Lisa_D

looks amazing!

I am also 5'2" and found some BD poles with extra-long handle grips (about 2 times the size of normal grips). So instead of cutting the pole, you can just hold the pole at a lower point when you need a shorter pole. Works well for going uphill and also for the side-hilling that happens when skinning.

That's my husband Jon (from Seattle) w/ his good friend Olin (from Montana)! It looks like they'll get some on/off weather, but that will hopefully result in both good views and some good turns. Nice trip, Helmstadter!

Thanks for the info!

Jon and I will be at J-Tree from about the 23rd-26th. We'd love to meet up with other people to climb, drink beer, have a Christmas campfire, etc. We'll probably camp at one of the national park campgrounds. email toner2@u.washington.edu if you'll be there!

transported me away from rain and work for a minute there....

nice ski video! Some of those crevasses you skied by had me on the edge of my seat.

The Twin Sister Range. Aside from the obvious WR of the N Twin - one of my all time favorites - I hear there are a lot of other beautiful climbs like S. Twin, Hayden, Cinderella, Skookum.. might be worth exploring, and there could be some cool linkups. Plus, nobody goes there. Icy Peak's summit is 4th class, and the views from there are beautiful. Mt. Watson, Hagen, and Bacon are supposed to be fun. The Eldorado Ice Cap area probably has a few. Lots of stuff in the Pasayten. Crater Mtn, Lago, Karhu, etc, are all supposed to be nice. WR of Cutthroat might be doable - a few moves of low 5th perhaps. West MacMillan Spire. Snowfield Peak has an OK class 3 summit pyramid with great views at the top, Pyramid peak has a scramble route, and you can probably scramble Colonial (?).

Trip: Vesper Peak - Upper North Face Date: 8/26/2009 Trip Report: I had only done 1 alpine climb in the Cascades this summer, so Jon and I took advantage of the good weather this past Wednesday to make a day trip up one of the routes on the NF of Vesper Peak. It was a lot of fun, although we had a few route-finding moments, which we will clarify in this TR so you can save time when you climb the route yourself. The road to the Sunrise Mine Trailhead is a 2 mile long mining road off of the Mtn. Loop Highway. You'll see a sign that says "Sunrise Mine Trail 2," and immediately after that is the road. We made the mistake of driving further on the highway. But no. You're supposed to turn right on the dirt road, and then drive 2 miles to the road's end. Hike 2 miles through the trees. You'll emerge from the trees to an avalanche field. The trail goes all the way to Headlee pass, but if you lose it on the way up just keep going to the head of the basin. There are nice switchbacks up the gully. We were thankful for these! After Headlee Pass, there is a beautiful basin - it would be great to camp out here with a few friends and then do the complete NF of Vesper. When climbing the NF of Vesper, you head right after the basin, and go to this notch. From here, you have 2 options: down climb class 3 to the Vesper glacier and start from the bottom of the face. Or, traverse up and then over on a ledge system (dotted red line). We chose the second option, due to time constraints and the size of the gaping moats below, which have been the scene of at least one accident. Jon looked down at the moats and described them as "horrifying, huge, gaping, and detached." They probably overhung about 50 feet! Views opened up to the incredibly blue Copper Lake, with an unusual view of 3 Fingers and Whitehorse in the distance. At the notch, looking for the ledge system, which we soon found. It was never more than class 2 or 3. If the moves start to get scary, think twice! You may be off route, or you may be at the first pitch. After the route-finding shenanigans, there was some debate about the wisdom of starting up an unknown 5 pitch climb with "unclear routefinding" and "sparse pro" at 3 PM. When we got to 4th class terrain, we decided to rope up, hoping we were at the first of the 4th class pitches Beckey describes. Here is where we roped up: Many fine views emerged. We could see the entire Picket Range! When the rope ran out, we found ourselves just above a huge ledge. We traversed down to it and began simulclimbing up. Since there was almost no pro, the climbing went quickly! We simulclimbed 4 pitches all the way to the base of the "open book". The granite is solid and beautiful. So solid, in fact, that it has very few cracks for pro. But the pro you can get is absolutely bomber. 5.8 slab by the open book.. the corner didn't look that inviting, so we took the nice slab.. 30 feet up and no pro yet! Jon got in a smallish cam and a few nuts, and ran out of rope just before the top, so we simuled a bit more. We felt comfortable with it, but if you have a 60 meter rope and want to avoid simuling on this pitch, just set up your belay anchor a bit higher in the open book, if you can find pro. 1.5 hours after roping up, we were at the summit! The views were amazing: you could see every major peak in the State. Shuksan, Rainier, the Pickets, Baker, the Olympics, the Ptarmigan Traverse, Stuart, Dragontail, Chimney Rock, Hinman, Daniel, Glacier Peak, Monte Cristo...Rainier was looking huge. Looking down the North Face. It would be fun to climb the whole thing. The back side of Big Four looks chossy. Baker looks melted out. On the hike out: BLUEBERRIES! We got 2 liters in about an hour. We returned to the car and were home 1.5 hours later. What a fun day out! We'd love to do it again. Gear Notes: containers for blueberries.

