Devin27

Trip: The Tooth - South Face Date: 7/4/2012 Trip Report: Surprisingly hadnt seen a Tooth TR this year, so here you go. To celebrate the day off and shake off the dejection of so many weathered out climbs this year, a bunch of Boealpers headed out to Snoqualmie Pass for a day trip up The Tooth. Climbers: Chris, Danika, Tina, Nathan, Steven, Devin(scribe) Summer trail to Snow Lake is still pretty covered in consolidated snow about a mile or so, but it is easy to follow. There is still a lot of snow on the approach. It is all snow around Source lake and up the ski routes to the pass. Two hours later, we were the first ones up to pass leading up to the south face, but by the time we were racked and ready to climb we had about five other groups waiting to get on the rock. Good thing we got up early. Climbing was great, though we did make the mistake of being tricked by a belay tree and stopping the second pitch way too soon, thus adding an unnecessary pitch. As everyone is aware, be prepared to deal with crowds on this route and keep safe. Someone set off a huge rockfall below us while we were climbing, thankfully no one was below at the time. We had several new rock climbers with us and Danika wanted her first trad lead, so we didnt set any speed records, but still topped out at around Noon. Don't worry about bringing tons of bail webbing, as there are about 10 slings and 3 rap rings per station and sometimes several different stations in the same area. Decent was uneventful until we reached the rap down from Pineapple pass which features snow 1/3 of the way up and a decent moat in the works near the base. This can be easily crossed on skiers left for the time being. Back to Seattle in time for fireworks. Photos!!!!! Gear Notes: Ice axe and mountaineering boots were nice to have but several of out team made out without them Very light rack. There are so many fixed pieces this will soon be a sport route and every belay station has a tree or big rock that is already slung. Only used .5, .75,1 and 2 BD, and a bunch of slings. Approach Notes: Tons of snow. The decent down the bowl is honestly still skiable. Not sure what the winter trail looks like though.

Sweet trip. Looks like the weather was actually pretty good for you guys.

We had the same thought about driving vs climbing down the road a bit on Raven Ridge. 9ish hours of driving to get nearly blown off the ridge. The things we do for a list.

So, despite the hassle of fighting it, and despite Ranger Vicky's protestations about "all the good the money goes toward," And by that, you mean the states general fund. None of that money goes back into the parks. The only thing that has changed from before the passes to now is the parking tickets.

As anyone been up the Becky Route yet this year? Looking to introduce my wife to multipitch but wanted to know how much snow is still on the ledges

Trip: Gardner and North Gardner Mountain - Date: 5/26/2012 Trip Report: Team: Danika, Dustin, Jeff, Devin and Indy With the sun out and a long weekend, we decided to head out to Winthorp and climb some top 100’s. Our original plan was to climb Gardner, North Gardner and Abernathy, although we knew that Abernathy might be a stretch. We weren’t particularly looking forward to the long 10 miles of approach, especially since some of us were still dusting off our leg muscles from a lazy winter of skiing. The approach was long and grueling, but actually pretty pleasant. There are only a few easy to cross blow downs and plenty of small stream crossings for water. We wore light hikers for the approach but switched into boots at about mile 7 or 8 when we started to find patchy snow on the trail. There isn’t full snow until you are into Gardner Meadows completely and it was melting pretty fast. There are a few lower campsites that are melted out around 5700 but we elected to camp on snow at the base of Gardner at 6100ft. It took us a lot longer to make the approach than we thought, and with clouds coming in we decided not to climb Abernathy that day. This turned out to be a good call when the rain started lightly a few hours later. Sunday morning we climbed Gardner first. Crampons made for much faster travel, but the route could be climbed without them as one of our team did. Easy climbing on only a few slightly steep areas had us on the summit in less than two hours. There was some debate if we were on the summit or if the rock bulge to the East was taller. Thankfully the USGS put a marker on the summit, so we got the requisite summit shot and planned our route to North Gardner. We followed the ridge as best we could to point 8374, dropping low when it got a little rocky for our dog Indy. Very easy route finding and easy class 2/3 climbing up to North Gardner. The decent from point 8374 was probably one of the best glissades I have ever done. There was also some sweet boot skiing by Danika and Jeff. Once we got down to camp, we realized no one was in shape enough to make the long hike over to climb Abernathy, especially with a 10 mile hike out the next day. The hike out was everything you would expect a 10 mile hike out would be, long but nothing exciting. What was exciting was beer and ice cream in Winthrop. Great weekend and got two more top 100’s Gear Notes: Standard alpine scramble. Ice axe, crampons (made travel in the morning much faster and easier) Approach Notes: 10 miles of easy trail with some patchy snow on the last few miles.

