mrice1225

Brought a friend who was new to climbing on the tooth. On the first pitch, he just unclipped/took the draws off the first few nuts, then yelled up asking if he should be cleaning the gear. I said yes and he started cleaning. Maybe my fault for assuming he knew what to do... On our way out the nuts were gone, apparently some guys had grabbed them on their way down. I definitely blame my friend for that, not the guys who took them. Would have been nice to get them back but hey, got some new nuts out of it when we got back down.

Since I have it, here's a pic of Winnie's Slide I took on Aug 17th from nearly the same spot, a bit farther to the right I think. Still a little bit of snow but the rocks at the bottom are poking out.

Looks like they withdrew the applications for the mine and it's been called off for now! https://www.goskagit.com/news/local_news/marblemount-mine-project-called-off/article_dc799823-4fb3-5ce3-86c7-37578bdf278b.html

Trip: Mount Thomson - West Ridge Trip Date: 07/13/2019 Trip Report: We left the car from the PCT trailhead at 4:40am. We decided to take the old commonwealth trail to save a mile, which soon had us hiking up the trail to red mountain. After backtracking and getting lost again, we bushwacked up to the PCT. Smooth sailing from there to bumblebee basin. The basin is completely snow free. There is still a bunch of running water in the basin. We climbed talus to the notch at the start of the west ridge, and spent about an hour looking for the base of the climb. We ended up traversing left into some trees at the notch, then went up, then right and up, then left around a ledge. It was weird and I'm sure there's a better way to get there. Set off climbing at 9:40am. The climbing was mostly easy with 5.6 moves, some loose rock, and decent gear. I found the slab to be well protected if one wanted. We climbed the ridge in six pitches with two small scrambling bits, and topped out at the summit at 1:40pm. Visibility was garbage the entire time, and with only brief glimpses of the surrounding environment. We ate lunch, then let a guy who had climbed the east ridge use our rope with a sling harness to descend the 4th class moves at the top of the east ridge. We did two rappels down, down climbed a bit, and did a third rappel. Stupidly lost time here since we took off all our gear after the second rappel, and then decided the third rappel would be safer rather than down climbing. Apparently according to scrambler guy, taking the trail to the skiers left after the first rappel results in easier down climbing. Slowly descended loose trail and scree to the basin. Got back to ridge lake at 4:40pm, filled some water, and got back to the car at 6:30pm with some on/off jogging and taking the old commonwealth trail without getting lost this time. Total time round trip was 13hr 50 minutes. Definitely a long day, but I wouldn't think it's worth camping at the basin just to do this climb unless you're really stoked to camp. There were no other parties on the west ridge, and only one other person on the east ridge. Very enjoyable climb. Basin looking at Thomson: On the slab: Rappelling the 4th class move: Gear Notes: Cams up to #2, nuts, 60m rope Approach Notes: Shortcut works if you don't get lost

Really enjoyed reading this detailed trip report, gives a great glimpse into how much effort and planning an expedition like this takes. Thanks!

Trip: Sahale - Sahale Glacier/South Face Trip Date: 06/30/2019 Trip Report: We (team of 3) arrived at the trailhead around 6am and got moving a bit after. Immediately there was a bear on the trail, and it cut a few switchbacks staying near us as we made our way up. Made it to cascade pass in just over an hour, crossing a few small snow patches, and up to the base of the Sahale glacier by about 9:30 or 10am. Between the pass and the glacier we saw a ton of goats. We ate some food and then roped up. There was one open crevasse on the glacier. We started up the glacier, traversing NE, then NW up a short section of easy snow and arriving at the base of the south face on the pyramid. I started up with the rope and scrambled up and slightly right to the base of a corner with a crack which leaned to the left. This looked harder than the 3rd-4th class I was expecting. I had brought some gear and there were good placements all around, so I climbed straight up the corner, jamming my boots into the crack a few times, passing a sketchy weird fixed sling around a chockstone. I felt this went around 5.5 for 20-25 feet or so, and I was happy to have the pro. The rock in the corner was okay, but there was plenty of crumbling rock on the faces around it. After this, I hit a ledge and there was one more awkward move to the summit. We had climbed essentially slightly to the climbers right (5-10ft) of the rappel route. A single rappel with a 60m rope barely brought us right to the base where the snow ended, and we were back at the car by 4pm. Sahale: On route: Forbidden and Eldorado: Gear Notes: BD 0.75, #1 Smaller to med nuts 4 draws Approach Notes: Bear

Here's a pic I took of what I'm pretty sure is Buckner from the top of Sahale on 6/30:

Thanks for the report, was thinking of heading into that area this weekend. You park on NF-55?

I trimmed mine on an older pair and then tried them on my AT boots and they didn't fit so I had to get new laces. New pair I haven't trimmed so they'll be compatible with any boot. Would personally recommend not cutting.

I went up on Sunday and the NEB was in good condition. Snow before the ice step could be a bit loose but really nothing bad, was comfortable running it out. Ice was in great shape - some really thick ice below the ice step for a belay station. Snow on higher pitches and downclimb was solid. A team went over and looked at the NF and decided against it so I assume it was not in good shape for whatever reason.

Good to hear about your recovery and thanks for writing this up, sounds like you took the recovery seriously and it payed off. I had my appendix removed recently, which I know is nothing like what you experienced, but it was the first time I've really been physically incapable of doing things, and it sucks. Lost 10 lbs after the surgery and wasn't able to lift more than 15 lbs or use my core for a month, which destroyed my climbing/skiing training routine, and probably my early season climbing plans. Just starting to exercise now and I've lost a lot of my strength and stamina. Reading your post makes me think I should have been more proactive during my recovery rather than going back to work too soon and being a lazy asshole/eating like crap...

Awesome trip report! I've been wanting to explore this area for a while now. Great info, thanks for posting!