Liberty Ridge

[Jedi]

Hi Fella's!

We are planning to head out west to take a crack at Lib Ridge at the end of May this year. I have a couple questions for you guys.

How long does it take (at a modest pace) to from White River parking lot to Curtis Ridge? Then how much longer to the base of the ridge? We'll probably be humping 35 to 38lb packs in that far. Probably try to get to the base of the ridge that same day.

How will the low snow year probably affect the Carbon and the ridge?

I know conditons change on a daily/hourly rate but I am educated guesses.

thanks

[Mtnclimber]

Since I don't know your experience level this question may be difficult to answer. I have done Liberty Ridge twice. The first time we encountered perfect conditions and whole trip took 2 days and was a joy. The second, we encountered poor weather after thumb rock and bullet proof ice; which dramatically slowed or progress and the trip took 4 days with much epic potential. Don't take this route or others like it too lightly. Be prepared for bad conditions and bring extra fuel(=water), shovel (=bivy), etc... To answer your question. It took us one full day to reach thumb rock from white river without too much difficulty (pack weight=45lbs). The Carbon can be problematic esspecially on low snow years. If you need to do running belays pickets work best but don't forget ice scews and plenty of webbing/cord for V threads. If you don't have a lot of experience try another route like north face of Shuckson or a less comitting route. Remember many people have underestimated this route and died.

[Jedi]

As far an mountaineering, I have only been up Disappointmnet Cleaver, The North Face of Athabasca in Winter and the West Buttress. My parntner an I wanted a nice route to dial in our gear and do some more climbing before we head up to Alaska next May to take a wack at Hunter and the Moose's Tooth,hopefully the Cassin the year after that.

So the Carbon should "interesting" this year if the trend continues.

How much ice did you encounter the low snow year (above Thumb Rock)?

Thank you for all advice and helpful hints, you can never have enough of that.

Anyone? how is the descent off Liberty Bell?

 

[verticalturtle]

Descent from liberty BELL is easy 2 raps and some scrambeling/walking (snow will make this a wee bit different ). Liberty Ridge is another story...

[Colin]

The Descent off of Liberty Bell is simple and quick. From the summit, downclimb third class rock in a SW direction to a little ways passed the white friction slab. From here, down climb in a SE direction through a bunch of dwarf pines. You will find the obvious rap anchor above a big ledge. Make two obvious rappels straight down to the Liberty Bell-Concord Tower notch. The descent only requires 1 50m rope. The descent route approximately follows the South Face/Overexposure route.

[Marko]

Jedi,

Do you mean the descent off of Liberty CAP?

If so, from the Cap head E along a ridge then S down to the saddle toward the main crater (all gentle slopes). From the saddle traverse SE (left) until you can descend the Emmons Glacier route. Hopefully you won't have to gain any extra altitude to avoid cracks. In a whiteout it would be a lonely, desolate place and not much fun! You might want to descend Liberty Ridge if it's too crappy.

Enjoy!

[W]

Hey Jedi,

A common mistake people make on the approach from White river:

When crossing lower Curtis Ridge after crossing the Winthrop Glacier- find the 7200 foot elevation and maintain that elevation until you reach the edge of the Carbon Glacier. You will find easy access to the Carbon there, but if you are tempted to contour up and across Curtis Ridge you will find no way to access the Carbon- the margin slope is a huge overhanging cliff of choss above 7200'.

Ice conditions on Liberty vary greatly from year to year, and month to month. Even in May, I'd take maybe 4-6 screws and of course some pickets. Don't bother with rock pro. Two tools are nice but one and a standard mountain axe would work. The biggest source of the many rescues on Liberty each year is people being caught on the upper ridge or the summit slopes in severe weather. If there is a lenticular cloud cap, run away! Trying to find the Emmons, and then navigating down it in a whiteout is usually impossible for most. As Mtnclimber wisely points out, extra fuel is a good idea for this very reason- a possible prolonged bivouac at 14,000'. Even if the weather forecast is good. You never know. Have fun.

[DPS]

My 2 cents worth:

The low snow fall will likely cause the carbon to 'open up' earlier than usual, but the time frame you mention should not be a problem. I did it mid July ('95?) and had fantastic conditions and no real problems crossing the Carbon.

At a modest pace, my partner and I took 12 hours from trail head to Thumb Rock.(30 hours car to car, but we slept in quite late).

In mid July, we found one pitch of ice right above Thumb Rock, and a 300-400 feet right beneath Liberty Cap. The rest was snow. The worst part was the lower ridge which had HEAVY rockfall, due to the lack of snow cover and the heat of the day when we climbed it.

If you want beta on Hunter let me know.

 

 

[nolanr]

I don't know about the Carbon specifically but I have heard because of the low snowfall many crevasses didn't even fill in this winter.

[Jedi]

Good info!

Maybe that means less hidden crevasses to fall into on the Carbon but more to finess around.

When is the earlist that anyone heads in or when the rangers will have any info on conditions of that area? Sounds like we wouldn't want to head in much later than the end of May.

Just an off the wall question, do you guys think the earthquake not too long ago dropped any nice sized seracs off or made any minor changes to any routes (opening up crevasses, schruds,etc..)?

[Alex]

The earliest time to go will depend on how much time you have.

For most climbers it is when White River opens, which in some years is as early as Memorial Day weekend, and some years is into July. This is the std. starting point for most attempts on Lib Ridge, and allows fast times as the approach trail is well broken, the traverse across the Winthrop and Curtis ridge straightforeward.

Otherwise, the approach is from the (much lower in elevation) Ipsut Creek entrance, which adds a good day to the approach and half day to the descent. I have done both approaches, White River is by *far* the more desirable, in my opinion. However Lib Ridge in early season (like...now) can be very enjoyable and safe, and you may choose to go from Ipsut Creek.

Best bet is to call the park and find out when White River is scheduled to open.