Pilchuck71

I think Catbird is right. I was introduced to Darrington by people who had been out and at it for a while. Three o'clock is fun and I climb there at least a few times a season but IMHO Green Giant, Exfoliation Dome and SQW are really what Darrington is all about.

You are right about those rocks being there. When we exited the BGoD Smed belayed from the lowest of those rocks and we actually climbed right out onto the fresh stack in your photo.

I'll send her back as soon as I am done!

I see it now. Thanks.

Yep - That pretty much looks like it blocked/obliterated the line we took out of the gully!

Where was this shot taken Rad?

Smedley and I have been eyeballing a creek drainage that could possibly get one to the very bottom of the slabs that are the terminus of CS gully. It would add a significant amount of climbing.

I wish I knew more about the history of the feature names.

Word Bug! I showed my girl a video of just a simple scramble and she was like "I do NOT need to know that stuff let alone see it" Ignorance is bliss?

Very, very true Shapp! Unless one is into that sort of thing the Gully is best avoided. My buddy Ken Strong was actually able to climb up and out of the gully through (as in through-read:speelunking style)a remarkable pile of stacked rocks that were at the same time scary and fascinating. This area of the wall is certainly one I would not recommend. Thanks Shapp.

I thought I would add a photo generally showing our line of ascent.

Nice shot D.

Ya know..I am not sure. It takes me a full day to get to the top of Dick Ridge, so in that light it is a commiting route. The climbing difficulty varies but the Chickenshit Gully is probably only 4th to low 5th, although there are plenty of variations possible. Dick Ridge is where things get a little harder. If one follows the crest it is probably in the 5.4 to 5.6 range but if one was to trend to the climbers left things can get more difficult maybe in the 5.8 to 5.9+ range. The problem with giving grades on this is that it is a huge piece of rock and I doubt any two parties take the exact same line of ascent.

Thanks gents for the advice. I was able to get it figured out today and posted the SQW trip report. I used Rads method and the only thing I thought was a pain was making sure the layout was correct and not causing a super wide TR. I appreciate the advice and am glad to now be able to share some photos with y'all. Cheers, Tyson

"We don't need another hero"......... Shit man it ain't nothing. I am always willing to share what I know. Thanks for the compliments they are appreciated.

Trip: Squire Creek Wall - Dick Ridge via Chickenshit Gully Date: 8/22/2009 Trip Report: Smedley and I decided it was high time to return to our camp at the top of Dick Ridge and check on our gear stash. We left the car Saturday morning under cloudy skies, optimistic that the weather would be kind to us. We did our due diligince in getting the road work out of the way and then proceeded to work our way up the old trail to Big Tree and the approach slabs. We scrambled the slabs to Bathtub Ledge and then on up to Hooter Cave. We traversed Strawberry Ledge to the corner of the Illusion Wall and took two rappells to reach the ground and work our way into the Black Gully of Death. We worked our way up the gully to a dead end and Smedley led a nice short pitch out and around to reach the traverse to Chickenshit Gully. We climbed the route using a running belay for all but two short pitches. On the descent we downclimbed again using a running belay. We continued downclimbing until the bottom of Chickenshit Gully where we took four rappells to reach the ground and the traverse back under the Illusion Wall. Enjoy some photos! SQW overview The Woods Wall The approach slabs above Big Tree Looking up from Strawberry Ledge Getting ready to exit The Black Gully of Death Ascending Chickenshit Gully Olympus Ledge Dick Ridge Three Fingers from Camp Downclimbing Dick Ridge from the Buttrest SQW Stitch Gear Notes: Full set of cams, Full set of Nuts, Mountain Runners and 2 100' 8.6 mil ropes. Approach Notes: Easy Squeezy Lemon Cheesy

Duly noted....your perception is remarkable...How sophomoric of me not to consider that as a response.

Kenny - I beleive the answer is yes.

Thanks Matt.

Suck! I have tried the advice in the FAQ's...no luck. I have tried linking to my Flickr account using the same code...no luck. I have imported photos to the CC gallery and tried to link to those using the same code.....nothing... Any help would be greatly appreciated..by both my frustrated self and my girlfriend who is tired of watching me yell at the fancy picture and infernet machine. Thanks in advance for helping out the old and feeble minded.

Porter - Did you read it in Koma Kulshan - History of Mt Baker?

I was just up in that area about a month ago. Camped at Lower Thunder Lake. We came in via the Trap Lake and then up to the Pass. We had no technical gear but managed to scramble some of the lesser spires along the ridge. Great area and alot of fun features and nice rock. I free soloed a route about 75' in height off the trail to climbers right as you work toward Slippery Slab from the pass. Very fun route with a walk off the side. I would say it was easy 5.6 or 5.7. I would like to head back out that way with a small rack and spend the weekend messing around along that ridge. Any pictures? Tyson

don't forget to change the batteries occasionally LMAO - Thanks Ivan, I'll take your word on that one.

Nope - Got me newer, smarter version.

I remember taking my friends boyfriend out for his first hike/scramble. We walked up to Gothic Peak and he was so excited to use his new cell phone to call his girl to tell her how cool he was for making it up the mountain. Reception sucked and he was only able to get a few words in before the phone dropped the call and he was unable to reestablish a connection. Walking out later that day we saw two women hiking in the Monte Cristo road with no packs and what appeared from a distance to be flip flops. Turns out it was my wife at the time and my friend coming to rescue us after having recieved the call that was interpreted as we are stuck on the mountain. I was dumbfounded....as in what were you thinking you could do for us? Oh well, at least the authorities were not involved. I have since made it a point to let my loved ones know that I require a 24 hour window before SAR is notified.