olyclimber

the cabin at Flapjack lakes.

This book https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3627331-early-hiking-in-the-olympics-1922-1942 is the best read I've ever had for hiking/exploring/climbing history of the Olympic Peninsula. I'm pretty sure my parents had this book so not sure how I missed it but glad I found it. Written by Paul Crews who went on to found the Mountaineering Club of Alaska. http://publications.americanalpineclub.org/articles/13201214718/Paul-B-Crews-1917-2017 Lots of stuff stuff about my stomping grounds that actually have a fair amount written about them, but that I somehow missed: There was a Boy Scout Camp, complete with a bunch of cabins and a doc, etc up at Lower Lena Lake called Camp Cleland. I believe it was at the South end of the lake? There was also a forward camp up at Upper Lena Lake near where Milk Lake drain into it. There were also scout camps at other locations on the Peninsula I never knew about. Camp Cleland went away because the adult leaders were lazy and didn't want to have to hike up into the lake it sounds like lol. Mt Cruiser, named by the club Bremerton Ski Cruisers, had a cabin and a ski bowl up by Flap Jack lakes. It went away after the Park was created and people stopped going to it because of easier ski access at Mt. Rainier. The clubs in the early days (the Mazamas and the Mountaineers) would put the Mountie crag take overs to shame. They would roll up to Mt Olympus with 65 people in 1907, or in 1913 traverse traverse the Olympics from north to south with 106 people,, these type of outings.... sounds like some real solitude. This book also led me to finding this thread on NWHikers that has tons of pictures of old structures in the Olympics This picture of a the scout camp at Lower Lena!: I haven read it but a 1/4 of it, but really cool book. Check out this early map of the Sawtooth/Flapjack Lakes/Mildred area:

Holy moly a novel! I am bookmarking to read later….the garbage! Damn. Thank you for sharing your experience!

But…. @jon fixed it! Thanks for sticking with us..

Its Emelio with those stylin glasses again! Looks like you had a great trip, you should be proud. What a beautiful place, eh! At least you didn't break your leg, like the guy did when I was up there with the scouts. We had to carry him across the Blue Glacier and he got picked up by a chopper the next day off the moraine. Sounds like you need to make it a yearly trade of doing hay for another week in the mountains!

and theses ones for Fejas

Found this pic the other day and it reminded me of Slothrop.

These guys haven't been on the site for a long time, but Fejas and Slothrop (did he get his user name from that Pynchon novel?) Anyone left here know those guys?

yep

I thought I read somewhere that the Blue Glacier was the only one growing or staying the same size. That was a while ago and not sure if that was true. The page here suggests that was not accurate at all. These photos are crazy and make me wish I could get into a time machine so as to see them in 1900. https://www.nps.gov/olym/learn/nature/glaciers.htm I guess I was lucky to see the Anderson glacier in the 80s, though it was so small then that we didn't think anything of it.

Very nice!

The hits keep coming. Did you ride up there on a crotch rocket? Yeah the essential oils don't work on the New Age Hippy skeeters. It probably just smelled like BBQ sauce to them. Thanks for the TR!

wayne you''ll be first on my list if i can get new ones printed up. no funds for it right now but i can see it happening.

I may have to print up a new batch of Big Baller Club t-shirts to give out! Remember those? I think @Colin gave his to his mom, or she took it I'm trying to remember who else got them. Legend @joepuryear may he rest in peace, he got one. @W got one. @Sol got one. My personal alpine heros, the dynamic duo of Indiana Jones @lunger and....what do you call him other than @rat ....they got them. I can't remember if I ever got one to @wayne but if I didn't I should have. There were others that got them, and then others that should have got them but I just ran out. Here is Joe wearing his at the 2009 Sausagefest. What a great human being he was. He has on one of the very OG ones I hand dyed and printed.

Its been an amazing summer and I'm still processing mentally some of the TRs that have been flowing in. Wow. This is a team effort, so help me or @JasonG identify TR that you think quality for "best of cc.com" or "amazing photos" tags. Also, if I'm missed any first ascent TRs with the "first ascent" tag please let me know! thanks /porter

classic Oly fishermans path

Home Depot...."you can do it, we can help". What a trip! And what a summer for the CC.com TR forums! Thank you for the pictures, for the story. That rap anchor... We live right by this stuff...isn't that amazing? Thank you.

Wow! Nice adventure. Thank you!

Didn't climb anything, but went up to Mildred Lakes to fish with my son and his friend, who are both in college...and of course Kiba came too. Actually, I hiked up there Friday night, fished Saturday, and then hiked down Saturday afternoon to meet them at the trailhead, and we hiked up that night and fished Sunday morning and then hiked out. The trail in is steep in parts, I've been going up fisherman paths in the Olympics all summer, but this one is stout in parts. All the hikes up were done in the dark, got up there Friday night at 11:30 pm, and with the boys we got to camp just after midnight. Good times. I saw a bear in a tree Friday night. The vistas on the way in gave me some great memories. The views of peaks in the area: Climbing Pershing with @OlympicMtnBoy   Climbing Bretheron: Climbing Mt Stone with my friend Steve I think I've climbed Mt Stone at least 3-4 times. One of my favorite scrambles in the Olympics. Climbing Cruiser in "winter" with @Alpinfox the latter being a little laughable that we might think we were the first to get up there in winter, but hey, it was fun non-the-less. I never said I was the sharpest tool and if you know Pax you know he ain't either . See the entry about Cruiser here...I just ordered this book, I have never read it! Lots of interesting info there. "The Bremerton Ski Cruisers" being the name source for Mt Cruiser is one tidbit I learned. I wonder how many times the couloir on the north east side of Lincoln has been skied? See it to the right of the main peak here?: Great success. Thanks for allowing me take my little trip down memory lane. It was a great time up there with the boys. Oh and very cool to see Mildred upper and middle lakes from @JonParker climb of Cruiser this past Friday....the first pic I can see our camp and fishing spot right there.

The hits keep coming! Got get it! I'm putting it near the top of the list to add HEIC support to the board, as it seems to make a difference if we get tasty pics or not.

It’s 4.6 miles up to the upper Mildred Lake. It’s a pretty steep trail in parts. That is how pax and I approached when we climbed Cruiser. Never been up to Flap Jack lakes, so that must just be a more pleasant hike in or something?

Was just up on the other side this weekend on a fishing trip.

Epic!

Nice I will have to check that out! Got a be bike as a way to get into/stay in shape, but also just to explore stuff like this!