JasonG

I bet Bryan could hook you up with a copy for the right quantity of raw beef.

Index. Go easy on FA froth until you've been around a particular crag for a bit and gotten to know it and its crew.

Oh, and post up a TR when you get back (unlike me)!

Climbed S. Twin last weekend and snow starts about 4900' in the basin between N and S Twin, but the west ridges of both peaks are dry. One approach for a 2-3 day trip would be to camp in basin between peaks at about 4900. Good flat camps there along the climber's trail. When you packed up after climbing the WR of the S Twin, you could leave the S Twin climber's trail ~4200' and 'schwack NW to intersect the N Twin climber's trail ~4500' on the WR. Drop overnight stuff there and go up and down the WR of N Twin, picking up the stuff before heading out (or camping another night at the end of the logging spur where the N Twin climber's trail begins. Note- I have not done the connection described above so I have no idea how 'schwacky it is, but it would save a lot of distance and elevation gain from going back to the road before heading up for N Twin.

Don't be trying to access your public lands @Fairweather!

Wow, that is a big effort! I have had this on my list for a long time and still do....thanks for the report!

Careful there @Lucas Ng, lots of steep looseness for a soloist! I know, my dad voice coming out, but I want to be reading your TRs for many years. Well done coming back safely, looks like a beautiful day in the hills!

What a crazy day of skiing....huge!

Trip: Warrior - NE ridge Trip Date: 06/01/2025 Trip Report: After talking about it for several years, @olyclimber and I finally got out in the hills together to climb Warrior. It started, like all good Olympics trips, in the rain, wondering if the forecast for fair weather was ever going to materialize. Thankfully it did and @olyclimber and I headed out into the dripping forest along the Dungeness, marveling at how green everything was and how beautiful the waters were. It was going to be a good trip! Boulder shelter: Within a few hours we were at Boulder Shelter, one of the CCC era structures still in use today in the Olympics. @olyclimber , as his name suggests, has a long history with the range and regaled me with stories of his youth, scouting trips, and other entertaining adventures and misadventures in the Olympics. Before I knew it, we were under the cirque on the west side of Warrior, ready to leave the trail and head upwards to a scenic camp perched next to a tarn still buried under winter's snows. It was clearing off nicely and we decided to sleep out in the chilly breeze to admire our surroundings. It got cold during the night and dawn brought a hard freeze to everything, but thankfully our water was only slightly iced. It would be a very firm ascent to the col separating the two summits of Warrior, but thankfully the day was clear without much wind. @olyclimber ascending to the col: Inner Constance and the Rotten Rockenspiel: At the col we started the traverse NE on steepening snow, barely getting the frontpoints of our aluminum crampons into the hard neve. I offered to head on up and "have a look" while @olyclimber hung back. It never got really very dad friendly and I contemplated turning around at nearly every weird snow/rock transition. The abundant snow/ice on the summit rocks made it much more challenging than expected, but for better or worse I continued upward. @olyclimber wisely stayed back and enjoyed the sun at the col while I hemmed and hawed my way to the top. Constance and Inner Constance from the summit: The view west to Mystery and Deception from the top: The summit rocks. The easiest route starts left of the photo and works up and right. The direct route is supposed to be low fifth? We had some miles to cover and driving to do and so I didn't linger on the summit long, and we carefully descended the still rock hard couloir back to camp: Admiring Constance along the way back to camp: along with Mount Mystery as we descended from the high country and out the Dungeness trail: Thanks to @olyclimber for keeping the dream of Warrior alive for me these past few years and making the trip happen! We are quite fortunate to have so many adventures waiting for us just a few hours away. Gear Notes: ice axe, crampons, helmet Approach Notes: Dungeness trail past Boulder Shelter then up into cirque by small tarn, west of the summit. Climb prominent couloir NE to saddle between Warrior summits and then traverse steep snow to the NE until you can ascend up and right to gain the NE ridge. Follow up and right via exposed and steep scrambling. Best if snow free, which is likely by late June.

