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Josh Lewis

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  1. I'm wanting to go for a Alpine North Cascades trip tomorrow. Let me know if anyone wants to join. Email: joshlewis4@gmail.com Phone number is 503-895-9312
  2. Am I too late to be on the climbing team for this trip? I've climbed Rainier twice, got plenty of mountaineering experience/ back packing skills, and now I have a sweet -20 degree sleeping bag that should do the job. Let me know if I could join. I already have a permit if the climb will be this year.
  3. I might see you there if you go. What day are you going?
  4. Ewwww.... Thanks for the warning! I'll have to figure out how I want to go about my trip. Worse case scenario I could go for the Coleman Deming route.
  5. Thanks for the beta, was considering it this weekend.
  6. A Day of Pure Alpine Excellence - Quien Sabe Glacier Date: 9/28/2011 To See a Better Formatted Version with more Pictures be sure to see the SummitPost Version. "While there is a technical side to mountaineering, a confrontation with the raw power of the mountains that came only to be understood by those who venture into the hills, there is an essential element that everyone is familiar with, and that is the friendship you forge along the way. This is such a pivotal part of the experience, that alpinists have given it is own name: The Fellowship of the rope. Because at the end of the day, you may have made the summit, you might have had to turn around, but regardless of the outcome, you have spent an amazing day with a close friend." - Timb Argast Ever since the first time I have ever stepped foot on Sahale, it has become my favorite mountain. Each time was a new experience for me, almost as if stepping into another world. This time was no exception, it was even better than I had anticipated. Before the trip the mountain had received several inches of snow covering the upper slopes as well as all the other mountains in the entire region. With the weather forecast looking good for summit day, I knew this would be an excellent adventure! The trip started on September 27 when Bryan picked me up from my house for the adventure. Despite the cloudiness and rain in the air, I eagerly waited as we got closer to the mountain. The Cascade Valley was just pouring down rain, fortunately we were in a truck which made sleeping out much friendlier. The next morning we woke up at around 5:30 a.m. to get ready for the climb. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752848.jpg[/img] The hike up to Boston Basin was pretty easy although according to my North Cascades Hiking Guide Book it is considered "Very Difficult". I guess that's what happens when you go climbing mountains several times a week. As morning came on we were hoping to see the sunrise which we happened to be in a thick part of the woods. But at least what was to come later that day made up for it. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752833.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752857.jpg[/img] After getting out of the woods the clouds were clearing off Mount Torment and Forbidden Peak. We had a few more creek crossings before we finally start encountering snow and ice. Keep in mind I was in tennis shoes during this part which made crossing over icy boulders over a creek a bit challenging. A few times I almost fell in. Finally I decided it was not worth dealing with the dozens of frozen creeks through out the boulder field which I stayed by a saddle that went up into Boston Basin. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752858.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752838.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752837.jpg[/img] Once it became snowier I decided to ditch my tennis shoes and swap to climbing boots. Boston Basin was just covered in fresh slippery ice which made traveling a bit dicey. Fortunately I found what looked like a potential route up that avoided most of the icy boulder but up a steep rock section with a little bit of ice. After crossing a few more ice sections we finally start getting into some real snow making travel much safer and with ease. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752834.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752845.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752843.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752890.jpg[/img] Finally we arrive at the Quien Sabe Glacier which meant that it was time to rope up. As we were getting ready the sun started rising over the ridge, but at the same time the winds picked up. The land certainly had a majestic feel to it as I heard the sounds of fine ice crystals blowing in the wind. The mountains now looked very dramatic and gave a certain sense like I was in the Himalaya. Every spare second I couldn't help but glance at all the scenery around. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752846.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752898.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752829.jpg[/img] Putting on the gloves and grabbing my ice axe in my hands I announced "Time to get my Alpine On!". We were both excited to now be climbing on the Quien Sabe Glacier. Although with it's beauty we also had to take caution because many of the crevasses around we could see were covered up by fresh powder giving the feeling as though walking through a mine field. But the good news was that this part of the glacier did not seem to have as many crevasses as other parts. