Tom_Sjolseth

J, The route highlighted in this TR is the way to go in my opinion. We hit maybe 400' of brush. Follow the streambed on its left side until you gain a grassy rib. Of the three times I've been in there, this was the sweet spot. PS.. the route penciled in above is approximate. Stay left (within earshot) of the prominent streambed coming off the cliffs directly below the summit of ASA.

Trip: Gunsight Peak - S Face Date: 6/17/2010 Trip Report: On June 11, Daniel Jeffrey and I made the trip to Stehekin en route to Gunsight Peak via Agnes and Spruce Creeks. Over a period of 7 days, we had a great adventure in one of the most beautiful areas in the North Cascades. In the days leading up to our climb, the long-range forecast (although admittedly unreliable) called for pleasant weather for the next 7 days. As encouraging as the forecast was, the avalanche forecast was equally discouraging. NWAC had posted warnings of high to extreme avalanche danger between 7-8000’. Despite the NWAC forecast, and since I had been in the area twice before, we were confident we could navigate the terrain on the approach to Gunsight Peak safely. Daniel and I were excited to embark on a trip we had been planning for quite a while. We would take the boat up Lake Chelan to Stehekin, then ride a National Park Service shuttle to High Bridge, and finally hike 9 miles of forest followed by a 4500’ climb of steep, brushy terrain to a high camp at 7000’ along the Yew/Spruce Creek divide. From our high camp, we had hopes of climbing the obscure Asa Peak as well as several routes on Gunsight Peak, a peak consisting of some of the most solid, aesthetic rock in the range. Route topo. Day 1 The logistics involved with getting to Stehekin are somewhat of a hassle, but necessary for those wishing to explore this remote corner of the range. To begin with, one must take a two hour and forty-five minute ride on a passenger ferry from Field’s Point to Stehekin Landing. Once in Stehekin, a National Park Service shuttle delivers you up valley to High Bridge, where the trail up the West Fork of Agnes Creek begins. Nine miles and 1400’ later, you arrive at the relatively plush Swamp Creek Camp, one of many established sites for thru-hikers on the PCT. After all was said and done, Daniel and I arrived in camp at 6PM, and we felt “jet-lagged” from the long trip. Along the trail, we narrowly escaped being smashed by a rogue windfallen tree that came crashing down onto the trail not 100 yards behind us. Thankful to survive an otherwise mundane approach, we got to bed early after eating dinner and sharing some spiced rum. Day 2 S Fork of Agnes creek was flowing heavily, but we were able to find a huge log to cross on about a 9 minute hike up the trail from Swamp Creek. Once on the other side, the brush stole the MP3 player right out of Daniel’s pocket. From the valley bottom, we worked up between two giant swaths of slide alder, within earshot (and climber’s left) of a small watercourse. There is no avoiding dense Slide Alder and Vine Maple here, you pretty much have to just dive in. We bushwhacked for about 400 vertical feet before breaking out into the open on a steep, grassy, slabby rib. From here, the brush all but ends. Typical Bushwhacking above Spruce Creek We ascended the rib as high as we could go before it enters cliffy terrain below ASA Peak. At the apex of the rib, we traversed left for about a mile below ASA Peak and the Yew/Spruce Creek divide, finally gaining the divide itself at the obvious saddle SE of Pt 7458. This would be our camp for the remainder of the trip. Views up the S Fork Agnes Creek valley. Daniel getting a little weird after bushwhacking through dense brush. Notice the plume of flies surrounding his head. Getting into the snow now. Bonanza Peak to Saddle Bow Mountain. Suiattle and Cloudy Passes between. Looking down into S Fork of Agnes Creek. Lyall Ridge from the approach. Before turning in for the night, Daniel and I traversed the Yew/Spruce Creek divide to Asa Peak (Pt 7060). Here, we were delighted to find the oldest summit register we’ve ever seen. Asa Post, as part of a Government scouting party, first signed the register on August 2, 1908 – 102 years prior to our visit. The slip of paper on which he signed his name was in perfect condition, protected by some cans that they carried up on the original ascent. 