curtveld

No Gene, that was the one we tried which ended up heading to Illusion. The Skeena trail forks off a bit further. On the way out, we looked for a landmark at the Squire trail, but it's pretty generic-looking. Thanks Quarry! Skeena is cool because there are so few longer routes outside the 9+ to 10+ range. Dtown would be more widely appreciated if there were some longer lines going at 5.7-8.

Trip: Squire Creek Walls - Skeena 26 Date: 7/18/2014 Trip Report: With the Drought of July 2014 about to end, our weather window was two days max. Skeena26 looked like a good fit: short drive, long climb, remote spot. Only problem was how to get there, not a trivial consideration in the Darrington jungles. Despite having Whitelaw's steller topo in hand, the web offered scarcely a clue on access. But Andy's and I are up for an occasional navigation challenge, so off we went. Our first attempt took a little trail that crossed Squire, then proceeded directly toward the Illusion Wall. Doh! Plunging leftward into the brush looked brutal, so we backtracked to the creek and waded upstream looking for another faint tread. Chilly Squire Creek On track in the big trees Bingo! Into the timber it went, across the trib and up-up-up through the woods into the land of the curvy cedars. Although maze-like at times, we appeared to be getting somewhere. Eventually the cedars spit us into a large gully, with the route looming above. Oh yeah! At the base of the slabs was a grassy bivy spot and were greeted by thousands of affectionate sand flies. To the west are four slab waterfalls, though nearby drinking water was scarce. We dipped from puddles below the blocks of snow in the gully underneath the route. How'd we end up in Depot Creek?! Through the curvy cedars Sa-weet bivy spot with views! An early start worked well, the rock warmed by two weeks of hot weather. The 5.9 slab looked nice but was littered with gravel and needles, so we opted for the "early season start", digging out tiny nut and cam placements in the 5.8 crack. After that, the pitches were cruisy and fun, a fairly direct line with bomber 3/8" bolts. Bolts are right where you need them, though enough runouts to intimidate an unseasoned 5.8 leader. Andy hadn't climbed anything more technical than stairs for two years, but swapped leads with hardly a whimper! Pitches 4 through 9, in particular, offer clean open slabs with the Darrington mix of scoops/chicken-heads/overlaps in the 5.7 range. Engaging and non-stressful. Andy at the base of the 5.9 start. We followed the buttress on the right. Rock found perched on the belay bolt. Memorable fourth pitch crosses the bushy corner rightward. The top out is straight above Andy's head. The "unique groove" on pitch 5 and the wide-open slabs of mid-route. Jet Towers (?) to the west We topped out around noon and began the 11 rappels, trundling a few microwave size blocks perched on the pitch 1 slab. Hit the Burger Barn for the Burgers, Fish and Chips Calorie-replacement Special. Maybe we went a little light on food this time? "Is this how you do these selfie things?" Gear Notes: 10 slings, Light rack with several pieces in the 1/4 to 1/2" range. Approach Notes: Super secret trail - not too hard to find

Appreciate the offer, Bill. We didn't have time for research but found it on our own. Skeena is a lot of fun - an outstanding effort by you, Dave and crew.

Is this route accessed from the Illusion Wall or another way?

Dayum

As a local guidebook put it: "Darrington is one of the most under-rated rock climbing areas in Washington, but by all accounts it shouldn't be....Perhaps it is the weather, the moss and dirt, or else the fact that Index has become the place to be(and be seen)."

No photos, just a quick beta blast update on this amazing route, from my recent visit with 'Jopa' Joe. Access: Highway 530 through the Oso slide is completely clear for normal 2-way traffic. The 2060 and ‘bridge fork’ are bumpy but fine. After you cross the bridge toward Exfo, the first wash is pretty rough for a 2WD. Fortunately it only adds 10 minutes to walk from there. Route: What an awesome line this is! Endless thanks to Mr. Perkins and his crew. Pitches 3-6 are significantly steeper than any other Dtown route I’ve been on and the climbing is very entertaining. Pro is excellent, all bolts are in good shape, though some nuts could use tightening. If you use aid on pitch 4, the free crux is the leftward slab moves on pitch 3, which I’d not hesitate to call 10c (vs. "10b" on the topo). Being a mid-10 leader, was glad to have aiders for pitch 4. Be warned that some of the bolts are a bit beyond ‘bolt-ladder’ spacing. Be prepared to get up in that top step...and beyond. The most puzzling thing was the lack of recent traffic on this spectacular route. From the needle debris on anchors, we appeared to have been one of the first parties of 2014. If you haven’t done this one yet, put it on your list. You shouldn't have to wait in line!

First wash was a little rough for the Corolla, so walked the extra 10 minutes. Might have given it another try if there wasn't the rusty muffler along the side of the road. Truck or AWD would probably make it all the way.

Another great TR on this modern classic! We ran into similar conditions - snow cone on pitch 1, wet streak on pitch 2 - but found a dry climbing alternative to the right that went at around 5.8, if a bit runout

A friend did Colchuck last weekend via the Glacier and said conditions were good. Plus the permit season for overnighting hasn't started yet. Good place to look look around at bigger challenges for next time too

Cmon Gene, going around on Hwy 20 didn't take THAT long!