When Jon chose that climb, I was a little jealous since it's one that I had wanted to do. Now I'm kind of glad he did it without me! Most TR's take 3 days for this climb, which might have been more enjoyable.

Avalanches have killed anyone I know who died in the mtns. Most accidents I have seen or heard about involved gullies. Biking is dangerous. Though I'm a defensive biker who sticks to bike-friendly roads and avoids riding during rush hour, I've had more scares while biking in Seattle than while climbing. During race season, I see a lot of crashes (particularly among the younger guys.) There is a lot going on and many, many more opportunities for something bad to happen: potholes, blind corners, car doors, hundreds of cars, drunk drivers, people texting while driving, etc. But if I had to make a choice, I'd die in the mountains, and I think it would be due to something beyond my control. I'd rather be the victim of the powers of nature than get run over by an overweight motorist, talking on their cell phone, who just had to get to that red light 3 seconds earlier. I need to think happy thoughts now!

awesome! I'm jealous. I have been stuck indoors for the past 2 weeks.

Thanks for such a detailed and informative TR about a great route! If/when I'm a solid 5.10 trad leader, I'd love to try it.

scary!! But I liked your narration of the thoughts and experiences that you had. Way to get through it!

It was tough, but I managed. But I did get to live vicariously through the kids, as they had many fierce debates about the latest iPods and MP3 players. When we emerged from the backcountry, they were glued to their iPods! They listen to some good music. Being a violinist and an academic, I'm slightly illiterate on pop culture..

Love the pictures - what a scenic route you climbed!

