Shuksan Northwest Arete

[Sol]

Thinking about jumping on this route in a couple weeks. anyone climbed it recently (past five years). Both beckey and Mclane state, "surprisingly good rock." they also state the arete stays away from the objective hazards that exist on each side from the icefalls. anybody ever seen major hanging glacier cleavage hit the arete? proablay bring a few pins, couple a cams, set of nuts, couple of screws, couple pickets. any other recommendations? How about those mixed pitches to access the glacier? any constructive thoughts would be appreciated.

[dberdinka]

A B'ham climber DIED on that route in the early 90's. Evidently at the top you're forced onto the hanging glacier (I believe via rappel) At that point a serac higher up on the glacier calved and buried him.

 

The arete itself is well protected, I've seen a very, very large avalanche break off the hanging glacier and hit the wall of the arete. It bounced back in a billowing cloud that dropped straightdown below the icefall.

 

Be safe

[Sol]

hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....good info, thanks. any more thoughts folks?

[DPS]

I remember that Darin. I climbed with the guy that was with him when it happened.

[j_b]

i did the route quite a while ago (~25years ago in july) and didn't feel exposed to the icefall in spite of the constant activity. i am, in fact, surprised to hear that someone died in a serac fall above the arete. but my recollection may be less than perfect and we certainly did the climb a good ~10years before the mentioned accident so things may have changed in the interval. the climb is mostly 4th class w/ a couple of mid-5th, all on good rock but i assume the character of the climb would be significantly different this early in the season. at the time, we did need a short rap to get onto the hanging glacier. once there, we climbed ice up to 50deg to reach the summit pyramid. great location, scenery and sound effects. shuksan rocks.

[Sol]

word

[EmilyLane]

Does anyone know the name of the guy that died on the NW Arete of Shuksan? I did this route in 2000 and we found a pack that had been munched by the glacier in the groove between the arete and the glacier. It had rope and shoes and all sorts of stuff. It appeared to belong to a guy named Gary Gray. I was always somewhat curious as to what had happened. Just recently I discovered that a climber named Gary Gray was killed somewhere up in Washington by a falling serac.

[JohnGray]

Sorry to bring a bump to this thread, but today brought a surprise into my family's world. After thirteen years, it was brought to my attention of more belongings found on Mount Shuksan that had belonged to my brother, Gary. I am extremely thankful that Emily was interested in finding my family, as my mother has now been contacted by the Rangers.

 

Gary Gray was my older brother, and tragically lost his life on Mount Shuksan on Monday, Aug. 19th, 1991 when a section of the hanging glacier broke free, burying my brother and his climbing partner, Curt. Curt survived thankfully, although he had severe injuries and couldn't get down alone from the mountain. Curt remained up there for 3 days until the Rangers were able to rescue him from the mountain.

 

Gary's body was finally found 3 years later, and we layed his ashes to rest in Tucson, Az., our family's home base. I was surprised at how many knew of Gary in the climbing community, as so many people came in from out of state to be at his Memorial. Something I'd never forget.

 

You'd think that thirteen years is enough to heal the pain felt when losing a brother. Needless to say, I was shocked when my mother received notice that Emily had found my brother's wallet, and wanted to return it. My mother first thought of surprising me at Christmas time to hand me Gary's wallet once she had a chance to meet with Emily. I'm truly glad she didn't wait to tell me.

 

Kelly Bush, the Wilderness District Ranger at North Cascades National Park, happened to see this thread and remembered Gary from when my family first flew to Washington upon getting the terrible news. My mother remembers meeting her back in 1991. Kelly got in contact with Emily, and then got in contact with us.

 

Words cannot describe how truly thankful I am that Emily cared to return Gary's wallet to us, and am also thankful that Kelly stumbled onto this thread after all this time. This is why I came here today. I now see that Emily's post was from July. I can't believe this came to be.

 

We had always wondered what had become of Gary's wallet.

 

John Gray (Gary's loving brother)

Anaheim, CA.

Edited November 23, 2004 by JohnGray

[Lowell_Skoog]

What a good ending. Not a happy ending, but a good one.

