olyclimber

I'll go ahead and add all of Steph Abeggs TRs, definitely has become a resource for climbing in the PNW and beyond...and in some of the coolest areas. One of my favorites was her TR of the Valhallas in the Olys, see her first TR she posted on page two of her reports. http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/tripreports/fromsearch/1/user_name/Steph_Abegg

Bump. Any new ones to add in the past couple years?

there isn't much actual rock climbing in the Olympics....its mostly crap, unprotectable rock. also most everything was climbed before modern grading so almost everything is class II or III, no matter how hard it is...but finding an actual route that is 5th class for more than a couple moves is a rarity. Klenke's description of Anderson..."Cascadeclimbers.com elitists"... Needles and what also look fun is just to travel that backcountry from there to Constance pass and check out Mystery basin. Lets do it...got earn it with a little family time this weekend, but hope to be back at it soon after.

Its getting hard for a real man to find adventure in buckskin any more

this may be the best i've seen someone rock the Devo helmet. It actually looks almost normal on his head! On me it makes me look like I'm wearing an orange flower pot.

I moved the TR from the North Cascades to the Alpine Lakes section. I hope this makes sense for everyone, its just how we chose to organize the TR section!

Jason, Iet me know, its definitely on my list too. I could take off time from work too...as I said I would like to spend more than 2 days doing it...but I guess I'm up for whatever.

not the one i was thinking of but that is pretty awesome! thanks!

Thats covering some ground! Sunday was an awesome day for views in the Olympics! Did you just follow up on the ridge then for West Peak? Sounds like an awesome calorie burning weekend. I've been taking the Southworth ferry back to West Seattle fyi...been on it Sunday evening for 5 weeks running. Nice, puts you right back in the hood after a nice drive through Belfair, etc. We should join up for a trip, sounds like at least I wouldn't have to worry about you being fit and ready for anything! Now me on the other hand...

I think someone share a "line of sight" tool so you could look from one location to another based on topos and see what it would look like? I found this, but not what i'm looking for...but cool still: http://www.solwise.co.uk/wireless-elevationtool.html

Nice, did you get up it? What way did you go? I do want to hit that one this year, but I just want extra time to go up West Peak and hang out up there (more than a 2 day weekend would provide). This is looking northwest from Lena towards Mt Lacrosse, Anderson, White Mt, etc. I believe Elk Lick is on the right.

http://featheredfriends.com/spoonbill-ul-double-sleeping-bag.html I guess it doesn't zip in...but same idea

I think they did that on some version of a bag for Colin H.

I don't know...is a zipper absolutely necessary for a secure closure/heat retention? A quilt with the ability to close up like a sleeping bag might be more versatile. But I guess it is splitting hairs and the definition between the two gets blurred.... http://www.enlightenedequipment.com/revelation/ http://featheredfriends.com/feathered-friends-flicker-20-ul-quilt-sleeping-bag.html

I see that Lena is also referred to as "Mt Baldy" which is a name used by another peak on Grey Wolf Ridge...or maybe that one is just referred to as "Baldy" or "Baldy Peak".

Still on my list for this summer(though I can't go this weekend): Pershing Washington and Ellinor one day trip Skokomish (combine with one of my favorite places in the world, Mt Stone) Anderson Jupiter schwak from the north, via the lakes Iron Mt/Worthington

I once tamed a team of wild wolves one winter when i was out trapping beaver. really helped me get the pelts to the trading post, them pulling the sled. unfortunately i got trapped up on a high pass and i had to eat them.

This looks pretty fun!

Awesome, thank you Steph. Your pictures and route overlays are the best. Really, like I haven't seen someone who lays it out as well, at least for my brain. thank you.

Looks fun!