Trip: Colorado Classics: Bastille & Le Petit Grepon Date: 8/3/2009 Trip Report: My sister got married in Boulder August 1 - after some initial craziness in the days before the wedding, it all came together. I got to play my violin for the ceremony, it was outdoors with beautiful views of the Rockies, and lights strung in the trees for dinner and dancing. It was an absolutely beautiful wedding, and I will always remember it. Jon came along to meet his future family and all our family friends, which was also great! After the wedding festivities, we had 2 days to climb in Colorado. On Sunday, the morning after the wedding, we were all tired and decided to sleep late and crag rather than climbing Bastille crack as we'd planned. Jon and I each led the 1st pitch of the Bastille and LOVED IT! Really fun climbing. We brought my cousin Bo (not related to my cousin Steph - this is the other side of the family). He lives in TX but is soon moving to CO. It was his first real outdoor climbing experience, and he had a blast and climbed really well! He jammed right up Bastille crack, and made it almost all the way up the stiff 5.10 climb to the left of it (pictured below). I have a feeling that CO will be like a giant playground for him! It would be awesome to have another climber in the family.. We finished up at Bastille around 2, and then Jon and I headed to the Rocky Mountain National Park. Several days before, we had called the ranger station and reserved a bivy site at the base of Le Petit Grepon, and we had to get to the ranger station before 7 to pick up our permit and pay the fee. We got lost in Boulder buying fuel, lunch, food for the trip, and filling up on gas. We also needed beta for the somewhat involved descent, since we only had one rope and could not do the standard rappel route. At the Boulder REI, I dumpster dove for some paper in the recycling bin. Then we found a pen, looked through a few guidebooks, and wrote down descent beta from 2 different sources. Finally, we drove up 36, through Estes Park, and to the backcountry ranger station. Thankfully, one of our family friends had given us their weeklong park pass, which saved us the $20 admission fee. We still had to pay $20 for the bivy site. Bloodsuckers! We began hiking at 6 PM, feeling the 10,000 elevation only a little. The trail was remarkably touristy, with huge, elaborate log bridges built over foot-wide creeks, and stairs cut into the hillsides. That's why they charge so much to get in... Jon, always a good geology TA, stopped to admire some metamorphic rock along the trail. Apparently it's the most metamorphic rock there is. We'd see a lot more of this rock before the trip ended. We arrived at Sky Pond just as dark fell. We cooked dinner and made bagels for the next day, and then relocated to avoid alpine snaffles who might be interested in our crumbs. After a few hours of sleep, we awoke to headlamps and climbers hiking quickly! The race to climb one of North America's most popular routes had begun. At 5:30 the alarm went off. At 5:40 we were booking it to the base of the climb, seeing people everywhere. And this was a Monday! 5 parties climbed the route that day, and we were 2nd in line. Fortunately everyone was friendly, efficient, and fun to be around! Looking up, we took in the beauty of our objective. Since we were doing a carryover, we climbed the route with full packs. Our food was the one violation of the "fast and light" way. A 6-pack of bagel sandwiches! Since we hadn't had breakfast (or caffeine for me), Jon led the first pitch so I could wake up. The rock was awesome: steep, juggy, with lots of positive holds where you want them, and there was usually good gear. Lisa and I swung leads. The climbing was an interesting variety of face and crack climbing, often run-out and relentlessly steep. We felt that the grades were a bit sandbagged, but that could be due to the fact that we were climbing with full packs at 12,000 feet! P1: easy slabs. P2: mostly easy chimney - I unfortunately created some rope drag for myself. Sling and place pro wisely. P3: a beautiful left leaning crack. P4: more chimney. Why did I draw the chimneys, and also the tiny, uncomfortable belays? Jon got crack pitches with huge ledges at the end. But then again, he also got the scary pitch near the top. P5: an awesome sustained and thought provoking 5.8 pitch. Jon coming up. Jon disappearing into the sky on the crux pitch, which had some tense and run-out moves, probably more exciting due to elevation and full packs. Climber on the spire next door. Pitch 6 was a wandering, run-out pitch that I led. It wandered right, then left. Mostly easy climbing, but some thought-provoking moves. I was a little slower on lead than usual, and didn't like that because there was a party behind us. But I did it all cleanly, and plus, when Steph took me on climbs similar to this a few years ago, I didn't want to lead ANYTHING. So it's progress. I think I am forcing a smile in this picture, because at that moment it was snowing, thunder was booming, the wind was howling, and there were BAGPIPES playing down in the valley. Bagpipes, of all things! Alpine ash scattering? I got to the Pizza Pan Belay, which looks nothing like a pizza pan, but is about the size of one. It is on an exposed arete, with a fixed piton and perfect orange and yellow metolius placements. P7: Jon led off from the pizza pan belay, trending leftward into a corner. When I followed the pitch, I thought it was a bit sandbagged and stiff for its grade. There were some 25 foot run-outs with scary moves. Plus, the exposure is enough to give even experienced climbers a little thrill or vertigo! When I reached Jon, I asked him to lead the last pitch to save us a few minutes, because the weather was really coming in at that point and I was a little psychologically fried after a week of wedding stuff and all the exposure and wind. Here I am coming up to the summit. The lake looks like a heart! Or, in Jon's imagination, a raging duck! Me on the summit. Spectacular! Now for the descent. We found the standard rap anchors, bolts on the other end of the summit. We made a short single rope rappel to an anchor made of slings. Then, another rightward rappel to another anchor, a combination of manky pitons and slings, backed up with a solid nut and cordalette. Thanks to whoever did that! We rappelled rightward again, then climbed up a 5.3 chimney that was to our left. A bonus 9th pitch of climbing! Soon, we were at the col between Sharkstooth and Saber, the two spires adjacent to Le Petit Grepon. We descended down "The Gash," basically a rocky boulder field, weaving through cliffbands - we could down climb everything in running shoes, though some of the moves may have been low 5th, nothing was exposed or bad. We ran down a few snow fields, marveling at how much rock surrounded us. Soon we were on the touron trail, exhausted but happy. That climb was deservedly a 50 classic, and was the perfect way to cap off an awesome week! Gear Notes: Lawn chair, cooler, and beer for cragging at the Bastille. Beefed up alpine rack for long pitches on Le Petit Grepon. Silly park fees for both climbs. Everything bagels. Approach Notes: Easy trails and roads, hefty fees.