Trip: BULLEN! - via Squire Creek/Bullen Lakes Trip Date: 06/01/2025 Trip Report: "I felt as if we had joined Sisyphus and his rock in Hell." - HERMANN F. ULRICHS on first ascent of Mount Bullen I mean, who hasn't read the passage above in the Green CAG and decided that they just had to climb Mount BULLEN? Or, maybe I should ask, "Who has?" No matter, @sepultura and @therunningdog were not asking many questions, and that was a good thing for me, since otherwise I am pretty sure we would have diverted to a more "normal" destination on Memorial Day weekend. And by "normal" I mean a mountain with more than one TR on the internet. Which means, after this TR, BULLEN will be officially "normal". Glad we got that all squared away for the masses sure to descend this summer As it was, we didn't see another soul the entire way in or out of the mountains, not on the Squire Creek trail and certainly not in the brush. But we did find several routefinding challenges on the timbered rib above Squire Creek to keep us entertained. And some head scratching to get from the ridge down to Bullen lakes. And some wandering and wondering to find a suitable campsite. But this is what we came for, right? Right guys? I won't spoil the adventure for you, and smooth out the rough edges of your trip to Mount BULLEN!, don't worry. But just know that you can do it without a rope! Which is good, since we didn't have one. Sometimes the crux of these North Cascades blue collar adventures isn't above treeline. But what BULLEN! lacks in technical climbing it makes up for in ...uhhhh... fun? Just make sure you go with partners as entertaining as I had. If you play your cards right, you'll laugh, you'll drink some whiskey, you'll banter like old times, you'll marvel at your luck finding such solitude on a busy holiday weekend, and you'll come out to toast your success at the Red Top. Because, is there any more to the Chossdawg life? @sepultura and @therunningdog on the Squire Creek Trail. Let the good times roll!: It is important to get in touch with your feminine side before caressing the choss: We were pretty excited when the snow covered the brush: Then less excited when our feet began to squish: The prominent couloir on the left is the ticket in early season, or so it seemed to us. We camped on these large boulders near Bullen Lakes: @therunningdog on an interesting section rounding the south shore of Bullen lakes. @sepultura does his best to stare down BULLEN!: We paused to watched this avalanche roar down the North side of the North Finger of Three Fingers: Dakobed and Pugh: SE to the headwaters of the South Fork Stillaguamish and the Monte Cristo Range: Whitechuck, and our tracks coming up and over from Squire Creek: @sepultura eyeing the last bit to the summit. No brush, no problem!: Cumbre!: Three of the OG Choss Dog Millionaires on the summit of BULLEN!: Heading down: @therunningdog is always ready for his glamour shotz: @sepultura prefers his to be action shotz: Suffer together!: If you climb BULLEN! you really must celebrate at the Red Top in Darrington. To do otherwise is just poor form: I'll get some captions in later this week.... Gear Notes: ice axe, crampons, leather garden gloves, helmet (though we opted not to) Approach Notes: Squire Creek for awhile and then follow your choss urges upwards and then downwards to Bullen Lakes, then around the lakes to the south, and then up. Retrace your steps back to the car, since you won't figure a better way most likely than they way your choss urges guided you in originally. It seemed better in snow, but I'm sure without snow would feel more blue collar.

What a waste of resources to go after a guy like that criminally.

I've always wanted to go up there....but haven't. Thanks for the reminder that it is still on the list! I like how you didn't include a photo of the Mountain.

Great TR @Grant789! Please keep them coming this summer. And, everyone, this is a good example that sometimes the attempts are just as compelling for the eyes as the successful. Even if there was no summit (and no party), we still want to cry in our beers with you!

Your energy level puts a fine point on how old I am @Lucas Ng! Great looking trips and some good decision making (though I'll buy you a locker if you need one). There are a lot of summits and life ahead!

So yeah, I suppose I've followed the Beckey beta....but you'll do just fine if you're into the Pickets thing.

You're in the right spot! It has been a few years since I've traversed from Luna Col to Fury but I have done it a few times, including one-way coming down from Fury on a traverse and don't remember it being very difficult to figure out on the fly. I remember sticking fairly close to the ridge and then bypassing a steep section on the west side, on a prominent ledge. Here is a view looking toward Luna Col:

Thanks Kam!

We need a TR!

Wow, that is quite a day trip!

I was wanting to see this report! Thanks for putting it up and wow, what a cool trip.

@AlpineK and @KaskadskyjKozak....Accident was in the Early Winter's Couloir....AKA the couloir between NEWS and SEWS, accessed from the hairpin. And, it was caused by the failure of a single piton anchor which all 4 were clipped to as they descended the route after turning around partway up.

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/3-wa-rock-climbers-die-1-hurt-in-north-cascades-climbing-accident/ This is accurate from what I heard from those that were involved with the recovery

Yes, sounds like anchor failure on EW couloir? Condolences to the friends and family impacted by this.....any details that those in the know can share would be appreciated to better understand what happened and what we can learn from the accident.

Oh yeah, no state income tax might be an issue! Still, I think if you added a small percentage onto sales tax for outdoor rec related purchases it would pencil. I think that is how CO has funded it.

I would call up to Petersburg and track down Dieter! https://www.npr.org/2023/09/09/1198625687/why-one-man-has-spent-much-of-life-trying-to-climb-a-near-impossible-summit He's a homebuilder, so I'd try either hardware store in Petersburg. They'll know how to track him down.