It's in excellent shape for this time of year. Drove my Corolla to the 3OC trailhead with nothing beyond the usual bumps and potholes. Rock was quite dry too.

Anybody been up the 2060 recently? FS reports indicate 'possible down trees & debris'...

I'm with Tvash on this one. Minimal mountain views until the upper end of Little Beaver valley. For a spectacular early-season forest walk, the Hoh is way more impressive.

Jason has pretty much given you the quality info, but I'll chime in on a couple of details. Bugs: Unlike Oregon, where I grew up, it's darn near impossible to predict bug season up here. Bring protection and be prepared to deal with what you find - headnet, DEET, tent can all be worth their weight in gold at times. They can often be a non-issue too. Permits: Very rarely an issue for any of the backpacking areas, aside from the Enchantments mentioned above. National Park has quotas that are seldom filled and most of the rest is unregulated. BTW, the major Wildernesses (Glacier Pk, Pasayten and Alpine Lakes) all have backpacking as good or better than NCNP. Enjoy!

Actually Squamish is closer to Baker than Liberty Bell. Not sure if it can compare to Colorado, but some folks enjoy it.

You probably know that the weather in the North Cascades is notoriously unpredictable, and June is especially so. The best 'plan' is to research a wide range of options in advance and pick the best option(s) when you check the last forecast as you head out the door. As Jason says, there will be almost certainly be drier alpine rock options at WA Pass and the Enchantments. However if the pattern is cold/stormy, nearly all of the alpine climbs you mention will be getting hammered. If snow is a priority, I'd scope out the few alpine options toward the east: Maude and Stuart Range (N sides of Colchuck and Stuart for starters) come to mind. There might be some things around Rainy Pass (Stiletto?) that would be fun and relatively accessible. An off-the-beaten-path option is the North Couloir of Robinson.

As for me, I still ski, hike, backpack, but mostly when I have a chance to stoke my kids’ interest in that stuff. My main non-climbing thing is playing my trumpet – jazz, soul, marching, whatever. I tell you, the head space for taking an improvised solo in front of a few hundred people is kind of like a good climbing lead - you’ve got to combine awareness, flexibility and precision, while keeping a cool head. Or it can be mellow... My winter fixation is puzzles: crosswords, jigsaw, sudoku, ken-ken. By getting them done now, I’ll have my geriatric years free to BASE jump, ride motorcycles, etc.

Tomorrow (3-13) afternoon/evening for sunny moderates. curtveld at comcast.net

And Tyson is also an excellent fellow :kisss: If you want to run out on a Friday, climb something and be back for 10pm bedtime, I might be the guy. When you want to get out for a full multi-day exploratory mountain adventure, I'd call him. In fact, I do.

Sent you a PM

What a cool looking climb...and trip! One of these day's you'll have enough material for a book called something like: 50 Classic Climbs You've Never Heard Of

I also have long narrow-ish feet and love the Technos! They are a great all-arounder, but quite good for face. If you can find a pair (few of old version left, new version not out yet), be aware they don't stretch much at all, so don't fit them much tighter than how you want them to end up. I've got a used pair that might work for an 11.5. Agree that Sportivas are usually a good choice, 5.10s not so much...

Discovered that Cilogear has some nice options if your budget allows....

In college, I was looking to head to Yosemite for Spring Break but needed a partner. One of my favorite classmates was a german exchange student, 'Michael', who was great company and always up for a good adventure, especially if travel was involved. He didn’t have much climbing experience, but was athletic and a quick learner. I figured he’d be fine company for the long drive and we could each find other partners if we weren’t a good match on the rock. All that was true, and we had a great week traveling, camping and climbing. High on my list was the Nutcracker, and Michael was climbing well, so we jumped on it with me doing the leading. Things were going great and we were soon re-racking below the dreaded ‘mantle’, which I mentioned was quite famous and would be the crux of the climb. All was understood, so I led on up, fiddled in a decent nut, then tentatively tried the next couple moves toward the mantle. Figured out the sequence, but couldn’t quite commit to the big move, so backed down to the nut to shake out. Yelled down that this was it and to watch me closely; I could see he was nearly as excited as I was nervous. Launched back up to fire the mantle and glimpsed down to check that the rope was pulling smoothely and all, and got the big surprise. Michael was leaning back on the anchor, holding a camera with both hands, adjusting the focus to capture the big move, with the belay end hanging there loosely. “What the hell are you doing, Michael?!? You’re supposed to have me ON BELAY!!” Without the slightest concern, he replied “Oh… but you vill not fall!” I convinced him to humor me and put me on belay, regardless of his confidence in my skills. He shook his head, put away the camera, and grabbed the rope. I grunted through the mantle and completed the pitch, which only confirmed his prediction. I brought him up and gave him a firm lecture that he should NEVER release the rope until the leader was anchored. Though he complied, I’m not sure he ever quite grasped the urgency of my concern. Maybe that's a typical european attitude, but we had a hell of a fun week, regardless.