 

to Emily for saving the wallet and speaking up.

 

to Kelly for connecting the dots.

 

Most of us hardly think about what the park rangers do for us. (I remember when Bill Lester, Kelly's predecessor, pulled the body of a friend of mine off Mixup Peak.) Kelly's looong memory, her quiet presence on this website, and her help for the Gray family speak volumes about the way she does her job in the North Cascades National Park.

[Off_White]

I missed this thread before today. I knew Gary from days back in Tucson in the mid 80's, and met his mother up here in the days following the accident. Gary was a wonderful guy, and a great photographer, I miss him. to all the connections made to bring this part to completion.

 

With regards to the accident, as I recall, they were at the top of the arete, resting and getting ready to shift onto the glacier. The serac collapse and following slide buried Gary in the moat, where he'd been sitting, while Curt was able to scramble up the rock and escape the brunt of it. I know I've been leery of that situation ever since.

[thelawgoddess]

wow. that is great that gary's wallet got returned to his family. the climbing community can seem so small and cordial sometimes.

[JohnGray]

Thank you guys for the responses, and your thoughts!!

 

I never would have guessed how difficult of a job it is to be a park ranger. For the three years Gary was missing, they kept an open file on him, and were on top of everything that happened. I applaud them for it. For Kelly to find this thread almost four months after it had sat dormant is nothing but a stroke of luck if you had asked me.

 

Off_White, thanks for your kind words regarding Gary. Your memory is one that I share as well. I got to meet many of Gary's climbing friends at his Memorial, and you all are amazing, just good folks to the bone. I can see now why Gary felt in his element with his fellow climbers.

 

One little interesting tidbit of info I'd like to mention about the three years Gary was missing. Initially after Gary's accident, my father and I had agreed that in the event that Gary was found, he and I would fly to Bellingham, and take care of everything. I personally felt such a strong importance to have the chance to have my last goodbye with Gary. My mother, as helpless as she felt, went out of her way to make a once-a-year trip to Mount Shuksan to spend time near Gary. I was glad somebody in my family was able to do that. Fast forward three years later in the summer of '94, my mother had tried twice to visit Mount Shuksan, but each time her plans would fall through. However, in August, my mother (who deals antiques) reluctantly decided to do a show up in Washington. She didn't want to go as she'd be making the trip alone, so her close friend Betty decided to go on the trip with her. After the antique show had ended, my mother and Betty proceeded to drive up to the base of Mount Shuksan, arriving at the visitor's center, a place where I had been thirteen years ago before. Oddly that very day, my mother witnessed a rescue helicopter flying over to Mount Shuksan. After shrugging off any crazy notions, my mother and Betty then went to take a walk around Picture Lake, all during this time that same rescue helicopter was returning with a basket hanging from it. Never in a million years would any of us been prepared to handle the inevitable news: it was Gary's body finally found.

 

And yesterday, when my mother had talked to Kelly Bush, Kelly had mentioned that there were two climbers injured on Shuksan earlier this year. Oddly enough, one of the climbers had told Kelly that his wife was part of the team of climbers that found Gary back in Aug. of '94.

 

I sure miss Gary...

 

John

Edited November 25, 2004 by JohnGray

[Skeezix]

I'm glad this family was able to recover Gary's property. I was with the NPS team that rescued Gary's partner, Curt. I also attempted to recover Gary's body the next day, but he was buried under a twelve foot thick plug of glacial ice. I'm sure he was killed instantly. He was known in Bellingham for his passion for mountains, environmentalism, and photography. R.I.P. Gary Gray and my sympathies to his family and friends.

[JohnGray]

Jeff,

 

Thanks for the response, and I appreciate what you had to say about the rescue and about Gary. I never got a chance to meet the individuals involved with the rescue operation, so I'd like to take this chance now to thank you for the efforts that you had made thirteen years ago for my brother and Curt. I salute you for the job that you did, and it's sheds light to hear after all this time what the NPS team was up against during that time. My father was offered a helicopter ride up the mountain to take a look, and was able to snap a few photos of the accident area. I remember those days up there like it happened yesterday.