Trip: 22 days in the Olympics - east-west traverse, including Olympus Date: 6/29/2009 Trip Report: I spent a month playing mountain guide for a camp called Pemi West (a satellite branch of a large east coast camp in NH). The people were awesome - the best co-workers and "clients" I could have asked for. We had absurdly good weather, with our only truly rainy day being the time we stopped at the Olympic Hot Springs. The food was the best I've ever had on a trip. And it was my first time in the Olympics - my parents and Steph's parents have hiked nearly every trail in this range, and have many fond memories of adventures in the Vahallas and the High Divide. Steph's parents actually met on the Dosewallips trail! So I was excited to see a bit of my parents' favorite mountains. First, we spent 3 days car camping. Doug (mtnmandoug) led us through a day of wilderness 1st aid. We continued to do 1st aid scenarios throughout the trip. Then, we packed food for 22 days in the wilderness. We had two 10-day periods, with a 3 day "luxury" period in the middle. Finally, we hit the trail. The first 10 days went like this: we entered at Gray Wolf and worked our way up Cameron Creek. We emerged from the trees and spent 2 nights at Cameron Basin, where Doug and I taught snow skills. Then, we headed up and over Cameron Pass to Hayden Pass, and then out the Elwha River. We averaged about 5 miles per day, and let the kids take turns being leader of the day. The kids figured out efficient hiking habits and good ways to keep the group together, although they did develop a funny tradition of taking an hour long break 400 meters away from camp! I'm not kidding! At first, it was a bit challenging for me to live so slowly and not have much of a role in the trip - we had 4 staff and 5 kids, and the kids did a lot of the daily leadership stuff. I'd had a crazy year and was stuck in the goal-oriented, go-get-em mentality of climbing. This trip was definitely process-oriented, and I soon adjusted to the different pace of life. It was hard to come back to civilization - I'm actually writing this trip report from the Hilton in downtown Milwaukee. I'm here for a conference, and it all seems so excessive and fancy! Anyway... We got to debrief with each leader of the day in the evening - that was a major highlight of the trip for me. The kids were all so articulate, intelligent, and transparent. It was really cool to be a part of their processes and hear what they were going through and learning. A few pics from the first 10 days. The scenery was gorgeous, and I was so excited for the kids to see it, because they are all from the east coast and had never experienced anything like it. Moonrise over Cameron Basin: Avalanche Liles, which are edible! Most of the crew, descending from the summit of Sentinal Peak (class 2) Then, we came to the Elwha River trail head, where a van awaited to resupply and shuttle us to the Olympic Hot Springs trail head. This was our one day of rain. I came prepared, not knowing what the weather would be on our 22 day trip. Isn't this a great get-up?? It's a small umbrella from Fred Meyer, wedged in my pack strap. The 3 day "luxury" period included meals of spaghetti with fresh veggies, smores, stir fry, tacos with guac and chicken, and bagels for breakfast. YUM! The nutrition felt great. We hiked up and over the High Divide. Heart Lake. Then, down into the Hoh, where we met a llama train at Lewis Meadow. I desecrated the GoLite philosophy. This baby weighed in at 60 lb, and although it killed my upper back at moments, the pack did well and didn't have any breaks or rips on the trip. In contrast, Pemi has broken 5 95-Liter Gregory packs in the past year. hmmm.. The final 10 days of the trip, we went up from Lewis Meadows, climbed Olympus, and hiked out the Hoh. Along the way, we saw Leor (off_the_hook) on an 11 hour run of Olympus! Quite