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752901.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752897.jpg[/img] We were making great time climbing up the Quien Sabe, but then our paced got slower as the slope got steeper. I was having such a good time that when I finally looked below me I realized that we were on a bit of a steep slope, although manageable as long as you make good steps. Suddenly we reached a part of the climb where a crevasse that was hidden cut all around our surroundings above us. After a little bit of investigating I figured out a round about way going to the left. The rest of the way up the Quien Sabe Glacier was drama free and enjoyable. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752908.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752907.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752910.jpg[/img] At the very end of the Quien Sabe Glacier there was a bit of a snow covered moat. Bryan was worried about this, so I got ready in ice axe arrest position in case anything went wrong. After crossing over the moat and hiking up a dozen or so feet we were off the West Face and onto the North Ridge. From here I took up the leading position. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752911.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/751911.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752912.jpg[/img] I figured our chances of summiting was quite high with how good the weather looked and us feeling well. I under estimated the summit block and the fresh snow that created a rime ice on the rocks. The North Ridge was a simple minor snow climb although it had a moment where the powder was loose with exposure, but still manageable. After getting over the first hump of the ridge we were suddenly met with a big cornice. At first it looked very unmanageable and extremely dangerous with thousands of feet of exposure. The idea of attempting it seemed like it would be out right insane. Fortunately I found that I could poke up through the cornice and get over back onto the glacier. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752915.jpg[/img] The Glacier soon ended and we were now about 150 feet from the summit, I could almost taste it. The sheer exposure on both sides of the ridge became evident with each step. On some of the steps I was kicking in it was loose powder with a layer of rime ice underneath making me a little nervous. But I was in full focus and kept my ice axe in as deep as I could to get it between rocks and sticking it into the rime. Then I reached a spot where it seemed impossible to climb any higher safely. The cliffs that many scramble up where covered in ice and loose snow which was certainly a no go. I climbed up a icy section to the left only to encounter a knife edge. Inspired by SP Member IcyPeak I considered riding the ridge. But the main problem was not only was it up sloped, heavily exposed, had rime ice on it, but there was also a hump in the middle of it which made it look so dangerous. Shaking on the ice I take a step onto it and instantly retreat and say "People were not meant to go on this kind of terrain, especially with no line of protection. My partner's life is in my hands, so for the sake of both of us I will not continue". [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752919.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752922.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752942.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752924.jpg[/img] The winds were starting to pick up on the Mountain which is why Bryan wanted to get down a ways in speedy fashion. I wanted to stay longer to enjoy the moment, but knew we had to get down before dark. The way back down was decent without any troubles, even the moat jump was not worry some. Later down the mountain there was one issue that we both ran into which our crampons kept balling up making each step a bit more slick. As a result we had to slow down to maintain safety. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752929.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752927.jpg[/img] At the edge of the Glacier we unroped and were finally able to travel down in a more casual tone. The hot afternoon sun had melted out a significant amount of snow in the region including the Boston Basin. Sahale though was still covered in all sorts of fresh snow because it had not seen much sun due to it's Westward face. The way down was less tedious than on the way up. From here it was a hour walk down to the car. [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/750811.jpg[/img] [img:center]http://www.summitpost.org/images/medium/752952.jpg[/img] This was another amazing alpine experience which I hope to visit this place again some time in the near future. Certainly a 5 star mountain in my book.
  7. Weather looks great for Thursday as seen here: http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Marblemount&state=WA&site=SEW&textField1=48.5278 I would love to climb something like Eldorado, Colfax, or other great peaks in the North Cascades region. I been staying in great shape which here is one of my recent trip reports: http://www.summitpost.org/a-day-of-pure-alpine-excellence/752937
  8. Right now I've got all the time in the world (all the way until at least mid December!). So I would like to do some North Cascades Alpine trips.