37 years after Asa made his first ascent, his son Austin signed the register with, “Hello Dad”. We knew at least one person in every party that had signed the register since. Along with the historic slips of paper was a neat photo of the first ascent party lounging around the summit. We held the photo up to nearby Agnes Peak and the scene we were looking at in front of us was identical to the scene depicted in the photo. What a neat piece of history! Asa Post’s historic summit entry in the Asa Peak summit register. Austin Post’s summit entry. Views to the west from Asa Peak. Daniel on the summit of Asa Peak. Traversing the ridge back to camp from Asa Peak. Views from camp. Ticks! Day 3 On day 3, we awoke to clear skies. By the time we got moving around 8AM, it was already getting warm. We made our way over to Gunsight Peak traversing the obvious ridge. The snow was very soft, and we were glad to have snowshoes. At times we were walking on top of the snow, and at other times we were postholing knee deep in snowshoes! It took us quite a while to cover the 2 miles between camp and the base of Gunsight Peak, thanks to the soft snow. By the time we got there, temperatures were in the 80s and we were getting cooked by the sun. Daniel traversing to Gunsight. Views along the way. Gunsight Peak. Looking North to Old Guard and Sentinel Peaks. Agnes Mountain looms behind Daniel. A large bear track in the snow. A frozen Blue Lake. More views from the traverse to Gunsight Peak. Huge cornices loom above Icy Creek. Me approaching Gunsight Peak. Me in front of Gunsight. The main peak of Gunsight. Our original objective was the NE Face of Main Gunsight, a 6 pitch route to 5.10d. Upon arriving at the base of the main peak, however, we were deterred by the soft snow over the bergschrund. Instead, we spied another line to climber’s left that we thought might go. It started out with loose 5.7 climbing leading up to a steep headwall where we encountered twin cracks (5.10). In the lower section, we found a rusty stopper that someone had left on a previous ascent (attempt?). Daniel led up the twin cracks, removing loose chockstones as he climbed. Above the cracks, he worked behind a huge block. Ahead was an ice and snow filled chimney, which looked impossible in the current conditions. Minus the snow and ice, the chimney looked like a great route. We bailed from a sling on a horn and did one and a half 60m rappels back to the base of the peak. As we were doing so, Steve Trent made two fly overs in an EA6B Prowler. On the second pass, he headed straight towards us. What a neat sight! The traverse from the ridge to the base of the route. Looking up from low on the route. Moderate climbing on relatively loose rock (loose for Gunsight). Daniel belaying me over to the start of the twin cracks. The beautiful twin cracks. We turned around above these cracks, just out of view. After backing off the E Face, we decided to check out the S Face route from the notch between the Main and S Peaks. After ascending loose, dangerous rock and snow to the notch, the clouds began to move in and envelop us. At that point, it appeared as if weather was moving in. Rain soon began to fall lightly, dashing any hopes we had to summit that day. Me rigging the rappel to get the heck out of dodge. Looking down the gully to the west, down to the Chickamin Glacier. Our opinion of the situation. Looking down the loose approach gully. From sunshine to gray in two hours! We made it back to camp without getting too much precipitation. We had no idea what the future held in store for us in terms of weather, so we were a bit anxious that night to see what tomorrow would bring. Day 4 On the fourth day, we awoke (surprisingly) to mostly sunny skies. We were thankful to get another chance at Gunsight Peak. In light of how quick the weather conditions changed the previous day, we were eager to move fast