Trip: Mt Bretherton and Mt Lena - North Ridge for Bretherton and straight up Lena Date: 6/25/2016 Trip Report: I climbed Bretherton and Lena this past weekend from Upper Lena lake. I left Friday afternoon and after a ferry wait and etc I didn't get to the Lena trailhead till 8pm. I had a 5$ reservation to camp up at the upper lake so I decided to get up there that night. I strapped my climbing boots on to my pack so they would kick me in the head every time I pitched forward and forgot to put my FS parking pass on the rear view mirror, and then I headed up. Ran into family of 5-6 goats well before the lower lake, down pretty low for them it seems! I made to the lower lake before sundown, and was able to make it up above the "rock steps" of the upper lake trailhead before it was so dark I had to break out my flashlight. Made it to the upper lake at about 11:30. I slept in Saturday and then headed up to Bretherton. For the North Ridge route, before you get to Milk Lake you take the ramp on the left side of the false summit up to the ridge top. As you climb up that you have awesome views of East Lena, The Brothers, and the Constance group. Luckily I took pictures as I hiked, because that area became socked in once I got to the summit. On the ridge top you san see into the interior of the Olympics and right across to Mt Stone. The alpine traverse from Stone to Lena sprawls out right across the valley. On the ridge you drop to the left a bit to circumvent some rock and then on the right side of the ridge there are ledges up to the summit. There are a couple of ways of doing it, I may have regained the ridge to soon on the first drop down to the left, but it wasn't bad...in fact pretty fun. The last ledges on the west side of the ridge up to the summit were fun too, and then you're there. At this point the Brothers were socked in, but the view out to Rainier was nice and the sea of clouds. To the south the mountains came in and out of view. I decided to descend via the south end of the Milk Lake cirque so I could go down and see the lake. A couple times I thought maybe I should have just went down the way I came. The rock was loose and there were big blocks just waiting to go, but grabbing on to brush I was able to get down safely to a snow finger which I downclimbed and then made my way down to the lake. Over all, I don't know why anyone would do anything other than the North Ridge route (unless you're coming over from the Putvin side). The rock it terrible and unless you're solo, its gonna be treacherous. And the views along the North Ridge are awesome. I would honestly just replace everything in the Oly Guide book with this North Ridge description. I spent the rest of the day down at the lake sitting in a chair I brought up and reading this book about the Leyte Gulf battle in WWII. The next morning I got up early and headed up the cherry plumb line I scoped on Lena heading up from the NW corner of the lake. I did a brief bit of Slide Alder Yoga and right before leaving that I paid my respects by fertilizing the alder with my morning constitutional. To my dismay someone had already plucked the line up Lena, flagging led the whole way...straight up and then to the left to get to the top. I'm not sure why you would flag that, but there it is. The views from the top of Lena are really awesome. All my favorite peaks....the Brothers, the Constance group, Mt Stone, my new favorite Bretherton....the Pershing/Washington/etc mass to the south. Views up north and to the west...awesome. Not to mention Mt Rainier, Adams, and St Helens...and Baker to the north. Could even see downtown Seattle. I had the place to myself. After a while, I decided to head back down and out to spend the afternoon with my son before he grows up and moves out. This was my 5th weekend in a row up the Olympics...the place where I grew up, hiking trails in the Scouts and leading kids out there a week at a time when I worked at Camp Parsons. All those peaks are old friends now, but there are still a bunch of them I haven't visited yet, so I have a lot to look forward to it this summer and beyond. The trail down was a lot more pleasurable during the light of day, its a nice hike. Gear Notes: crampons and axe where nice to have for north ridge bretherton. trekking poles nice to have for lena scramble.

I just milked a mama grizzly and drank it all in front of the cubs.

I'm just gonna be (hopefully) bagging a peak or two, if my bad back permits. I'm gonna head up there tonight. Tomorrow maybe head up Bretherton if I'm feeling good and tag Lena on the next. Or something like that.

Latest pics I have seen of that area are from Hummel & Co's epic TR: http://www.myadventurecrusade.com/2016/05/27/the-olympic-traverse/

I've up to the Anderson glacier (or what is left of it) a couple of times but never up either peak. I do want to go tag at least Anderson, but figured it to be something I would prefer to do in 3 days to properly enjoy the climb and area. Camp up at the glacier, etc. Longer approach with the road out, though bikes make that extra 11 better! My lower back went out this week, so I'm debating what I'm gonna do. May just hike up to the Upper Lena and check things out up there both days...been a while and I've never spent the night at the upper lake before. Lets get out there this summer! Wesside4life!