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Need beta for Fisher Chimneys-Shuksan


Anna

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Can anyone give me beta for this route? I have read some TRs and route descriptions on it but was wondering if anyone had any special experiences to contribute. Has anyone done it recently? What are the current conditions? Etc, Etc.

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HARHAR Dru grin.gif Good idea BUT flying in the North Cascades would scare me! High density altitude, mountain wave, obscurations, oh my!

 

Need more experience and training in mountain flying....I can only fly WAY OVER the Oregon Cascade Range now and even that is hard to get used to. Not a bush pilot...yet.

 

Flying up to Boeing Field to get up there though-yeeha laugh.gif

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Nice pic Dru! You are making me drul!

 

One more question....

 

Places to camp higher up? Are there any solid places higher than Lake Anne?

 

Somebody, anybody been up there to tell me the snow conditions through the gullies?!?!? Open cravasses on the glaciers?!?!? Do we need to worry about avalanches?!?! Any route finding secrets!?!?!

 

Man, the low pressure system predicted to pass through Northern WA this week better dissipate or move! Be kind Mother Nature...please...

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Anna said:

 

 

One more question....

 

Places to camp higher up? Are there any solid places higher than Lake Anne?

 

 

As you approach the start of the chimneys proper, right next to the lower Curtis Glacier, there is a small outcrop of rock that makes a nice bivy spot for three people.

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Thank you Scott..

 

Hey Pi hole you worthless avatar~

You can lick me where I pee the_finger.gif

Last time I checked this was a message board for TRs and beta requests. For someone that has never done the route, it is probably a good idea to get helpful advice or to get a lowdown of the current conditions from those that have been there recently....so as long as this is a free site and the people provide good beta (unlike yourself) I will ask as many fucking questions as I please! yellaf.gif

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We climbed FC two years ago in early July and bivied at the top of the chimneys below Winnie's Slide on snow. There was lots of room with a great sunset view if you don't mind hauling your overnight gear up that high.

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Anna said:

Can anyone give me beta for this route? I have read some TRs and route descriptions on it but was wondering if anyone had any special experiences to contribute. Has anyone done it recently? What are the current conditions? Etc, Etc.

wave.gif

 

Anna, hi. I did this route as a day trip a number of years ago. It was a long day. The routefinding is straightforward once you locate the beginning of the route after Lake Ann. Beckey has a fairly accurate description of how to find the start. Otherwise, we roped up at the Upper Curtis for Hells Highway etc., and soloed the summit pinnacle.

 

This is a great all-mountain alpine tour to do in a day. Just bring alot of food/energy, and travel as fast as you can. Retreat is easy, since you come back the way you came anyway. So if at anytime you don't feel up to it, just head back.

 

I think we left the car at 4am, summitted around 1:30pm, then got back to Lake Ann by dark. But after that, we were so tired it took another 3 hours or so to go out those last 4 miles.

 

Quality route!

 

Alex

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The beta and picture of the route in Becky's book is right on. Not sure what the condition of the route is at the moment. Did the chimneys last year in late July. They are solid exposed low 5th class moves with some 3rd and 4th class mixed in. No pro. The bivy Scott suggested is a nice spot, but carrying bivy gear up to that spot seems unnecessary this time of year. The hiking up to that point from Lake Ann will only take about 40 minutes without gear and not getting bogged down in the boulder field.

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Thanks for the info folks. Trying to figure out logistics with the time we will have and the time we will be arriving at the trailhead to Lake Anne. Could split it into two days but would not like to haul a bunch of overnight gear when it can be done in one day. Two days increases the chance of summitting but would be nice to have a light pack. Route finding sounds like the only real challenge, that and gravity. grin.gif Probably no need for it, but bringing snow pro anyway cuz, yah, just cuz. Guess it is all played by ear....arrival time, how strong we feel, weather, etc. This sounds like a blast and I can't wait....wish us luck!

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Did FC last year this exact same weekend (high snow year). There was still some snow in the chimneys at that time but we were able to scramble up the moat in those areas so it was pretty easy. FWIW, I'd guess the chimneys are mostly snow free at this point. The rest of the chimneys had a climbers path. No problems finding the entrance, seemed pretty straight forward. We had a small avi dump on us as we took a break right before the entrance into the chimneys, so watch out for avi chutes above you in that area. The chimneys are mostly 2nd class hiking with a little 3rd class thrown in there. There is one ~ 4th class section/move (called Fat boy's misery or something to that effect) and another ~ 10-foot step that has possibly a low 5th class move but no exposure. I found the Chimneys to be the least technical part of the climb and quite fun.

 

There were some crevasses at the top of Whiney's Slide to contend with that made me more nervous than the chimneys proper. The summit pyramid also seemed to be more difficult than the Chimneys but there was a mixture of soft snow and wet rock so that might have had something to do with it.

 

The base of Whiney's Slide would be a fine place to camp if you wanted to lug packs up there (I wouldn't). Otherwise Lake Ann is a fine place with a great view. Have fun and we look forward to a TR.

 

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I descended FC after climbing another route in 98 or whenever ( i forget exactly when now). Didnt need to rope up but there were two pre cut bollards we rapped off of one on Winnies one on the entry to the upper chimney. Had 2 tools and crampons and that maybe was a little xcessive. The crux was walking out from lake ann. i hallucinated several times. mushsmile.gif

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We came, we saw, and the FCs kicked our ass! Got to the base of the chimneys and turned back. There still is snow left up higher in the gully and melting like crazy...really wet rock at the start. We decided that with the two of us...we weren't experienced enough to tackle it. Lake Anne is beautiful and glissading the snowfield below was a blast on return. Flight home was interesting as well...transmitter went out near P-town and although I could receive transmissions, I couldn't talk back to Portland Approach frequency...after a brief heart attack and some troubleshooting, I ended up using the jack on the shotgun side and then was able to talk...HOLY SHIT! Flying in Class Bravo Airspace for the first time was nuts!....very busy up there near Sea-tac smile.gif

 

I'LL BE BACK IN AUGUST! Pictures pending....

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I remember when I was taking flight lessons and I deviated from my assigned altitude when flying over sea-tac. I got a *very* stern reminder that it was a required altitude, not a recommended altitude. grin.gif

 

Watching the big jets come and go from near by is pretty cool tho.

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Anna said:

Hello chinaman avatar!

 

Drool: To let saliva flow from one's mouth...very becoming indeed. yellaf.gif

 

Drul: Spelling variation of drool just for Dru

 

yelrotflmao.gif

 

Hello capitalists!

I now feel more intellectual asian.

Thank you for educate Harry.

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