  9. [img:center]http://hikrs.com/host/logo/nc/ruth.jpg[/img] "All good things come by grace. And grace comes by art, and art does not come easy." -A River Runs Through It For a better formatted trip report, please view the one I have on SummitPost. It had been a long time since Gimpilator and I went on a climb together. We were invited to climb Fortress and Chiwawa Mountain with some folks from nwhikers, but before that we wanted to climb Ruth Mountain. Fortunately we got more than we bargained for with great success. On August 3rd Art drove us to Mount Vernon to meet up with Joe for the climb. The night before the trip we negotiated the gear supply of what to carry and figuring out the route. After spending over 100$ during the month of July on my mountaineering trips I was low on cash and had to go on cheap food like donuts, peanut butter sandwiches, and other goodies. [video:youtube] Day 1: A Beautiful Day on Ruth Mountain We left for the trailhead at about 4:30 a.m. early in the morning and got to the trailhead around 6:30 a.m. It was a beautiful clear day, with conditions 100% in our favor. The hike started out down in the valley nice and cool but with high humidity. Along the way there were a few minor creek crossings with snow bridges covering them up which for me required a few tricky moves to get over. Behind me I could hear Joe yelling out to me, but I could not understand what he was saying because he was distant. It turns out he was trying to warn me about a bear that was 15 feet away from me that I had no clue that it was there. Near Hannegan Pass I changed from my approach shoes to my boots and left Joe's bamboo stick near the trail which I had used to climb over tricky spots and use to reduce spider webs in my face. At Hannegan Pass the sun finally rises above the mountains which from here we ascend the lower slopes of Ruth Mountain. Along the way we see many of the famous peaks in the area including Mount Baker, Mount Shuksan, Hannegan Peak, and the Picket Range. After traversing around the North Arm of Ruth Mountain we soon decide that its time to rope up considering that we could not see where the glacier starts because of the heavy snow pack this year. As usual, I got to be in lead position of the rope team which I enjoy doing. Ascending Ruth was a lot easier than I had originally thought, either its a easy summit or I been climbing a lot of mountains these days. But none the less very enjoyable with a nice ridge ending. On the summit we enjoyed a great vista of the Western Part of the North Cascades. To the South there was much cloud build up, fortunately for us we happen to be at the right area at the right time. After spending around a half hour on the summit we had to head down for our next climb the following day. The descent was pretty easy with some mini standing glissades and with firm snow. After passing down past Hannegan Pass we came to the spot where I left my shoes which Joe discovered that his bamboo stick had been stolen. Joe was not a happy camper, which he went running up the trail to find who ever took it. After 20 minutes of searching he finally had to call it quits. Who ever stole it, not cool of you to have done that. On the way down the mountain my ankles were starting to hurt from all the climbing that I had been doing, plus the fact that I was wearing tennis shoes down the mountain. As we were crossing one of the creeks there was a bit of a move you had to do, as I walked over onto a rock I did not see that it was slippery. Suddenly I slipped on it and fell right into the creek. When I fell I hit my knee a bit hard which for a few seconds I was unable to move, fortunately Joe rushed to the scene and helped pull me out while I was getting a bit wet. Fortunately nothing major, although a interesting moment of the trip. We took it a little easier on the way down which before I knew it, we were back at the trail head. We then went to Gimpilator's house for the next round of adventure. Day 2: Hiking into the Fortress Meadows Gimpilator had me stay the night at his house which I had watched the movie "180 Degrees South" which was a amazing documentary about a adventure to Patagonia. The next day we left late in the day to avoid the hot weather. It was near sunset when we started hiking the trail to Fortress basin. As we hiked up the valley it became dark with lots of mud at a few places. At the basin we met up with a few people from nwhikers near the big creek of the basin. This was the most mellow day of the trip. Before going to bed I looked out at the stars, amazed to see to many and how I could see where I was without a flash light. Day 3: Climbing Fortress and Chiwawa In the morning I woke up to a pounding noise right next to me, I look over and see a deer running in a field of meadows. Then I see 30 or so mosquitoes on the bivy sack I was sleeping in. Fortunately non of them were able to bite me, but it was a little intimidating knowing once I get up I would have to deal with a bunch of them. We all woke up around the same time, which we started the usual breakfast making. I could finally see that we were in a beautiful meadow with many deer running around in the flowers. After packing up all our gear we were instantly met with one of the more interesting parts of the trip. Crossing the Creek. Lucky for us Gimpilator had brought his flip flops which I used to cross the creek. Then Gimpilator would attach it to a ski poll and throw it back over for the other partners. Unfortunately as one of our partners were crossing they dropped one of there boots which was already starting to drift away. I immediately walked in after it catching it just in time. Hiking the rest of the meadow was a easy walk through swampy like lands. From here we then started ascending up Fortress Mountain while aiming for the gully. Before the gully we had a bit of a scramble section that we had to climb over, I eventually had to bail off of it due to the crack being too muddy. From here we traversed over and to our