022 with the naming of Kloke Peak (formerly Hayden) in the Twin Sisters Range. The Twin Sisters were near and dear to Dallas's heart and he completed many first ascents in this area over the years (including his FA of "Hayden" in 1972 with Dave Dixon) . The peaks are also visible from his house in Anacortes, adding a bittersweet element to the commemoration. Like all worthwhile climbs, the naming process was difficult, involved and several times seemed to almost come to a complete stop. Imagine my surprise then when I got a call from the Everett Herald on an October morning, deep in the mountains, letting me know that the WA State Board of Geographic Names had approved our proposal. Or, months later when a friend texted me a photo of the Gaia map (below) with "Kloke Peak" prominently displayed on the summit, meaning that the US Board of Geographic Names in Washington DC had also approved our proposal. Surreal. We just needed to get a register up there to really make it official! Fast forward to this summer.... when @Trent and I managed to find three days to get away to the range and place the register. We toyed with the idea of a full traverse of the range (Dallas style!) but the time and effort for that was a bit more than we were willing to undertake in the heat and humidity. So we settled to starting from Green Creek (thanks @dberdinka!), climbing from the cars up through the Cinderella/Little Sister col. We dropped a bit on the backside and cached our gear, heading over to Kloke Peak in the early evening to place the register and marvel at the rugged appropriateness of Dallas's namesake. KLOKE PEAK!: (below) Steve had done an admirable job of prepping the register, complete with laminated photo, newpaper article, Rite in the Rain logbook, and Pelican case. All secured with cord and pitons. Please leave it up there! When the book gets full, bring it down and let me know. I'll be the keeper of it and hike up a new book as needed. After savoring the view for a time, Steve and I headed down to camp at an unnamed lake south of Cinderella. It felt as if we were the first people to camp there, almost no sign of anyone, except for a random rock hammer we stumbled across the next morning as we left camp! Soon after finding the hammer, we began the quest to bag the rest of the peaks south of Cinderella. We knew it would would be a big day, but the heat and humidity made it even more taxing than we estimated. It was a 14 hour+ whirlwind day for us to climb Twin Crest, Saddle Slab, Shirley, Trisolace, Barbara, Nancy, and Last Sister. There was a lot of 3rd and 4th class along the way, some loose rock, a lot of solid rock, and a bit of head scratching so as to not carry all our gear up and over all the peaks. Sometimes this meant linking improbable ledges on the west side of the peaks. Sometimes it meant backtracking after scrambling a peak by the "easiest" path. We had left the rope behind in a effort to save weight, but I would have been happy for it on the "easy" route up Trisolace (photos of it way below). This was probably very exposed 4th or low fifth terrain, but we couldn't see an easier way, even on the way down. Careful there! Also careful on the summit ridge of Trisolace. I dislodged a large rock right at the summit and it nearly took me with it. As it was, it pinned my leg and @Trent had to come over quickly, and carefully roll it off and down the mountain. Whew! I sat for a time getting my heart rate and breathing down, cursing myself for letting my guard down, even for a moment. It was not lost on me that this was the same type of accident that took the life of Dallas. Steve on Trisolace. I eventually got up the gumption to follow him: Me, a few minutes after my mishap with the large rock: And somewhere along the traverse: The day wore on and we got further and further south and farther from Kloke Peak: As the sun dipped towards the west at last we were on the Last Sister, looking down at the Step Sister. Steve had already climbed it, but I hadn't. Camp looked so close at Heart Lake (it wasn't, as we would soon find out). There was a brief period, as we neared the col between the two peaks, that I considered heading up and descending to camp in the dark. But then I slipped, fell, and went into full leg cramps on both legs! My day was done, I was totally spent. And so we went down surprisingly far to the surprisingly rugged Heart Lake, barely finding about the only decent campsite on the west side of the lake as the light failed. Step Sister as we hike down to Heart Lake: Our camp at Heart Lake the next morning: The next day was going to be a long one (14+ miles) and hot, so we didn't have much time to rest after the marathon peak bagging tear the day before. As the sun came up we were soon moving down through the brush below Heart Lake to an old logging spur that took us down and across the South Fork Nooksack. Here, we grabbed the PNT and followed the elk up valley, surprising a trail crew along the way that hadn't seen many people in awhile. Sort of as we expected, it got really hot as we hit the Elbow Lake trail up and over the ridge back to our car. But we had beer stashed in the river and chips in the car. It could have been worse! I would really like to hear of others' stories of climbing Kloke Peak. Even if you don't post up a TR, feel free to post your experiences in comments below! Gear Notes: Ice axe, helmet, leather gloves. Many will want a rope on Trisolace. Footwear and clothing you don't care about. Approach Notes: In Green Creek (thanks Darin!), out Heart Lake and PNT to Elbow Lake and back to Middle Fork Nooksack.

