JasonG

Have any of yous climbed it? I realize that it probably won't be great, but want to make sure that it isn't dangerous, terrifying, and/or terribly tricky. Thanks for any info!

I'll try and add some tonight . . .

Trip: Torment-Forbidden - Traverse Date: 7/15/2009 Trip Report: Just a quick conditions update for those heading out in the next bit. The snow traverses are getting exciting for those with just aluminum crampons and a single axe. Some bare ice exposed and a lot of shallow sugary snow over ice. Pickets were useless, screws OK, but not great in the old neve. Otherwise the route is in great shape, just be prepared for snaffle battles at the bivy before the long snow traverse. We were surrounded by three! That's never happened to me before (usually only one at a time), my partner even had one jump off the wall and land fully on his face- Yikes! Another bummer was getting caught in a major newbie traffic jam on the west ridge, on a Wednesday no less. Oh well, still an awesome route with plenty of challenges to keep it interesting. Gear Notes: 2 screws, medium rack to 2", single axe, aluminum crampons, picket (didn't use). Should have had rat traps. Approach Notes: BB trail to S. Ridge of Torment, descended down east ledges of Forbidden

Trip: Monte Cristo - N. Col Date: 6/27/2009 Trip Report: A little dated, but there aren't many TRs in the database for this one. . . . A couple of Saturdays ago, Tim and I got a leisurely start on the approach from Barlow pass, which is in pretty good shape. A log crossing over the Sauk added some interest. From the old Monte Cristo townsite, you follow the good but steep trail to Glacier Basin and get a good look at the objective. Like most parties, we approached via the obvious notch in the left skyline. Right now it is mostly snow covered all of the way, and is easy (if a bit steep in places) going up to the notch. From the notch we traversed too far south to the gully described in Beckey. We encountered a bit of moat action and some 5.6ish rock, certainly a little more than we expected (we had traversed too far). Another party found a better way closer to the col that still had fifth class climbing but was much shorter(~30' total) and led to an easy ramp that could be scrambled to the summit. This option had fixed slings and a bolt, and should be easily visible as you traverse past. We thought that the moat looked too bad there, but didn't investigate closely- we should have. It was quite easy with a nice dry ledge to step onto and belay from. Either way, bring a small rack for roped climbing and don't expect to scramble the whole way to the summit. Views were great, as was the descent- fast! I think it took us around 9 hrs RT including about an hour on the summit. It is a fun little day climb, with enough variety to make for a good day out. Wilman's Spires from Glacier Basin Glacier Basin from the summit Pugh, Whitechuck, and Sloan from the summit Tim at the North Col. Gear Notes: Bikes, axe, crampons, half rope, very small rack. Approach Notes: see above

Just bumping this back to the top . . ..Thanks for any info!

Hard to say . . .There are a lot of cliff bands and steep snow up near Monte Cristo. Could have been on Wilman's too . . ..

I'm hoping someone can help here. There was an accident yesterday on Terror involving the party Jason Schilling was in (he was not injured). An injured climber was flown out to B'ham and is expected to make a full recovery. Due to weather, the park service was unable to fly Jason out (but left him a radio). Since he will be delayed in coming out, the park service is asking for contact info so his friends and family aren't worried. If anyone knows who would be the best contact they can either PM me or call the Park Service directly at 360 854-7249. Thanks a bunch!!!

Kayak Point is the only public access on the SnoCo side with a beach. You are indeed talking about Warm Beach but it is all private, with no public beach access. It is a great beach, but most of the lots extend fairly far into the intertidal so you can't really access by it boat either. A public beach of similar character (but not as nice, muddier) can be found over on Camano at Iverson county park. It really is a bummer that you can own tidelands in WA state . . ..

Mr. Roper forwarded me this excellent photo showing the South (highest peak in the center background) and SW Peaks of Hozomeen along with our approach gully. The col where we bivied is just out of view. Taken from Little Jackass Mountain. Thanks John! Oh, and here is a photo of the North Peak on the approach. SW buttress is the left skyline. Wow!