the antithesis of our trip A surprise visitor! Jon came in to do a solo trip. He entertained the notion of doing a complete ridge traverse of some peaks near Olympus, but after seeing the horrifying rock, he opted for one scramble summit. The next day, he soloed Olympus while our group climbed it. He found 2 pitches worth of fun 5.6 climbing up the east face (?) and then descended the standard route. Apparently it's highly recommended. My favorite camp, where we spent 3 nights: CalTech Moraine, right on the Blue Glacier. My fellow guides, cooking up an amazing dinner! Climb time. Doug and I went into guide mode, dictating wake up time (2 AM?! Yes, really, we mean it!), number of breaks, and summit protocol. I love alpine starts for their thrill and epic feeling - especially after I have coffee. Olympus was one of the most beautiful glacier climbs I've done, and I was so thrilled that we were able to bring the kids here and give them the skills to safely enjoy the climb. They were all solid athletes and climbers - I felt totally comfortable roping up with them. sunrise, with Mt. Baker in the distance: Heading toward Middle Peak, our objective. Doug and I fixed 2 lines on Middle peak and had people prusik up and down one and at a time. All in all, it took 5 hours to get everyone safely up and down. But boy was it worth it! The views were amazing, the summit was rewarding, and the day went perfectly. We were all thrilled! 2 of our kids on the summit: After our climb, we had a rest day where we did some cragging on the moraine. The rock is surprisingly awesome - reminded me of Red Rocks! We found a cliff near the edge of the moraine that was about 35 feet high and had routes that we rated 5.4, 5.6, a slightly overhung mantle/matcing problem that came in at 5.9+ with boots, and a 5.8+ corner with stemming and fingerlocks. Too soon, it was time to leave the beautiful high country. Down goes the Pemi Monster, a terrifying beast with 18 legs, 300 teeth, sharp weapons, consuming pound upon pound of food each day, audible from a mile away, and emitting a cloud of toxic methane gas! We made our way out the Hoh, leisurely. The kids did a 24 hour group solo, then a 24 hour individual solo, where they were taken to their own camp site and left alone to contemplate, rest, and process. Meanwhile, the 4 staff members set ourselves to the task of finishing the food. Doug, Mike, and Jake came up with the mantra that "everything must go." I have to confess, I didn't really pull my weight with the food consumption on this trip. Jake was the champ, though... here he is finishing off his 7-liter portion of chili. We ended our time in the backcountry at 5 mile island with a beautiful campfire. The kids wrote tributes to each of us, and I was bestowed the title of "jacked up the heezy," referring to my well-toned muscles! It was strange to re-enter civilization - we could smell the soap and detergent wafting off dayhikers and incoming climbers.. and could only imagine the horror of our tailwind. My shirt has a permanent stench. The showers we took at the campground and the amazing food we ate after: a slice of heaven! Here's my plug for Pemi-West. If you know any teenagers 16-18 who would be interested in this experience, point them to this trip report, my photos here, or to the Pemi West website. The price tag is high, and you have to supply your own gear, but Pemi-East is very well-funded and gives generous scholarships, including a few full rides, every year. The kids had a lot of fun, and became close friends. They're already planning reunions, and all are equipped to start backpacking on their own. Gear Notes: we filled up the blue bag depository at the toe of the Blue Glacier. And be warned: the ranger station has these miniature blue bags, appropriate for 4 year olds. One kid used 5 in one sitting..!!! Approach Notes: hike hike hike!