to beat any possible precipitation that might hamper our climb. Daniel rehydrating on the way back to Gunsight Peak. Since the night was so cold, the snow had firmed up quite nicely. We were hopeful that we would get on the NE Face. As we traversed over to the face from the ridge, we noticed that the initial 5.10b finger crack had snow at the bottom. Higher up, we saw drips from snowpatches in the middle of our route. Aside from all this, we didn’t want to carry boots with us for the difficult climbing and we were unsure how to get back across the snow to the base of our route to retrieve our packs in rock shoes. With all this considered, we decided to bail on the NE Face and go check out the S Face again. We climbed up the loose gully again to the notch between the Main and S Peaks. From here, the routes described in Beckey traverse W before ascending. Instead, we decided to climb straight up from the notch. On the first pitch, we encountered fun, solid 5.8 climbing with good pro. Daniel led this pitch and belayed me up. I took over for the second pitch and led us up and left, eventually gaining the ridge crest just below the summit (5.8). From here, we finished the last bit to the tiny summit on wildly exposed terrain among stunning views. Daniel climbing the first pitch above the notch. Looking down at the first pitch. Me climbing the first pitch out of the notch. Looking back at the S Peak from pitch 1. Daniel at the first belay. Me beginning the second pitch. Looking back from mid way up the second pitch. Me nearing the ridgecrest on pitch 2. Belaying Daniel up the final bit to the summit. Looking back at me from just below the summit. Daniel climbing just below the summit. Clouds over Dome Peak. Looking back down the route from the final belay. Another look down the route. Daniel on the summit block. Summit views. More views. Sinister Peak from the summit. Me on the summit of Gunsight Peak. More views. More summit views. Daniel rappelling back to the notch from the summit. The view to Agnes Mountain from the notch. Daniel getting ready to toss the rope for our rappel from the notch. Daniel on rappel. We headed back to camp just as weather began to move in again. As we ate our dinner that evening, it began to snow. The winds picked up, and we headed inside the tent. Gunsight Peak from the return trip. Artsy tree shot. Weather moving in as we return to camp. Daniel returning to camp. Day 5 It snowed all night and when we awoke on the morning of the fifth day, it was still snowing. There was ~4” of fresh snow all around us, and it continued to come down. We decided to sit it out and wait for it to clear before beginning our descent. Fresh snow. ... Daniel enjoying a brief break in the weather to brew coffee. Our camp under a fresh blanket of snow. What’s that smell? Day 6 and 7 Icicles hanging out on our tent. We awoke on the morning of the sixth day to mostly cloudy skies and light flurries. At this point, we had spent the past 36 hours in the tent. We were beginning to go stir crazy. We got out of the tent, made some coffee, and the snow magically let up - but not before dumping about 8" of fresh snow on us. At this point, we packed up and headed down before the weather decided to change its mind. We were surprised to encounter dry brush on the way out. The brief sun breaks had been warm enough to dry everything out so we weren’t completely soaked by the time we got to the creek. Anxious to have a beer and some normal food, we huffed it all the way out to the TH in ~6 hours from our 7,000’ high camp. We caught the last shuttle back to Stehekin just as it began to rain in earnest. The rain didn’t let up until the following morning. We were glad to make it back without getting soaked, and enjoyed the last few hours in Stehekin talking with local residents while waiting for the ferry. Bear sighting at High Bridge. Camping in Stehekin – Hobo style. So despite not climbing the routes we wanted to, it was still another fine adventure into the N Cascades! Gear Notes: Two 60m ropes Double rack of cams Two pickets Snowshoes Bourbon Approach Notes: Devil's clubs, slide alder