surprise were right at the gully. I went straight up the snow slope while everyone else took the moat route. After the moat we came up into the basin which we climbed up a few thousand feet of minor switch backing and traveling on snow. As we got towards the East Ridge one of our partners was not feeling so great about the idea of the steep snow, so they stayed back on a rock and waited for us as we climbed on. After a few hundred feet of semi steep snow climbing we were now one the east ridge. We had to take it slow here due to steep and exposed slopes as well as loose rock. The ridge got quite interesting in a few spots, although manageable if one is careful. I agree with Gimpilator's opinion that the ridge was class 3 with a move or 2 of class 4. Near the end I was amazed at how the summit ending was so snowy, yet still traversable. So we all carefully traversed it, which there was one move one of our partners did not feel comfortable doing, but with Gimpilator's encouragement they managed to make it to the summit. This was perhaps the best view of Glacier Peak I have ever had. In the distance we could see clouds coming in which were coming at us at a rapid pace. After being on the summit for around 20 minutes we started the descent. Going down was easier than I had expected, we made it down to our partner in decent time. From here we traversed down towards the Chiwawa Mountain col. As we get near the bottom we realize that Gimpilator was waiting behind with someone else because they did not feel comfortable with semi icy slopes. So in a sense this was the beginning of our group splitting into two separate groups. From here I take lead breaking in steps up the snow slopes of Chiwawa. Rather than going at a monotonous casual pace up the mountain, I decided to try something new. My technique was to climb up 30-50 feet at a rapid pace, and then take a break until everyone caught up. It was a more thrilling way to climb a mountain. As we climb up we started to wonder if Gimpilator was going to attempt this. To our surprise a while later we saw him running up the mountain which we now knew he would too make it. Silence on the Mountain After getting off the snow I looked up and could see that a group of climbers were now near by us. We climbed on for another minute until suddenly one of the climbers above lost his footing. He immediately planted in his ice axe which seemed to do nothing. Sailing down the mountain he gained speed very rapidly, which by now everyone was watching. As I watched I slowly walked towards the direction in which he was falling. He slammed into the rocks which flipped him over onto his back and he rolled over and then was falling once again. Almost as if helpless he was flying down the mountain in full motion. My heart was pumping at this moment, we were all held in suspense. I then dashed for the spot that he was about to land into to help at least lower the impact. I made a grab for him which of course I was not able to stop him but I believe I managed to help slow him down. He then slid past me which I wish there was more I could do. Fortunately he fell onto a less sloped rock pile near by and managed to completely stop his fall. Immediately people were rushing to him, which my friend Gimpilator was one of the first people who spoke to him. "I'm certified in first aid responder, what is your name" which he went through a series of questions. Amazingly he had no serious injuries, mostly a few scrapes and such on his arm. He was wearing a helmet with a long sleeve shirt and pants which seemed kinda thick. One of my partners than had a word with me "Josh! That was stupid of you to have done that. You put your self at risk and could have gotten hurt." The words of criticism did not change my mind one bit. When someone is in trouble, especially when they are helpless and there is something I can do, I will not stand around and wait for anything bad to happen. Now obviously I didn't jump completely in the way, but I knew I could help, which I have no regrets to what I did that day. In the past I've had situations where my mom was falling down a ice field below Headlee Pass, and I jumped in the way which stopped her from continuing to fall down. Everyone on the mountain was silent by this point, when ever I spoke one of our group members said I should wait awhile before anyone would want to talk again. The group dynamics fell apart for a while, for a temporary period of the trip I was separated from everyone. As we climbed up I could see the section which he fell at, the snow looked a bit loose which had us worried. Matt, Joe and I decided that it would be best to try out the rock section to the right. This turned out to be a fun/ dangerous decision. The rock scramble started out class 3 and then went into class 4 terrain. Looking down below I realized that this was more dangerous than anything previous we had done the entire day. But it was too late to bail on the route, I hate to admit it but despite the danger I was still having fun on the route. After the rock section it was a couple hundred feet of walking on rock until we finally reached the summit of Chiwawa. We did not stay long on the summit because it was getting late in the day and our group had completely fallen apart by this point. After walking for a little bit I managed to find Matt and Joe while one of our other partners was way down below. We carefully then scrambled down the mountain until the terrain became friendlier again. Gimpilator and Maria were separated from us which we did not see until we got back to base camp many hours later. To speed things up on the way down I got a few nice glissades as well as some standing glissades. It was interesting to look above and see that the cloud deck boundary was literally above Fortress Mountain. The foot prints from earlier on were already melted away from the heat of the day, so we decided to go down what looked like a quick easy gully. "Looks like we will be back to camp in a little more than a