I am 5'2" with small hands and made it up the Gendarme pitch just fine with fist jams. I may have put my whole arm in a few times, but it wasn't that bad. Granted, I followed that pitch - the exposure and dramatic position make it much more thrilling for the leader, who has to traverse out to the crack! We hauled packs on the pitch - recommended & worth the time.

Awesome run, Leor! I was one of the guides who talked to you on your way down. The kids were impressed by what you did that day...

fun! Good story.

that is quite the family of mtn goats! Sounds like a harrowing adventure.

Trip: Mt. Shuksan - Sulphide Glacier Date: 6/18/2009 Trip Report: Shuksan: the perfect weather window I grew up in Bellingham and have stared at Mt. Shuksan my entire life, always wondering how anyone could climb such a rugged and complex mountain. I have tried twice since I began climbing in 2006, but always failed due to bad luck with weather. When Jon and I picked the Sulphide Glacier as our objective, we originally planned to bring skis. But the first part of June was eaten by 30 page papers, presentations, finishing up research, and grading exams. Oh, the life of a grad student! (Actually, it's pretty sweet. I'm not complaining.) Plus, our skis were in poor shape after a few spring tours, and we suspected that the cloudy weather would yield concrete sun-cupped mank, rather than beautiful spring corn. We also didn't want to navigate the Fisher Chimneys in a rainstorm. So we decided to just walk the Sulphide. It rained the entire first day, but we hoped that the weather would break for us the following morning, as forecasted. We departed from the car at 4 PM on Wednesday June 17. The approach trail was beautiful, lush and full of wildlife. Jon serenaded me with various self-composed ditties. We stopped to admire a single thread of spider web that spanned 20 feet! A diamond in the rough? Nope! An engagement ring, looking a little out of place in a muddy, rainy forest! Jon and I got engaged a few weeks ago, and it all started on cascadeclimbers.com. Last summer, he posted in Trip Partners about the NR of Baker and I randomly decided to send him a picture of the route that I had taken while on a nearby peak with my dad. See? This website is good for more than TR's and spray After a few miles of trail, we made our way through some clear-cut, following helpful pink tape that seemed to show up every 15 feet or so. Snow was consistent from the treeline. We followed Shannon ridge to a notch, and then traversed around beneath some cliffbands that showed evidence of recent avalanches. There were some refrigerator-sized blocks! We passed two other parties on our way to camp, and the clouds began to break as we set up our tent at 6,000 feet. We reached camp around 7:30, set up the tent, made dinner, and melted water. I packed the food this time, and unthinkingly packed for two people with Lisa-sized appetites. Jon was horrified when he saw the stuff sack only half full of food "We're going to starve!" he exclaimed. I raised an eyebrow when I went to light the stove and noticed that Jon had not added to the fuel canister since our Dragontail trip, and it was only 1/3 full. "What if we can't melt enough water?" My efficient water melting system! It turned out that we brought exactly what we needed for this trip. Our packs were very light, and felt like daypacks. Couldn't have been more than 25-30 lb, which is a BIG improvement over how I used to pack for glacier trips like this. I became interested in the statistics of the trip. Water: we consumed 2 liters of water each on the approach. Melted and filtered 7 more liters at camp, for dinner, summit day, and hike out. Food for 2: 12 whole wheat tortillas, 4 oz cheese, 1 bell pepper, 1/2 box Triscuits, ziplock of Swedish fish, 2 Pemmican bars, 6 Nature Valley bars, 4 servings of instant cheesy mashed potatoes, 1 vacuum-sealed chicken breast, granola with powdered milk and craisins added, 2 tea bags for morning caffeine. Total: about 7000 calories for the two of us to share. Jon ate about 60% of the food. We ate the last of it on the hike out, and were hungry as we drove home. "I want more crackers!" gear: 8 oz alpine harnesses, 30m/8mm rope, REI half