Trip: South Hozomeen - SW Route Date: 5/31/2009 Trip Report: Beckey's description sounded easy enough- 14 hour RT with some brush, steep snow, and mostly 4th class rock with a little 5.6. He even said that early season was the best time, and here we had a beautiful weekend at the end of May to play with. It was off to South Hozomeen for Tim, Gord and myself! After the long but scenic drive from home to Canada and back to the US, we arrived at a mostly empty TH, except for a couple of dayhikers. As we were about to set off, we ran into John Roper and company heading out for a scramble of Little Jackass. They kindly showed us a potential FA on our map, to which Gord replied "that's not our style". Ever the gracious trio, they gave us a little info about the peak, and the standard route. I heard someone say something about a "sketchy" bit, but tried to ignore it. The mostly mellow and great tread of the first four miles to Hozomeen lake had us thinking we were pretty cool. A quick lunch at the lake with great views didn't hurt either. But all good things come to an end, and soon we were shwacking around the lake trying to find the "path" in the Beckey guide. Hmmmmmm. Soon our spirits were lifted at the sight of the "gully" that promised to take us up all the way to the bivy at the col. They weren't lifted very long, though, as we got to a tough bit that stopped us cold. Thrashing climbers right, we found a rib alongside the gully that provided good travel to around 5000', where we traversed back through brush to rejoin the gully. Great, we thought, it is smooth sailing on snow from here to the col! And it was, for awhile. Then the snow got steeper, and thinner, and the rock slabbier. It wasn't too bad getting to the col, but it wasn't too good either. Tim got hit by rockfall at a very inopportune time (while standing on a slabby exposed ledge above a big drop), but was lucky. We continued upward. Eventually, after about 7.5 hours, we made it to the 6900'+ foot col between the South and SW peaks and scouted around for a bivy. The sites weren't great, be we were whupped and hungry. We began to suspect that 14 hours wasn't quite going to do it for us. The next day dawned clear, and we had great views as we scrambled fourth class rock to a high point above the bivy. The North Peak of Hozomeen: At the top of this point we had a look at the route, and it was pretty disheartening. A VERY exposed downclimb, to a steep snow gully, to a steep snow traverse, to some more 3rd and 4th scrambling, to some rotten steep 5th class stuff near the summit. Yikes! I just about turned around, but Tim was so positive about the adventure ahead that I couldn't bring myself to do it. Soon, Tim was leading the charge to the summit. He lead the "12 foot 5.6" with style, considering there was absolutely no pro and a nice ledge to fall on. He kept muttering about how this was just like gritstone with a British accent, so at least Gord and I were entertained while we were scared. So that's how, even though we aren't real skilled, we kept at it long enough to reach the top (about 3 hrs from camp) I know it is hard to believe, but South Hozomeen isn't climbed very much. The register was placed in 1990, and we were the fifth party to sign in (1990, 1993, 2006, 2007, 2009). Extrapolate that back to the first ascent, and you are maybe talking 20-30 parties? Of course that is all well and good, but we had to get down for it to really count. The descent back to camp was actually a lot better than we were expecting, with two 30m rappels to get us past the worst of it. I did get bruised by some rockfall, but it could have been a lot worse. There was still plenty of exposed downclimbing though, where a fall would not be good. We made it back to camp in the early afternoon and packed up, not relishing the bash back down to the lake. At my insistence (I remembered the rockfall from the day before, and my family) we did two 30m rappels from the col down to some steep snow. A bit of messing around on thin snow over slabs had us down in boot skiable terrain pretty quick, and into the brush sooner than we would have liked. We made it back to the cars about 6:30 pm, pretty tired after a 13 hour day. Our time for the weekend, ~21 hours, certainly not sub-Beckey! So, if you want the full meal deal, South Hozomeen can deliver. Especially if you like things along the lines of the Southern Pickets or J-Berg . . .. you'll have a grand time. Just make sure you say hello to the register, it's lonely. Gear Notes: Axe, crampons, 60m half rope, small rack, tat to back up anchors because it is years between ascents. Approach Notes: Beckey's description is pretty good, but we avoided the gully for a section that looked darn hard to climb up. On the way down, we mostly avoided the narrow part of the gully and cut the corner to the lake. Quite brushy!

With the soft snow conditions we experienced, it was pretty easy to descend the gully after doing a couple of rappels and some down climbing on the ridge. If the south side of the ridge was melted out, and the gully was quite icy, it might be better to head over to the col. I guess it depends on conditions . . .

Trip: Sherpa - Northeast Couloir to East Ridge Date: 5/17/2009 Trip Report: I don't have much detail to add to MCash's excellent TR from a few years ago: http://cascadeclimbers.com/forum/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=468621 But . . . it is a great route that deserves more attention from those looking for a fun spring outing. You just might want to go a little later than we did this year (although in most years it would probably be perfect timing). A fair bit of snow and ice on the rock made for tedious/scary going in the heat. The gully was in fat shape though, making for a fast ascent/descent. Having both been to the top before, Tim and I stopped at the summit rap station due to a sketchy snow blob on the summit slab. What can I say, I'm a dad now. Some Pics: Argonaut on the walk in. Tim stayed in the basin and climbed its excellent gully route on Monday with another friend. Stuart A look at the route from close up. Obvious gully to left skyline. Tim charging up the gully On the summit ridge Sherpa balanced rock gives props to Jens Don't forget your spoon! The post holing was epic Gear Notes: Half rope, a few pieces of rock gear, helmet, axe, crampons (didn't use). Approach Notes: Mountaineer Creek, stay left. Although we didn't do this variation, I hear it is fun to opt for the boulder field rather than staying on the valley floor- esp. in spring