hour" Matt said excitedly as we rapidly lost elevation. Unfortunately, this was not the case. After ascending off the last snowfield the slope then suddenly got steeper until it dropped off. Looking all around I instantly realized that we were completely surrounded by cliff bands. We did not want to go all the way up so we went up a little ways and tried different gullies. This turned out to be a bit of a adventurous part of the trip. By this point we were all quite tired and the sun had already set which meant that day light was very limited. It just so happen that there was a solar flare that day, even though my partners had gps's, they were not accurate. "The gps says we are on our tracks" announced Tom knowing that we were far from our original way up. It was starting to get dark, so we had to make a decision fast, and of course make sure it would be the right one. So ultimately we decided to go all the way back up the gully and traverse the lower portion of Fortress Mountain and go onto the edge of the south ridge. This turned out to be the way, although with a few minor complications. I then finally decided to put on my crampons as we traveled down the gully we had come up. After down climbing the gully we were back into trees, we decided against taking off our crampons due to the muddy steep terrain we were in. As we went further down we missed the creek crossing spot, which we then followed it a ways down in the dark until we got to a safe crossing. Near the meadows there were many fallen over trees on the edge of the mountain, it's amazing how far avalanches go down in the snowy seasons. As were walking though the woods we see fresh foot prints. Camp was now close at hand, and before long we were at the creek crossing. Everyone but me crossed with there boots on, I figured Gimpilator was still in the mood for Red Mountain the next day which is why I preserved them. After a cold crossing I got to enjoy some warm food and some well deserved rest. Day 4: Hiking up Red Mountain In the morning we packed up our gear and got ready for Red Mountain. For the next many miles it was a nice walk through the forest on trail and old road. Once we were about half way up Red Mountain Gimpilator decided for us to go straight up the side of the South Eastern slope. This turned out to be a nice and easy scramble. We took it easy hiking up the slope, one of our partners was not pleased with all the loose rock on the mountain. Soon we were on the summit ridge. To the summit it was a safe and sun scramble up and over along the ridge. According to Gimpilator, he considers it to be the best views of the area in comparison to what we did previously during the trip. Soon after we made a speedy descent down the mountain. Once we got back to the road I was able to wear my approach shoes once again which was nice. We had some great talks on the way down. It was quite nice getting to the car, finally I was able to once more get a drink of water. Once again I was pleased to have gone on more great adventures in the mountains.
  10. I would love to go on a trip Tomorrow or Wednesday to the North Cascades, perhaps Sahale? I'm in great shape right now (climbed Rainier in a day a few days ago) and done many other alpine trips.
  11. I've climbed Sahale before the Standard Route, but would like to climb it again on the Quien Sabe route which is mostly a glacier climb with a scramble at the end. I'm available pretty much all week after this Saturday (8/20). Sahale is the most important to me but I would like to climb Eldorado afterwards. Feel free to call me at 503-895-9312. I will only be able to reply Saturday evening and then any time after that.
  12. For a better formatted trip report with more pictures be sure to see the one posted on My Personal Website. Date: 7/20/2011 - 7/23/2011 Introduction "I see my path, but I don't know where it leads. Not knowing where I'm going is what inspires me to travel it." -Rosalia de Castro "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover." -Mark Twain It is mountains like this that makes mountaineering such an exciting part of my life. When I heard that I had an opportunity to climb Mount Logan, I instantly knew that this was something special. My family and friends were telling me that they had never known anyone who wanted to go on as many adventures as me. My feet were still blister from all the climbing I had done during July, but when offered a great opportunity, there is no way that I can decline. After all this is my passion. The weather had not gotten any better after Jack Mountain which is usual for the state of Washington. Even after halting the climbing date for Mount Logan, there was a point which we had to take a chance, hope for the best and go for it. This turned out to be a great decision. Yem came over to my house late in the day in order to get to the trailhead by night and get a early start for the hike though the Thunder Creek Valley. I had never packed so much food for a single trip before, but knew it would be necessary. Day 1: Hiking through the Thunder Creek Valley In the morning it was a cloudy day with some views of the mountains we could see through the trees. We started hiking from the Colonial Creek Trailhead at 6:45 a.m. along the Thunder Creek Trail. We were in for a 15 mile day with heavy backpacks, but at least much of the terrain was relatively flat. Along the way we crossed over Thunder Creek using the bridge provided (the creek is like a river) and saw many wild flowers along the way. Unfortunately we did not see many mountains because there would either be trees in the way or there would be too much cloud cover. The one bad thing about the thunder creek hike is that many of the miles feel the same with traveling through the same woods mile after mile. But at least I'm in the mountains with good company, fresh air, and am on a great adventure. Along the way there were many creeks which I had to be careful for because I was wearing approach shoes that get wet easy, and I could