dome tent (not the best, but it's what I've got! I'd like a MegaMid or something similar), 1 sleeping bag (didn't work as well as we'd hoped - we're going to try to make a "sleeping quilt"), 2 small foam sleeping pads, Whisperlite stove, titanium pot, 2 runners, 2 pickets, poles, axes, light packs, 2 locking biners, 2 pulleys, prusiks, crampons, shell jackets, down jackets, light gloves, soft shell pants, small 1st aid kit, PLB. First light was at 4:30 and we woke naturally. Clear skies awaited us! We were above the clouds. We left camp at 5:30. We reached the base of the summit pyramid in less than 2 hours, with no breaks. The summit pyramid's central gully was partially melted out. From a distance it appears very steep! A good family friend of mine skied it a couple of weeks ago. Crazy! Up close, the summit pyramid is much more inviting, and pretty straightforward overall. We scrambled up it, simulclimbing with a picket placement for a short stretch when the transitions between snow and rock got tricky. The snow was hard and brittle, but since it was melting out by the rocks, we punched through a few times. In the early morning, some of the rocks were covered in verglas. Looking down: Then, at 8:45 AM, we reached the summit, elevation 9131! It was bright up there. A party of 8, who turned out to be an AAI alpinism course, arrived and took this photo for us. We figured that for engagement pictures, we'd just collect summit shots. They were nice people and a lot of fun. Sounds like a really good course that they take. The other party, a group of 3, turned around at the base of the summit pyramid. After lounging on the summit for an hour, we down-climbed. Jon went first and then waited, out of the line of fire, while I followed. There is a fair amount of loose rock in the gully, and chunks of snow were also raining down as the temperatures warmed and it turned to mush. Ice axe placements were pretty good and the steps were pretty solid. Soloing down the pyramid was good practice for me, since I'm trying to overcome my steep snow demons. I stayed efficient and focused. The MOMENT we reached the base of the pyramid, clouds closed in! We got a little disoriented in the whiteout, so we went down a ways and stopped on some rocks for a lunch break. When the clouds cleared again for a moment, we saw this awesome ice cliff and the summit pyramid. Shuksan has such a beautiful landscape! I love this mountain. We ran down the Sulphide, following the trampled boot track back to camp. 30 minutes later we reached the tent, and it started raining the minute we got there, so we napped for an hour while it cleared. Then we hiked down to the car, which took 2 hours. It was a beautiful hike out, with layered clouds and glimpses of Baker. This was a much more fun route than either of us expected - a lovely, enjoyable climb with about 6700 feet of elevation gain, a lot of variety, a spectacular setting, and a satisfying summit. It was the perfect warm-up for summer and we both feel like we're in great shape for the season. Gear Notes: Jon votes that we bring more food next time. To tell the truth, I usually like to have one extra bar at the end, just in case. Approach Notes: Road is in great shape to TH. Trail muddy but snow-free. The clear cut on Shannon ridge is well flagged by pink tape and melting out quickly. Snow begins at tree-line and is continuous from there, if on skis only one or two carries would be necessary. Glacier is easy and completely filled in - no crampons necessary when we climbed it. Pyramid no longer skiable. Evidence of recent ice avalanches under cliff bands at ~5500.

My fiance was also climbing Serpentine Arete that day, although I think that he and his partner were the first ones up and topped out right as the storm struck. He said his ice axe started humming at one point... sounds like a freaky day in the mtns.

nice! I've yet to go to the Olympic Mtns, but get to be a guide for a summer camp that spends 3 weeks traversing the entire range. Looks beautiful! And, You hit the weather right. I stayed home this weekend, but my fiance came back with some hair-raising tales of ice axes humming on the summit of Dragontail, and huddling in a rock cave to avoid hailstones.