Follow the Cascade Pass Trail for ~2.5 miles to a switchback that cuts back to climber's right. To your left will be open slopes (some brush in late season, probably snow-covered right now). From here, you climb straight up (and slightly left) to intersect the Sahale Arm trail. It works well as long as it's snow-covered.

Very entertaining (in retrospect, of course). Between the raptor, the ticks, and the barbed wire, you guys sure had your work cut out for you!

Trip: Mt. Stuart - Stuart Glacier Couloir Date: 5/1/2010 Trip Report: I finally got around to climbing this gem on Saturday. Steph Abegg and I met at the Mountaineer's Creek TH on Saturday morning at 4AM. We were able to drive to within 1/4 mile of the trailhead in high clearance vehicles. Another climber was supposed to join us there, but apparently he got stuck in the snow about 1 mile from the TH. We left the TH at 4:35 under cloudy skies. We put on snowshoes immediately, and wore them all the way to the base of the route. The trail to the Colchuck Lake junction was fairly well-packed, but the snow beyond that was soft. We arrived in the basin below the route and saw three climbers making their way up the Ice Cliff Glacier. We stashed our snowshoes by a big boulder in the middle of the basin and headed off. The snow here was perfect with a walkable crust in places, sinking up to ankle deep in others. As we ascended, the winds (out of the NW) steadily increased. We stopped at the 'schrund and looked for a good spot to cross. The snow here was sugary and light, and we found it tricky to find a place to cross safely. We belayed across the bergschrund without incident. The rest of the couloir to the notch in the W Ridge was very straightforward (snow to 55 degrees). We were disappointed to not find any ice. The winds were ferocious at this point, and spindrift was a nuisance. Visibility was very limited (50 feet?). But what the couloir lacked in ice, the W Ridge sure made up for it. The entire way from the notch to the summit was completely caked in ice and snow (much of it rime). This provided challenging conditions for the mid fifth class rock. The first pitch from the notch went up a short, vertical rime mushroom. The perch atop it was airy, and there was no reliable pro, so we belayed each other up off a solid belay. From here, we traversed the extremely exposed rimed up ridgecrest (again, little to no pro). We tried to use natural pro where available, as this was all we could find in most places. We came to the 5.6 lieback and, no surprise, it was caked in ice (the rock was totally plastered). We decided to bypass this by doing a delicate traverse across the upper N Face. Again, pro was sparse as cracks were filled with ice and snow. Pitons came in handy for belays, and I was able to place a few cams (4 total on the rock pitches). We were using a 30m rope and we belayed 6 pitches of very exciting, very exposed climbing. The summit block was one big rime mushroom - no rock could be seen. To climb it involved a delicate traverse along a downward sloping, icy rock ledge (in crampons) pushed outward by bulging rime (no apparent pro). I chopped at the bulging rime for 5 minutes in an attempt to create a wider ledge. My last piece was 20 feet below me and about 10 feet to my side! I belayed Steph up from the summit at 6:30. The climbing was very time-consuming, and we had to hurry to get down before dark. With winds still howling wildly (steady 25, gusting to 40+), sideways snow pelting us in the face, and visibility at about 50 feet, we down climbed towards the false summit, in search of the Sherpa Glacier (our descent route). Accurate routefinding was nearly impossible. A mini-epic ensued. Steph took a few photos, hopefully she'll add them here (or a link to them on her website). An excellent climb with an excellent partner.

I was up there Memorial Day Weekend of 2003, and we experienced excellent conditions.

You're not kidding.. they were pretty thick.

Nice summary, and great trip, BD. This was the first time I ever led multiple pitches with nothing but cams. Looking forward to the next one.

We spotted no closure signs when we were up there on Saturday 4/24. We climbed Outer Space and had the whole wall to ourselves!

It barely sprinkled for like 5 minutes. The rock remained dry and we climbed all day. We were intending to climb Outer Space, but it was wet at the top. Another week or so. The watch is waterproof..

I stupidly put my altimeter watch down on the ground while climbing at Pearly Gates on Saturday. If you could return it to me, I would appreciate it. I've had this thing for 9 years now and it has been great to me. It is stainless steel and has numerous scratches on the face. tsjolseth@hotmail.com or PM me here.

Excellent thread.

I would say the route is just coming into shape. It's not completely formed up yet. Give it some melt-freeze and I think it'll be a lot better than it is right now. Usually the route is good into May.

Crushing it! Very impressive TR, possibly the best I've seen all season.

The rap is like 10m, so you're fine with a 30m rope. I didn't use a rope for anything, but my partner wanted one at the top of the runnels (just after the rappel), and again at the transition between the second and third couloirs. The rest we soloed. Sorry I didn't stop to chat, the glissade was quicker than I anticipated. I did not pick up your probe (or even see it). Shitty that someone would pick it up. We didn't leave the rap anchor on the N Face, that was there already. Right on for snowboarding that, I have great respect for all of those who would snowboard/ski that!