not afford to make my blisters any worse than they were for this trip. We did take a few breaks along the way, although setting down the pack was pleasant on my shoulders, I was not a fan of all the mosquitoes when trying to get a bite to eat or drink. But it's to be expected during the month of July in the mountains. It's neat to think that during the month of July I been in the mountains so often that it felt completely normal for me, almost as if it was a life style. Most people when making it to the top of a mountain are in a hurry to go back home and go about there daily lives, for me it's more the opposite. I find the life style of the city for me to be too dull and unattractive. Although I will admit after a while I do at times miss my family and friends, so I try not to be constantly in the mountains the entire summer, although perhaps most of the time. After reaching the part of the trail called "Junction", we are at the half way point to Parks Creek Pass. From here we travel a little ways further only to reach a part of the trail which we have to loose a 1,000 feet of elevation. The thought that comes to mind is "wow, won't this be fun on the way back out". After going down to the valley floor we soon come to our camp site which is called Skagit Queen. From here we enjoy a nice dinner of hot chocolate, tea, salami, cheese, and top romen. That night I slept very good after about 15 or so miles of travel. Day 2: Traveling into Snowy Lands In the morning I woke up to a deer traveling around our tent as well as a squirrel running away as I got up. By the end of the previous day it had actually looked as though it would clear up, but over night it had gotten cloudy again. We got a late start at about 10:15 a.m. in the morning, the trail was in good condition although there was a few trees in the trail that we had to go over. While switch backing along the trail we came across an old mining house as well as a old pine line that went through many of the switch backs. As we got further in the valley we came across our first encounter of snow, this was a ideal place to leave the shoes behind and swap to climbing boots. There were many places where avalanche debris was covering the trail, although some dry patches of trail. After this the valley vegetation increased dramatically making the environment look semi jungle like. From here we came across the thunder creek crossing, I was not in favor for getting my feet wet. We went a little ways back and found a nice log crossing, we had to do the old fashion sit and edge our way across. At one point my shorts got caught on it which slightly ripped them, but it was better than not using the log. Now we were close to the Thunder Basin Stock Camp, we took a nice break and had to make a decision whether to go all the way to Parks Creek Pass or take a short cut and go straight up the mountain. We finally decided to take the more direct route and follow along the right side of the towering false summit (Point 8,000). At first it was a little brushy entering into the woods, but as soon as we got onto the lower slope of Mount Logan, things became much nicer... or at least for the first few hundred feet. As we climbed up we used veggie belays and such to help keep us stable on the slope. Sometimes the ice axe would get caught, but even worse was when one of my backpack straps would get caught which I would have to maintain balance until I got it untangled. As we climbed higher we came across mini cliff bands and steep sections that made traveling tedious, it got to the point where I started to wonder if we would reach a point where we could not climb any higher. After doing a bit of navigation we managed to get through without anything too dangerous. We went up a little ways further to the left and now where out of the woods and nearing the Fremount basin. The clouds all around were getting darker which did not seem like a sign of the weather getting better any time soon. From here we hiked up the basin to a flat area around 8,000 feet high. As I broke trail it began to rain a little, further up the winds were picking up and it became colder. Keep in mind I was still in a t-shirt and shorts, but now I was on a slope that was a little steep to be taking off my pack, plus we were almost to our destination of the day. As the wind was blowing it suddenly changed to snow which my arms and legs were getting quite cold by this point. Once I got to the top of the hill I had to put on everything that I had to regain warmth. I had a hard time putting on my gear because my hands were becoming numb and I had to be careful about clothes blowing away. A moment later we found a flat spot which was great for setting up camp. After stomping around for a while on the snow to make a flat spot for the tent, Yem started up cooking for dinner. Looking all around I couldn't help but feel as though I was in a winter wonderland. The sky was getting dark, and the fog continuously would pour in from the valley below. Only for a split second could we faintly made out Mount Logan through the clouds, it then went back to the same old cloudy views. After dinner we finally went into the tent to make attempts to sleep that did not come easy. As we talked I could see the flashing of lightning above, I was a bit worried but they seemed distant. After a while we finally fell asleep. Day 3: Going for the Summit Waking up early in the morning the weather had not improved one bit, we decided that it would be best to wait out the storm before making a summit bid, even if that meant crossing the glacier late in the day. I rolled around a bit having a hard time going back to sleep only to realize that my air mattress was popped which is why I could feel a lump in my back. But it was still better than being at home. A few hours later I woke up seeing that it looked bright outside the tent, for a moment I was excited. When looking outside it was once again just bright fog with a few minor clearings from time to time. Eventually we got out