“Climate History of the Skagit Valley” photos: Austin Post (left) and John Scurlock Jon Riedel Geologist- North Cascades National Park June 4, 2009 - 7:30 pm Walter Roberts Hall - T-31 - Skagit Valley College Please join us at this month’s alpine club meeting as we welcome geologist Jon Riedel to share about his work in the park. Jon’s presentation will focus on his research documenting how the climate has changed in the Skagit valley over the past 30,000 years. Through data he’s gathered examining local glaciers and their deposits, Jon will highlight five specific time periods where glacier moraines, buried wood, lake sediments, and macrofossils provide detailed records of the past climate. If you have ever wondered about how glaciers and climate have shaped the Skagit Valley, this is sure to be an interesting presentation. Jon’s presentation will follow our regular business meeting at 7pm. For more information please check out the park’s glacier monitoring webpage at: http://www.nps.gov/noca/naturescience/glacial-mass-balance1.htm Campus map: http://www.skagit.edu/images/color_mvCampus.pdf

"Backcountry Skiing in the Desert Southwest" Steve Barnett, May 7, 2009 7:30 pm Skagit Valley College The Skagit Alpine Club is pleased to host guidebook author and backcountry ski legend Steve Barnett at this month's meeting. With a ski career spanning more than three decades, Steve has hunted down touring opportunities all over North America. He was one of the leaders of the modern tele resurrection in the 1970's, writing the seminal how-to book entitled "Cross Country Downhill" in 1979. For this presentation, Steve will be sharing some unique touring areas he has visited in the desert Southwest. Stretching from Zion to the Grand Canyon to Baja California, these destinations are sure to pique the interest of folks who love to ski sunny slopes amongst improbable scenery. Please join us as Steve shares some great stories and images! We will be meeting in Walter Roberts Hall - T-31. Steve will go on after our regular business meeting at 7pm. The following shortcut is to a campus map: http://www.skagit.edu/images/color_mvCampus.pdf.

OK, so the deal fell through and this stuff is still for sale. Please shoot me a PM if you are interested.

To those that missed last night's show, here's a quick recap- Snaffle (and marmot) porn!!!!!Beckey!!!!Nudity!!!!!Ice!!!!!!Aerosmith!!!!Sarah Palin!!!!Spindrift!!!!!Scree surfing!!!!Flora and Fauna!!!!4x4ing in JoshK's Quattro!!!!!Big, Beautiful Mountains!!!!!! Thanks to Pat for a highly entertaining show! And to all the ladies (and men) who stayed away due to the possibility of an Ivan sighting-you missed out. JG

The class is full- 28 signed up and 8 on the wait list! Thanks for all the interest.

Uhhhhhh . . . yeah. Smashing vegetable matter is pretty much what the club is all about.

Pat Gallagher Skagit Alpine Club Monthly Meeting March 3, 2009 7:30pm Skagit Valley College - Angst Hall, Room 22 Campus Map: http://www.skagit.edu/images/color_mvCampus.pdf We hope you will join us as the Skagit Alpine Club welcomes climber and artist Pat Gallagher to share tales of his recent alpine adventures. An eagle scout who climbed his first technical route 28 years ago, Pat's photography and sculpture may be viewed online at patgallagherart.com and on display at Avanti Art and Design on Seattle's Phinney Ridge. Accompanied by music, movies and images, Pat's show will be in three parts: "Sweet Motion: North American Alpinism in 2008" - alpine journeys from Alaska to the North Cascades; "Bhajan Pon Pon: North American Alpinism in Three Acts" - a musical tour of alpinism in 2006 and 7; and lastly "Snaffle Shorts"- a collection of animal films. This show will not disappoint- Don't miss it! Pat's show will start at approximately 7:30 after our regular business meeting at 7pm.

Pat- Please check your PMs. RE: SAC slide show. Thanks! Jason

Just a heads-up that registration for the SAC class opens today. It sounds like it may fill up this year, so register while you can! JG

Sold. Thanks!

Sold. Thanks!

Mike-Check your PM's JG

Just a heads up that this is TOMORROW NIGHT. Hope to see a bunch of yous there!