Has anyone attempted it recently on gotten a good view of the West Ridge route? Curious if there is still tons of snow or if the rock is climbable

It's a pretty dicey weekend to be out in avalanche terrain. NWAC has a special report out that basically says stay home or go rock climbing

Got the blade back, but still hunting for the handle

Hi all, Somewhere on the route between chair peak and source lake, I lost my snow shovel. It is a blue black diamond shovel with a grey extending handle. It has a ring of duct tape residue on the handle. The blue blade and the grey handle are likely separate from each other. If you find it please email me at devinmonas@gmail.com. I would really really appreciate it Devin

Well earned by the rescuers. For anyone that hasn't already read the full story, it is a great read. http://www.mountaineers.org/nwmj/10/101_Terror.html

I have had pants from North Face and Columbia, both wore out a little earlier than I would like but after hard use (you really shouldn't glissade on ice with softshell pants), and in both cases I sent them back to the manufacturer hoping they could be repaired for a small fee and was instead sent a brand new pair at no charge. Can't really complain about that

Name (if you wish to be cited in a way other than your username): Devin Age: 26 Weight: 155 Physical Height: 6' Name or Elevation of Childhood Town:* Parkland, FL (Sea Level) *Side interest, used to determine if childhood environment impacts ability to adapt to certain levels of height while climbing- see Adaptions to Altitude: A Current Assessment by Cynthia M. Beall. Boy Scouts, Beach, Music (played clarinet) Climbing Information Typical Carrying Capacity (if known): 30 lbs Years of Experience: 1.5 Highest Recorded Personal Height: 14,411 ft Longest Climb (Guesstimate): 16 miles Average Number of Climbing Partners: 3 Usual/Favorite locale: North Cascades National Park- Cascade Pass, Mount Rainer National Park Preferred Manufacturer(s): REI, Black Diamond, North Face Personal Accounts - How often do you go climbing? 2-3 times per month during climbing season (March-Oct) Once a month during Winter. With partners? Always Alone? Never Do you stick to areas you are familiar with or are you often in search for new conquests? Always try to go to new places. Rarely do the same hike twice unless it is a different season or a different route. - What do you consider the bare minimum in safety equipment for your typical heights? Depends on the climb. 10 essentials always. Gear needed to treat mild injuries, start a fire and survive the night if need be. Communication and navigation. - On average, what does your climbing loadout consist of? 10 essentials, food and water, water filter, DSLR camera (never leave home without it), helmet if rock fall possible, ice axe if snow likely. It all depends on the conditions and route. - Do you find the weight of your gear to be a noticeable encumbrance? Has it ever endangered your safety? No, I dont bring more than I can handle for the route I am climbing. If something does not serve enough of a purpose, it stays at home. Therefore my pack is usually pretty light. - Have you ever sacrificed a piece of necessary (or unnecessary) equipment for speed's sake? What was it? Why? No. I will sacrifice comfort equipment and luxury items to lighten my load on long trips, but will bear the weight for safety gear if I think it will be needed. - What are some of the more notable injuries (if any) you have received while climbing? Where were you? In hindsight, is there anything that could have been done to avoid it? So far so good, I do not have a good answer to this one. - Do you insist on your climbing partners having matching gear or do you spread out necessities amongst the group? How much “personalization” is involved? Everyone needs to have all their own personal gear (10 essentials, food, etc) But we will split up the group gear and old bring what is needed (stove, tent, water filter, etc) - Has a climbing partner ever endangered themselves or the well-being of others? How? Was it an acceptable risk? Yes. I have climbed with new partners before that were not up to the challenge of the days climb. That lack of understanding of their own limits slowed down the group and forced use to make the decision to turn around. The route we were on was not dangerous, but on a more difficult route, where the path of retreat was difficult, this could have been very bad, - What constitutes an “acceptable risk” for yourself? Trad leading - Has your safety equipment ever failed during a climb? What was it? What did you do? Not yet. Hope my luck keeps going - Why do you climb? Because I spend my work week in a office building staring at a view of the Cascades and Olympics mountain ranges. I love the challenge of a climb, the feeling of success and the soreness the next day which means I pushed my limits. - Other comments:

For clarification. When you say climbing, are you looking for rock climbing or mountaineering?

