Bronco
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Posts posted by Bronco
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Green Beckey lists the NE Route, NW Shoulder, SE Face and some other variations. You might check it out from the library or something.
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15 hours ago, Kuato said:
Bear utopia party on the beach at the 2nd set of lakes along Rainbow Ridge.
I've seen a black bear with a complete white stripe down it's back, looked like a giant skunk. Tracks are definitely black bear. I had a cinnamon colored black bear encounter this spring in the upper Methow and found this guide on how to tell tracks apart useful:
https://westernwildlife.org/black-bear-ursus-americanus/know-your-bears/
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15 hours ago, JasonG said:
I use the TX4s and they have a bit wider toebox. Pretty nice approach shoe:
Same here, had a pair for a couple of years, the uppers are holding up great. I really prefer leather non-goretex approach shoes.
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On 8/28/2022 at 12:03 PM, Juan Sharp said:
We described the crossing to the best of our ability and gave it a name in jest, which for whatever reason has stuck.
It certainly rolls off the tongue a little easier than Ptarmigan Direct.
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Nice! Thanks for sharing the TR-
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Haven't been in that way but remember how heinous the brush is along Bridge Creek and thankful for the trail. It could be pretty slow going cross country.
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Pretty depressing to see the glacial recession in just the last two decades.
I was listening to an endurance sport podcast this morning and the runner being interviewed was talking about traveling to Bhutan to participate in an ultra intended to increase climate change awareness. I'm not sure how people justify an International flight to raise climate change awareness, can you purchase a carbon offset or something? Sounds like a scenario from Idiocracy.
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Wow, great TR!
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No, it sounds terrible!
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12 hours ago, Kuato said:
Great trip report! The bushwhacking in that area is Grade A suffering that definitely builds character. How is the rock on that side of Goode? Kind of blocky with nice holds or more like a crumbly cookie?
I'd say if Washington Pass rock is graded an "A", then the N. Buttress of Goode is a "B-" The most difficult part is generally gaining the toe of the ridge from the glacier, once you're on the ridge/buttress, it's pretty sustained blocky 4th and low 5th climbing. Obviously very exposed but relatively clean. It's been a while but I don't remember any hard moves after making the transition to the ridge.
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Great photos as usual! What kind of tent is that the 3rd to last photo?
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Yes, we've been hurt so many times!
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Alpine climber/dad joke humor, sorry folks.
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Sounds like a lot of walking for a couple pitches of ice.
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Fun day, good glissading if you're willing!
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Nice, thanks for posting the TR and funny tidbit about encountering Pope and Dwanyner. It's good to know they're still out there somewhere probably yukking it up.
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Climbing Ranger Blog from here: https://mountrainierclimbing.blogspot.com/2022/06/upper-mountain-skiing-and-snowboarding.html?fbclid=IwAR0oypputNf8ec71zX-XZTzJnz-3NImMlJJvIGXT2eXatgfSddz9IFwlsw4
While it's not in the forecast yet, there will be an end to the persistent series of 'wet season-like' storms that have been pasting the mountain with snow. When the weather does stabilize we expect to see an influx of skiers looking to take advantage of what could be very good conditions. Please keep the following things in mind, though, before rushing to the mountain.
1) Give the snowpack time to stabilize
This has been an unusually wet Spring. In fact, May was the wettest it has been since 1948 and June is starting in much the same vein. That means the upper mountain has not had time for the winter snowpack to settle. Many of the climbing rangers think that the upper elevations look more like April than June.
With the sun nearing the solstice that means when the switch to summer-like temps does come it will have a more rapid and pronounced effect than it would in April. The mid elevations have gone through a few very large avalanche cycles but above 10,000' this has not happened yet. Expect a period of highly unstable snow once the storms stop and the weather heats up. Give the snowpack some time to adjust to summer.
2) Just because you're on skis it doesn't make you safer.
It has become part of skiing culture that it is 'safer' to be on a glacier with skis/snowboard due to the increased surface area. While this may be true for a flat glacier with soft snow bridges it is not true for the upper mountain on Mt. Rainier. The surface near the summit of Rainier is typically very firm with lots of surface roughness and ice. The majority of the skiing/snowboarding accidents and fatalities are the result of falls while skiing. Poor surface conditions and a lack of skiing/snowboarding skill are often contributory factors to skiing accidents.