When we finally get out in the hills together @olyclimber, remind me to tell you about the "rescue" on Sauk of a lady way up by the summit, at night, in November, in the snow, wearing those slippers (software won't let me spell their name!).

Trip: Tamarack Meadows Climbing - Prusik (West Ridge), High Priest (North face), Mount Temple (West route) Trip Date: 09/07/2024 Trip Report: This seems like it has been the summer of obscure destinations for me. Places I've long thought about going but never made happen. Maybe it's because they're not top shelf destinations, but as I've aged and don't go as hard, I've increasingly found these sorts of trips fun because of the lack of traffic, because of the lack of beta, and how they've forced me back into to puzzling things out on the fly. The climbs on the north side of Temple Ridge definitely fit into this category. The dream of the 90's is alive! Or at least that is how I sold it to @Trent, @cfire, @BrettS, John and Leslie a few months back. And, minus the unanticipated smoke haze, I think it pretty much went off without too much drama. An energetic approach to idyllic camps below our climbs, time to lounge after our short approaches and moderate climbs, plenty of chocolate, and no other parties around. A great 4 day trip! I won't spoil your fun with beta overload, but here are a few photos to whet your appetite for up trip up Temple Canyon.... Snow Creek wall from the hike in: Sow and cub seen at Nada lake: Mild shenanigans to get up into Temple Canyon: High Priest (on the right) from camp: Heading to WR Prusik on Day 2 (still a classic- I hadn't climbed it in 24 years): Looking down into the heart of the Core Zone a the start of the WR of Prusik: John at a belay on the WR: John and Leslie higher up: A couple of me on WR Prusik: @cfire on the summit of Prusik: John and Leslie arrive at the summit: Shield Lake Valley: High Priest and Temple from Prusik: @Trentwas over on McClellan while we were on Prusik: Heading back to camp through Nada Pass, with Prusik above: Camp life! Night life! Goat life! Gearing up for High Priest North Face route (Beckey description works well, as does Mountaineers) : @BrettS and Leslie on the North Face of High Priest: Summit of High Priest looking over to Prusik and the peaks of the Core Zone: Summit block of High Priest from descent: We rapped off the standard High Priest descent and kept high, running the ridge over to Mount Temple. Expect shenanigans, but it goes without undue hardship! And then you have the great mid-fifth pitch to the summit of Mount Temple: and the airy rap back down: After descending Mount Temple, we admired the Meteor. Supposed the crack on this west side is "5.12- or aid. From it's top step right into a 5.10 off-width" After a final night at camp, all that was left was to reverse the shenanigans getting back to Nada Lake, including a nice view of the Black Pyramid, The Professor, Comet Spire, and the Meteor (L-R): : A lunch stop at Nada Lake to admire the reflections: And arrival at Icicle Creek, relieved to find our drinks still hidden and cold! Gear Notes: Medium Rack to 2", helmet, 60m single rope, rock shoes Approach Notes: Core zone permit needed. Snow Creek trail to Nada lake. Go right at the second toilet and find a faint climber's trail leading up to a cliff band. Find a key ledgy 3rd class ramp that will take you up and right through the cliff band., Follow rib up and left and then up to where valley rolls off. Bits of tread lead up into Temple Canyon and then disappear. Follow your nose up the drainage to about 7200' where it opens up to good camping in Tamarack Meadows. An energetic and stimulating approach.

I don't think a Kloke Peak summit registry is going to get too full anytime in the near to distant future.