of the tent when I spotted a clearing in the sky which raised hopes for some views. For about 30 or so seconds Mount Logan came into view which I frantically took some photos of the view. And then back to the same old cloudy view. After watching the clouds for an hour, Yem and I noticed there was a pattern with how the clouds would blow in. First you would see a few holes, then a view of a few peaks, and then back to being socked in. Then it would repeat itself again. Looking at my food supplies I realize that we have to summit today, plus I had another adventure lined up as soon as I got off this mountain. The mountain itself had not come back into view, so in a sense I was taking two risks if we went for it. 1: Not being able to see exactly where we need to go. 2: We risked not getting the incredible view of Logan from the summit. At the end of one of the clearings we finally decided that it was worth a shot, so we packed up our climbing gear, put on our harnesses, and made way for the summit. It was 3 p.m. when we finally left camp. I was in lead which now all I could see was the lower face of Mount Logan with clouds all around and my partner. I knew from a earlier clearing that there were two gullies, which I went for the first one on the right assuming that it was the cross over spot for the ridge. After traveling up a snow slope we reached the bottom of it, it looked like class 4+ all the way up with a lot of exposure. Yem and I were not pleased with how it looked, we even saw a foot print in the dirt which seemed like evidence that it might be the route. "Hang on a second, perhaps there is another way" Yem finally announced. I decided to pull out my camera and look at former photographs that I took earlier in the day. Remarkably it helped us figure out where we were, and where we needed to go. After down climbing off of the steep section, Yem suggested that I stay high on the snow ridge. This turned out to be a very good idea. As we travel along the ridge, it felt as through we were constantly going to the right. Almost as if it was endless. It was at this moment that I thought of a quote "I see my path, but I don't know where it leads. Not knowing where I'm going is what inspires me to travel it". It was exciting traveling the ridge, faintly through the fog I could see it glowing. Pretty soon I came across what appeared to be a cornice, when deciding to travel on it to my relief it was the hogsback. We were officially on the route again. From here we climbed over the Hogsback and on to a section where we had to cross over the ridge. We took off our crampons and left our ice axes to save weight. We knew that any snow on the east face would be too treacherous to be traveling on which is what made leaving gear a acceptable choice. Once we crossed over onto the east side of Mount Logan the terrain suddenly became quite rugged, I'll admit that for a few minutes I became a bit nervous. After finding some good scramble spots I became comfortable again, this was perhaps the best class 3-4 terrain I have ever been on. Despite the exposure, the rock was remarkably solid. After making a few careful moves and looking back down, I smiled in excitement. The climb was on. Once past this section it became flat with a bit of exposure. We carefully traversed this spot and came to a snow field. Yem announced that it would be best to stay as much to the left as possible to avoid the snow. From here it looked like we were virtually at the summit. But like many mountains when fog covered, it was a teaser summit. Yem and I had to do a bit of a down climb move to continue along the ridge, but fortunately there was not a whole lot of exposure here. From here there was one last traverse with a scramble ending with more fun moves. We were officially on the summit. I was in awe that we had made it. It was getting late in the day, so we decided to spend only enough time on the summit to have a quick snack and mini celebration. Going down was much easier than I had expected. On our way down we could see clouds rising in fast motion, and soon enough we got a major clearing. This was the moment we had been waiting for all along, the views of mountains kept pouring in through the clouds. It was more beautiful than if it had been clear skies all day. When crossing over the ridge I could see that the Hogsback was glowing brightly with a ultra contrast lighting to it. "It doesn't get much better than this" I whispered to myself as I descend onto the slope below. From here it was a easy descent back to our camp which this time we got to travel on mostly flat terrain due to us being able to see where we were going. At camp Yem boils the water for my top romen, when it finally cooled down I got to enjoy the sunset with glowing peaks with tasty warm food. This in my mind was an example of a moment of perfection in the mountains. We took photos until our hands became too cold from the cool air, and we then went to sleep feeling great from an amazing day. Day 4: The long journey Home In the morning I woke up around 5 a.m. Normally when this tired I would go back to sleep, but I very much wanted to see the sunrise. So I put on my boots and scrambled up a few hundred feet to get views of Jack Mountain as well as a few others. Then I went back down to camp to see the rest of the views during the sunrise. From here we knew that we had a long day ahead of us with over 20 more miles of traveling left. After breakfast we packed up camp, refilled water at a near by creek and were ready to go. I'll admit the descent was a bit hard on my ankles and knees because of the crampons on the hard snow on steep slopes. Below us were still come lingering clouds in the valley below, ironically now I was wishing for some cloud cover to help made going back a bit cooler. After all there are not a lot of views from the woods even when there is no cloud in the sky. Once we were near the pass, Yem decided to take a short cut down one of the side gullies. This turned out to save us