Trip: Dragontail Peak - Route du Jour - Triple Couloirs Date: 3/23/2010 Trip Report: This forum seems to be lacking in TC reports, so here's mine from yesterday: Erin B and I had a great time today on Dragontail Peak. We left the Bridge Creek Campground at 3:15AM. We managed to get a few hours of sleep after our drive from Seattle late the previous evening, but we were still groggy. We made quick work of the road/lake approach and arrived at Colchuck Lake in a little under 3 hours (7 miles, 3700' gain). The bootpack was frozen solid, and if anything we could have cramponed the approach. From the N end of the lake, we walked across to the S and took a long break on the other side. After eating, drinking, donning our climbing gear, and admiring the views, we took off towards the base of the route in calf-deep snow. Although several parties had climbed the route on Saturday, their tracks had all but disappeared, forcing us to break our own trail. This took a bit longer than anticipated, and we didn't wind up getting to the base of the route until about 8AM. From here, we broke trail up the first couloir and walked past the runnels. I was tempted to give the runnels a go, but I didn't want to scare Erin off on only our second trip out, so I opted to go for the rappel into the upper runnels. One short section of verglas here led up and out of the runnels. From here, we again broke trail up the second couloir, a painfully slow process. The transition from second to third couloirs was dry. There looked to be two feasible ways through, and we chose the direct route drytooling on rock and turf. After breaking trail up the third couloir, our calves were singing to us. We were glad when we finally topped out and saw the summit a short distance above us. We reached the summit a little after noon. We stayed up there for about an hour, before heading down to Asgard Pass. The slopes of Asgard Pass were very firm and wind-scoured, dashing any hopes of ours to glissade it. The slopes softened up near the bottom, and I was able to glissade the lower 600' or so, which was a welcome relief. The road walk seemed to go on forever, and the snow was soft from the afternoon sun. We were glad we lugged our snowshoes, else we'd be postholing pretty deep. Back to the car at 4:20PM. Stats: 18 miles 7,000' gain 13:05 RT (From Bridge Creek CG) A view of the N Face of Dragontail Peak as seen on a previous attempt. Photo taken April 20, 2008. Erin starting up the first couloir. Cashmere Mountain from low on the route. Climbing in the first couloir. Looking up at the dry runnels. More climbing. The view up from the rappel station. The view down from the rappel station. Erin climbing thin ice over slab at the top of the runnels. Colchuck Lake as the backdrop. Low in the third couloir. Neat gendarme on route. Looking down from the bottom of the third couloir. E Dragontail from the summit. Cannon and Temple Ridge in the background. Looking down from the top of the third couloir. View to Pandora's Box from the summit. Erin making the final steps to the summit of Dragontail Peak.

We climbed the route today. The runnels are not in ice form, but could be an interesting drytool problem. They looked climbable to me, but it would be better to wait until the ice forms fat. As it was, I thought it was a mediocre route.

Nieve... The Warm Creek approach via the Middle Fork of the Nooksack appeared to be the most direct approach route to us. It worked out to be ~5 miles and 3200' gain to camp from the TH. I think it would have worked out to be about the same (in terms of time spent) if we started from the Heliotrope Ridge TH.

If anyone is considering climbing the hanging glacier itself, it is overhanging by at least 10 degrees (more like 20). Go get it! @Gene.. a combination of dreaming, Scurlock Photos, and a few hops.

@Darin.. there are probably other higher unclimbed points out there (possibly a sub-summit of 7FJ, or one of Jack's false summits), but this one has got to be the toughest. I'm not sure of the prominence on Assassin Spire, but I believe the map to be in error as it only lists 160' of prominence for Assassin Spire. I believe there to be over 300' of prominence, but we'll probably never know for sure. @Steve.. very cool! We were equally surprised to see you I'm sure. @JoshK.. surprisingly we didn't see or hear that hanging glacier drop a single thing the entire time we were in there (even at camp). You wouldn't see me climbing that thing though, especially at WI6.. @Rad.. I'd be glad to contribute this to the NWMJ.

Sick. What a nice looking line!