I find Scarpa better for a wider foot and La Sportiva for a narrower foot. I found the Evo GTX too narrow for my feet, so I returned them and got the Mont Blac GTX and they are awesome. I dont think I have particularly wide feet either.

I have used the Nepal's and they are slightly narrow as well. I went through several mountaineering boots which all hurt my feet until I found the Scarpa Mont Blanc GTX . The Scarpa are great for a wider foot. As said above, it all depends are what you are aiming to do. If you are going to be doing winter climbs, ice climbing, glaciers and spending lots of time in crampons, then go for a mountaineering boot and dont skimp if you can afford it.

There are plenty of one day climbs out there, depending on how far you are willing to drive and how far you are willing to hike. Many of the 1 day climbs involve scrambling and snow, as opposed to rock and glacier climbing. A few of my favorites Sahale Mt Maude Cashmere Dragontail Colchuck Cannon Snoqualmie Mountain, Silver Peak, Guye Peak and pretty much anything else around Snoqualmie Pass is always a fun, nearby climb

To anyone hiking switchback peak (AKA Cooney Peak) in the Chelan Sawtooths. Please bring a 1.5 inch PVC pipe cap with you, as one of the caps on the summit register is broken and the register will likely be gone during the next rain.

Trip: Cashmere Mountain 8-21-2011 - Windy Pass Date: 8/26/2011 Trip Report: This past weekend we day climbed Cashmere Mountain in the Enchantment Area. We will be back in the core Enchantments in Larch season, but this was a good warm up and taste of things to come. Left Seattle at 4am and were heading up the Eightmile lake trail at 7am. The trail to eightmile lake was relatively flat, which meant we had wasted 3 or so miles gaining only about 1000 ft. The trail up to Caroline and Little Caroline lakes was dry, hot and buggy, bring lots of water. We got eaten alive as we stopped for water at Caroline Lake and horseflies followed and conitnued to attack everytime we stopped. With the bugs driving us along, we made good time to Windy Pass. We had read about the climbers path leading directly up the ridge, but decided to just stick with the trail to avoid tedious bushwhacking. From Windy pass, it was an easy trail up to the summit block of Cashmere. Once on rocks, we traversed around to the climbers left until we crossed over the North ridge. There we found the easy class 3 gully to the summit. We had to cross 3 small snow fields on the traverse, but they had nice steps kicked in. They have a interesting run out that I wouldn't want to fall down without an axe so I used mine, but you could get by without it. At the summit, we discovered there was a recent hatching of flying ants and the summit was literally covered in thousands of them. I stayed only long enough for a photo and to discover the summit register was gone. The PVC pipe was there, but broken open and there was no log at all. On the decent we decided to follow the climbers trail down the ridge on the direct route to the lakes. This trail disappears half way down the ridge. At this point we decided to try and take the path of least resistance to rejoin the trail to the West. This turned out to no be such a good plan, as we ended up in waist deep field of flowers and then in a marsh. I think we could, and maybe should, have followed the ridge all the way down to the lake. Hopefully someone familiar with this decent can add more. The hike out was long and buggy, but not too hot with the setting sun. Back at the trailhead by 7pm for brauts and beer in Leavenworth. Leave Seattle 4:30am Trailhead 7:00am Eight Mile Lake 8:10am Windy Pass 11:00am Summit 1:20pm Cars- 7:00pm Car to Car- 12 hours 17.6 Miles round Trip 5600 ft Elevation Photos!!! Eightmile Lake and out first battle with the bugs Up the dry trail to Caroline lake The wildflower are out in full force Robin hiking down to Caroline lake First views of the summit of Cashmere Danika and Robin taking a break at Windy pass Aubrey at Windy Pass More flowers Heading along the ridge Taking a break to enjoy the view of Rainier Crossing the snow fields below the summit block Class 3 gully on the far side of the north ridge Group summit shot Me and Danika at the summit Glacier Peak in the distance, next time maybe Aubrey at the summit Me on the summit, being attacked by flying ants Our ridge decent Heading through the meadows on our misguided decent Sorry flowers Did give me the best flower shots of the trip though More wildflowers Long and tiring decent Gear Notes: Ice axe (used for 2 minutes across snow field), Mountaineering boots (Carried, but never used, Day hikers are fine) BUG SPRAY(Used all that we had and it wasnt enough!!!!) Approach Notes: Trail is clear and easy all the way to the summit area. 3 small snow patches near the base of the summit, but easy to cross and will likely be gone soon.