time, although it had an interesting section near the bottom. It was a little bit difficult with crampons on, we had to travel over a tree with a mini water fall that had to be avoided. From here it was a walk down to the basin where Thunder Creek began to form. We took off our crampons here and took a rest. Looking at my food supplies I found that I had a limited amount of food, but enough to make it back home. At first finding the trail was a bit difficult because of all the avalanche debris, but as we got further down the valley we found it. A few miles further down the trail we came to my approach shoes which I was pleased because this meant that I did not have to wear my blistering boots. But at the same time I was disappointed that they were soaking wet from the rain the previous days. To make the trip quicker we ran down some of the down hill sections. Many miles later of traveling through the woods we finally reach the part that we all dreaded. The 1,000 feet of elevation gain. This was certainly one of the hardest parts of the trip, plus the fact that it was hot out did not make things easier. After pressing on for hundreds of feet up the hill, I was becoming quite tired by this point, as well as my shoulders hurting (I know, I sound like a complainer. But I want the audience to know that just because it was the way back doesn't mean it was easy). After another mile or so we reached Junction, from here we decided to cook our last meal of the trip. Unfortunately not only were there lots of mosquitoes, but there were lots of black flies. I kept getting bite marks all over my legs (even a week later they were still itchy). This made it hard to sit in one place during lunch. As soon I was done, I was wanting out of Junction to get away from the bugs. For the next 9 miles we ran down the mountain, I'll admit it was a bit monotonous, but I was still having fun. After more hours of walking through the woods we finally reach the trailhead. "Finally I can rest" I announced as I take a bite into a cookie that I had a stash saved up for me for the ride home. As I start to fall asleep I realize "My adventure is not yet over, tomorrow I have a climb for Vesper Peak, and the next day Mount Rainier". I smile at the thought that I am having an amazing summer with never ending adventures.
  13. I'll answer both questions. First off transportation in this part of the world isn't the best if you know what I mean. There are 3 primary bus routes to the mountains. 1. North Bend 2. Gold Bar 3. Darrington Two primary bus sites are http://commtrans.org/ and http://metro.kingcounty.gov/ (King County's Metro Site isn't that great) You can use the community transit site to calculate many routes even through it's out of bounds with there service. Your best bet is the Darrington which has the Green Giant Buttress as seen here: http://www.summitpost.org/view_object.php?object_id=152958&context_id=170929 Or Three O' Clock Rock: http://www.summitpost.org/view_object.php?object_id=154192&context_id=170929 And some other ones in the Darrington area. Now my friend Mark tells me by far Index has some of the best rock climbing in the state. Unfortunately there is no bus to it, the method I devised was taking the bus to Gold Bar and then biking to Index which I've done before. It's around 8-9 miles. As for North Bend, not sure there is much in that area, but there are hikes in the area. Also there is a more expensive service named "Amtrak" which you could take the train from Seattle to Everett (or take the bus for that mini trip) and then from Everett to Leavenworth. So when the bus doesn't give you what you want, I resort to two other options. 1. Hiking Friends 2. Sites like this one, I use sp and nwhikers for another source for finding partners. So as for an answer to your other question I am currently living a catch 22 when it comes to climbing. I would really love to get into rock climbing which I've done a few rock climbs at the crags with a friend of mine. But the problem is that I do not know how to lead on rock, and my technical abilities are not quite 5.9. I can't get better because I cannot lead, and I cannot lead because I'm not a super technical climber. I been out in the alpine a lot these days and been wishing I knew how to place protection, I even have a mini rack which consists of 11 nuts and 2 hex's.
  14. I'm available this week, let me know as soon as possible if I could join. I've already climbed Eldorado but would love to climb it again.
  15. I would love to join, but have no way of getting there. Good luck!
  16. Way to go, you make this look like a walk in the park.
  17. Nice! Man do I want to go up this route one of these days. So you say it got vertical at one point?
  18. Does this include the weekend before the 29th? If so I may be interested.
  19. Just looking at this makes my heart pound a little. Man I so want to get back into alpinism!
  20. Do work Mark! I'll have to read the rest when I'm not at school. Looks like you guys had fun.
  21. Ok I PM'ed a few of you. Mark I can speak to during school lunch. And Mike I'll try to fill you in on the loop as well, my responses have an effect on how this goes down. I'm already getting excited! Even though I been hiking every weekened, I think I'll get back into running just to be extra strong.
  22. I'm wanting to climb Mount Baker this May. I have summited two routes already but would love to go up another round. I've done the Coleman Deming and Easton but would prefer a new route. I am also willing to do the standard routes again if that's wanted. I would also love to get Colfax Peak as well.
  23. I would say a 4. Now are you saying your a beginner as in you have not climbed a mountain? Or a beginner who has not done much with non trails? The season will effect the difficulty! When I did both and back I was pretty tired, and I go up mountains all the time. As for quality, a solid 9/10! (10/10 being absolutely the best I've ever seen).
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