When talking to aspirational skiers/snowboarders at the high camps rangers are often surprised at the lack of experience people have before attempting a summit ski or snowboard descent. If you are not an expert level skier or snowboarder then it is considerably more dangerous for you to descend on skis/snowboard than on foot. Expect firm snow or ice about 12,000' where a fall while skiing can easily result in an out-of-control slide and a life threatening situation.
3) Climbing with ski/snowboard gear takes more effort and is slower.
The added weight and loss of efficiency when booting up Mt Rainier with skis/snowboard on your pack and boots on your feet should not be overlooked. AT boots are cumbersome to climb in and soft snowboard boots do not inspire confidence when crampon-ing. This should be factored in to your time plan and accounted for when evaluating conditions before beginning a descent on tired legs. Wind is another factor that will tire out a skier/snowboarder (when the skis/board is attached to the pack) faster than a traditional mountaineer.
4) Timing is everything.
Poor surface conditions can make a basic slope extremely dangerous and great conditions can make a steep run seem easy. Getting the timing right for a descent is one of the most important things a ski/snowboard team can do to maximize their margin of safety. Learning the patterns of when the sun, temperatures and wind all combine to make the surface good for a descent must be learned through experience. Relying on fixed time windows such as 'you always start a descent at XX:XX time' is a tell-tale sign of inexperience. The daily fluctuations in cloud cover, wind and temperature requires that a ski mountaineer be able to read the day and react accordingly.
Many would-be skiers/snowboarders will leave for their summit bid much later than the traditional mountaineers. This may be warranted when trying to give the snow time to soften during the day. But many teams underestimate the amount of time it will take them to reach the summit and thus put themselves in more danger by ascending during the hottest time of day. It's definitely preferable to wait for snow to soften from the top vs climbing through unstable snow and crevasse bridges.
A ski/snowboard descent of Mt Rainier can be a wonderful and exhilarating experience. It can also be terrifying and extremely dangerous. It should never be taken lightly and for mountaineers with very little climbing and skiing/snowboarding experience it may not be at all appropriate in many conditions.
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Looks like at least one fatality on Shasta and multiple injured skier/climbers due to reported water ice. It would be interesting to know what weather conditions contributed to this to catch so many individuals and teams unaware.
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2 hours ago, Blacklab said:
Been there done that in 2016. 3 days to exit 4.5 miles out middle and s cascade valleys. If no one can tell me the downed trees in Downey are not creating an extensive mess...I am probably out for this season, given the limited time window.
Ok, sounds like you know what you're getting into. Enjoy!
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Nice work, your photos got me fired up for this summer. Good luck on the surgery and heal up quick!
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Blacklab, I respectfully suggest getting some solid experience navigating off trail below the treeline in the North Cascades before attempting something this ambitious. A few summers ago, our county's HRT and MRA teams spent the better part of a week looking for a pair of hikers who hiked up Downy/Bachelor Creek (on trail) and attempted to descend Sulfur Creek (no trail). The hikers made approximately 1/2 mile per day after leaving Cub Lake and one of them needed a helo evac by the time he was located. It's really easy to underestimate how much the dense vegetation and getting cliffed out can slow travel. Another mistake the lost hikers made is a lot of trails around here that show up on a map have been abandoned long ago and may have disappeared completely. I'm not sure if that's the case back East as well but we need to research for trip reports or some way of verifying if a trail is even there to have an accurate time estimate. Sorry for the rant, I've become a worry wart old guy I guess.
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Hi Justin - looking at a map, don't see an exit point to the east of Bannock Mountain. Could you post a map of your proposed route?
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Bastards. You're an awful long way from cell coverage up there.
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On 5/22/2022 at 6:15 PM, JasonG said:
Oh, and if you were the one who stole the catalytic converter from my '91 Civic while it was parked for a few hours at the Easy Pass TH (in broad daylight!), I hope you really needed that hit of meth. Sheesh.
Dang, kind of a long drive to get the cat off a car. Anyone else get hit by the thieves?
Kloke Peak
in Climber's Board
Posted
That's a poetic finish if I've ever heard one!