Trip: Assassin Spire - NW Face - The Shooting Gallery (IV, WI4+) - FA Date: 3/7/2010 Trip Report: Assassin Spire - The Shooting Gallery (IV, WI4+) Photo courtesy of John Scurlock. Assassin Spire is a subsidiary summit of Lincoln Peak, one of the intimidating Black Buttes on Mt. Baker. Until this weekend it had never seen an ascent via any route. Daniel Jeffrey and I headed up to Marmot Ridge via Warm Creek off the Middle Fork of the Nooksack River on Thursday evening after work. We had planned to approach that evening, but it was raining when we arrived, so we decided to postpone the approach until the following morning. Friday morning we awoke at 3:30AM, and got ready to head up. We were crossing a very icy Warm Creek by 3:50 in complete darkness. We then headed up new-growth timber through a clearcut for 700' to gain Marmot Ridge. From here, it was a long, undulating journey to camp at ~6200' in the basin below Assassin Peak and Heliotrope Ridge. The next morning we awoke at 3:30 again to crystal clear, starry skies. We brewed some water and coffee, and proceeded to cross the basin to the base of the NW Face. We had spied a vertical line of ice (~3 pitches of WI6) below the hanging glacier, but it looked a bit intimidating for us, so we opted to try a less sporty line on climber's right. 2 25m pitches of WI4+ (90-100 degree ice - short stretches of overhanging on the first pitch) separated by a ledge led us up to a 55 degree buttress. The ice on the curtain was very brittle and it took multiple swings to get good placements. This was very tiring, and we pumped out fast. I led 25m on the first step before running out of screws. I then lowered off and belayed Daniel up to finish the last 5m (one more screw placement). From here, he belayed me up and I led the next 30m pitch. The ice was better here, but still brittle in spots. A swing of the tool would shatter the ice as it broke off huge chunks. From the top of the first curtain, we climbed 55 degree snow (firm and punchy here) to gain the hanging glacier. Above the hanging glacier lies an amazing amphitheater of ice and rock that rivals anything else I have seen in the entire N Cascade Range. How impressive!! Many lines are waiting to be climbed here consisting of very aesthetic, sustained, and solid ice. We traversed the hanging glacier to another gully (45 degrees), which we simul-soloed. This gully led into some 70 degree ice which we also soloed. We went right at John Wilkes' Tooth before arriving at the final ice curtain (20m WI4+). Daniel led this and we topped out in another steep snow/ice gully to 55 degrees. 3 more pitches led us to the summit. What a place! From the summit, Lincoln Peak looks impressive, as does Colfax and Baker. We spied about 15 snowmobiles parked under Sherman Peak, and saw 4 climbers at the col below the upper slopes of the Coleman Glacier. We were buzzed on the summit by an EA6B Prowler who did a double-take and circled us 2 or 3 times. The pilot tipped his wing. Very cool. This was a fantastic trip of epic proportions with a great partner in Daniel Jeffrey. Thanks to John Scurlock for flying over before the ascent to take recon photos, and thanks also for flying over on approach day thinking we were on route (we had told him we would be climbing Assassin on Friday). We saw him circle about 10 times looking for us. If only we had a flare gun... Scurlock's photo from March 5. THANKS John! Tracks in front of the Sister's Range on the approach. On the approach looking up at Heliotrope Ridge. View of Assassin Spire from the approach. Daniel at camp. Assassin Spire from camp. Fading light over the Sister's Range from camp. Alpenglow on Assassin Spire. Sunset. Me leading the upper portion of the first ice curtain on Assassin Spire. Looking down from the arete. Looking up from just above the first ice curtain. Daniel topping out on the first curtain. Daniel climbing up to the hanging glacier. The amphitheater. Views to the Sister's Range from mid-route. Looking down from high on the route. The Assassin Spire conglomerate. Tracks on route. Weeping curtains of ice from mid-route. Daniel climbing up to the belay below the third curtain. Daniel leading the third ice curtain. The steep gully above the last ice curtain. The upper slopes of Assassin Spire. Daniel a few pitches below the summit. Daniel on route below the summit. Daniel approaching the final steps to the summit of Assassin Spire. Lincoln Peak from the summit. Mt. Baker and Colfax Peak from the summit of Assassin Spire. Daniel on the summit. View to the west from the summit. Looking down from the summit. Me on the summit of Assassin Spire. Unclimbed ice on Lincoln Peak's NW Face. A close-up of unclimbed ice. A huge curtain of ice (WI6) below the hanging glacier on Assassin Spire. Sister's Range in fading light. One parting shot.

Rafael, I have your screw and your pin. I have been in touch with spionin regarding a rendezvous sometime this week. We saw your prints topping out above the rock step after we climbed the ice step (the prints below were gone). It looked like fun!

I found it about halfway up. How do I get it back to you?

Nice shots! Good bumping into you at the Alpy parking lot today.