Thanks all. You were spot on. Bugs were pretty aggressive and seemed to like the taste of our bug spray. Snow was not an issue at all. 2 or 3 small snow fields near the summit which were easily crossed with no problems. They could be avoided all together if you stay on the rock while traversing to the ridge. I'll post a full TR when I finish going through my photos

Hi all, Planning on heading that way this weekend for a day climb and wanted to see if anyone had been out there lately. How much snow is on the peak and how long till you encountered it? Ice axe, crampons? Stream crossings? Thanks, Devin

Trip: Sahale Peak - Sahale Arm Date: 7/23/2011 Trip Report: Photos to follow when I get 5 free minutes to download them. Our original plan was an overnight at Sahale Glaicer camp to tackle 3 Bugler top 100, Sahale, Buckner and Horseshoe (I have no idea why Horseshoe makes the list, but its there). The plan however fell apart when all the permits were snatched up early in the day by a certain large climbing group that will remain nameless. We decided a day trip up Sahale Arm would still be fun, and we would decide on our destination once we got there. The hike up to cascade pass and the arm was uneventful. Snow starts on the pass around 1000 ft up, but it was easy travel. We moved very quickly up to the pass and up the arm. The snow on the arm was broken up here and there with meadows and rock piles starting to come back out, but there is still a lot of snow and it doesn't seem to be going anywhere too fast. We followed a goats tracks the whole way up, but never did find him. Once at the "glacier" we decided that Buckner was out of our reach today and so we headed up Sahale. Great snow again made for quick travel. We headed up the right side of the glacier basin to avoid the reported (but not seen) crevasse that can open in the center of the glacier. We did not bother to rope up, given the lack of crevasses reported on this glacier. There were several other groups on the route and no one else roped up. There is snow all the way to the summit block. Once there, we choose a path on the left side of the ridge, because the right side was taken by a team that was setting up a fixed line. Do not take the farthest left route, because this ends about 15 ft from the summit with a tricky move and poor holds. The best route is slightly to the right of the northwest ridge. The climbers on the right route called it low class 5 terrain, but it looked more like class 4 to me. No sign of any register at the summit. Some quick photos and we had to get moving as the afternoon groups were catching up and there wasn't much room at the summit. There is a nice Rap station with ring near the Northwest ridge. Snow was perfect to plunge down and we were back at the pass in no time. The same cant be said for getting from the pass to the car, which seemed to take forever. We also had to constantly pass the day hiker tourist crowd, many of whom were surprisingly displeased about moving aside for fast groups. O the joys of hiking in a popular area Gear Notes: Ice axe, Crampons (didnt need), Rope (used for summit block handline when I got off route, and rappel), Harness Approach Notes: I'll get the times off my camera

There was a waterfall about 400 feet above our camp on the route to Seven Fingered Jack that was accessible. I do have the GPS file, but I havent had a chance to get it off my GPS yet. I will try and remember tonight. We came in from the Phelps Creek Trail Head off US2, so we didnt need to go through Holden.

Cool photos Was thinking of heading there this weekend to tag Sahale, Buckner(south side) and Horseshoe. How was the traverse across Horseshoe basin on your way back to Sahale Glacier? Is the snow pretty consolidated?

Scenic Milky Way over Glacier Peak Alpine Climbing the ridge to Mount Fernow Humor Watch the last step Cragging Climbing the summit block of Seven Fingered Jack