Tantalus Range Access?

[dberdinka]

I'm trying to throw together a Tantalus Range Traverse trip with some buddies. We'll be helicoptering into the N Ridge of Tantalus then either flying back out from Lake Lovelywater or trashing our way down, out and across the Squamish River.

 

Any beta or first hand recent accounts of getting across the river? Whats the deal?

[Dru]

take a steel biner or some 1/4" chain for the cable tyrolean

 

U can't park at the cable anymore due to ornery local native band

 

after U tyrolean across, hike or hitch down the road to pick up the car you left at the airport.

 

then off to the pub

[Dr.Hook]

I did the traverse last year with Jesse Mason, awsome trip. We flew in to the N.ridge and hiked out from the hut. It is a long descent and flying out would be deluxe. Crossing the river will go with the right size biner or chain as Dru suggested. To make your life easier call the guy who does boat tours up the river (name and number in Kevin's guide) and he will ferry you across for $20. (or something like that )and may set you up with a coupla beers as he did for us. We fluked out and happened to catch him during a tour as we were preparing to cross the river on an aluminun sport biner (not suggested) . Good luck!

[Dr.Hook]

One more thing, you get cellular coverage up there so bring your phone and you could call the guy enroute. The traverse took us one more day than expected.

[dberdinka]

Thanks for the killer beta guys!

 

Dr. Hook, how long did your trip take? What peaks and routes did you hit?

 

I'm thinking fly in Friday afternoon. Chill. Climb Tantalus, maybe Dione and bivi at the old Red Tit Saturday. Then traverse Serratus and Alpha by their easier routes or do a more technical climb on Alpha Sunday and down to the Lake.

 

I've been in the area and done all but Serratus so route finding won't be a time consuming issue.

 

How far from the lake to the cable crossing in hours?

[Dru]

darin it takes a reasonably loaded party about 3 hrs from the hut to river altho i heard of it being done in under 1.5

[Dr.Hook]

Original plan was to climb Tantalus day one, Dion day two and Serratus day three and hike out. It took us a day and a half to get up N. ridge and over Tantalus due to poor visibility in the Witch's Tooth area and on the summit. So Dion went down day two and we bivied third night at the Red Tit. Next morning we were spanked. Realizing Serratus was going to have to wait till next time we started the descent to the river. ("I've always wanted to try that" replied the guide when we asked him what to expect ) This took us most of the day, stopping for a swim and lunch etc. From the lake to the river it was about 1.5 to 2 hours, on a well marked trail. There is a branch (marked w/ old signage) where the trail splits from boat launch to cable crossing. It was pretty overgrown but follow your nose. We were moving quick to get to the river before dark since we still weren't sure how we were going to get across at the time.

[Don_Serl]

the cable crossing is definitely worth experiencing. it's especially enjoyable to be hanging over the middle of the river on a winter evening as the light dies and the ice-pans clink softly together as they pass beneath you. enjoy!

 

wear your climbing harness, and set slings from your tie-in so that the biner(s) that'll clip to the cable will be at face level - that way you can get some power from your arms into the "drag". shot-gun your pack on a long prussik (below your feet) off the tie-in loop of the harness so the weight dead-hangs off the cable; for christ sakes, don't even consider WEARING the pack across - you'll bust your back and end up hanging meat before u get halfway. or have to ditch the pack into the river.

provided you "lift" a bit to unweight at each pull, the hardest part of the crossing is pulling up the pack and getting it onto the landing platform when you "land".

 

you can use a WIDE-opening locking carabiner (i've done it successfully on a Clog HMS which i just measured at 23mm (15/16") of opening.)

if you lack such a device (or aren't carrying one), you can also use two slings, and simply cross TWO locking carabiners, locked into each other across the cable - way less desirable, and not a nice way to load a biner, but it gets u across. set them so the BACKS load, not the gates!

 

i've done it both ways.

 

i guess in an emergency you could use double non-locking biners on each side, set with all 4 backs to the cable. sketchy...

 

expect to show some wear on the biner(s) by the time u get to the far side. buff the edges out with emery paper when u get back home, pretend the groove is from munter-belaying or rapping with a wet, gritty rope (which causes more wear yet...), and continue to use the biner as your principal anchor point. this is mountaineering, not some beauty contest!

[Dru]

wrap 1/4" chain over cable. clip ends with biner. slide on that instead of biner.

 

instead of Don's "hang pack from tie in" system, pull pack behind you on its own biner or chain.

 

if you have a BIG pulley you can use that

 

i have heard stories of people walking it with their hands on the upper cable. problem is upper cable is not that supportive. would you believe the swinging amplitude in the middle was face down on one side to face up on the other side

 

then again this is the account of one friend:

A friend and I just spent the weekend up at Lovelywater and I have a few points of interest:

1) The cable car is massively locked with no less that 3 heavy duty padlocks and 5 meters of chain wrapped around it in every which way.

 

2) We decided to pick up some chain in Squamish and do the Tyrolean thing.

 

I don't recommend it. The friction of chain on cable makes for very hard movement and lots of blisters (we counted 11 on Marsha's one hand). It took close to 3 hours to get across like this. If you are going to tyrolean, get a pulley (for a 4 cm diameter cable) and tape up your hands! On the way back, Marsha was tight-roping and have an even worse time of it when an angel came from the sky in the form of a motor boat up the river and gave us a ride.

 

3) There is an overgrown trail on the W side of the river heading N for about 400m and leads into the cutblock. It doesn't appear that the trail leads to the Lovelywater trail and a bushwhack for a few hundred meters seems the only way of gaining the main trail

 

 

i have also seen partries take more than 2 hours to Tyrolean across. it took 10 minutes to shuttle 3 people over with a canoe!