 

I'll include a pic of Gary as a thanks for the responses here, and for your efforts and memories, Jeff. This picture was one of several we received from Curt, recovered from the climb. These were the last taken of Gary.

 

Thanks again Jeff!!

 

 

Gary Gray

8/26/57 - 8/19/91

Edited November 25, 2004 by JohnGray

[Skeezix]

John ...see PM.

[JohnGray]

Thank you Jeff for the PM!

 

After all the time that I, my family, and Gary's girlfriend Cara spent up in Bellingham at that time, I feel pretty comfortable that we have had all our questions answered.

 

But as you said in your PM, I would love to know all you would like to share regarding your recollections of that time, as well as the see any photos of the area or the rescue attempt you mentioned you might have. I can't tell you how many nights I tried to fall asleep wondering exactly what had happened, where Gary would be, etc. I'm sure you can assume my entire family had the same issues. I'm really thankful Curt was able to share with us what he knew. It truly helped my entire family immensely.

 

I do vividly remember being at the rangers office with my family, and Bill Lester giving as a slide presentation of Shuksan and the area, and telling us that even if Gary were found that year, you wouldn't be able to extract him until at least three months later, when the weather was safer.

 

I'll spare all the details, as I could go on and on, but as I mentioned, I never did get a chance to hear from any of the rescuers themselves.

 

Anything you'd like to share with me, I greatly appreciate it.

 

I posted on the forum and not in a PM, only because I know my mother and father have been monitoring this thread over the last few days, and I know they are also interested to read anything as well. If you'd like to PM your response, that's great with me, and I'll be happy to forward it to my family.

 

Thanks again for your time, Jeff. We all appreciate it.

 

John

Edited November 27, 2004 by JohnGray

[Skeezix]

PM me your address to send the photos to. They're illustrative, especially photos of the avalanche track. I'm sure Curt told you how the accident happened. On the day we flew in and rescued Curt, we used a basket slung on a long cable beneath the helo to pluck him off the ridge. The next day we flew in with some volunteers from Bellingham Mountain Rescue. We placed spotters with radios to watch for ice fall. Rex Myers and I traversed above the icefall and set some anchors, and I rappeled down to a col just above the accident site. I was able to walk down to the ice plug that covered Gary. The ice had broken up as it tumbled down the glacier, and Gary was putting his crampons on in a moat, which is a gap between the glacier and the rock ...sort of a deep trough. In fact, this moat was so deep that the surface of the glacier was over Gary's head, so he likely didn't hear the slide coming. The icefall tumbled into the moat and filled it up, burying Gary and, I'm assuming, killing him instantly. Curt was several yards below Gary, and the ice knocked him backwards and buried his lower body, but he was able to extricate himself. Over several days the ice, which had likely fractured into pieces as it tumbled down the glacier, froze solidly in place. I think it probably weighed several tons. I stood on top of this ice plug, directly above Gary, and whacked on it with my ice axe. It was frozen solidly in place, and I realized that there was no way we were going to be able to get to him. I briefly entertained the idea of calling for a chain saw because I've read of cases where chain saws have been used to cut ice in crevasse rescue operations in Europe... but Bill Lester was sounding nervous over the radio watching the ice fall and I knew we weren't going to get to him that day. We left and that was the end of it until Gary's remains melted out several years later. The following Fall I went over to Curt's house in Bellingham and we looked at slides and discussed the accident. There is really no clear lesson to be learned in terms of prevention. The accident site is not even really below the icefall... In one of the photos I took at the scene, you can clearly see the track the ice made as it slid down the glacier. It didn't fall straight down. For some odd reason, it curved to the right (facing downhill) and slid over into that moat. It was completely unpredictable. I don't remember the time of day the accident occurred. It's best to climb early as icefall occurs more often late in the day.

[Bug]

What could have been and what was are the balance of a climber's tragedy. If I had never climbed, I could not be who I am now. If I die on a climb, I will still have lived exceptionally well.

RIP Gary.

[JohnGray]

Jeff,

 

I PM'd you with my info. Thanks again for the offer.

 

I enjoyed reading all your recollections regarding your efforts and the situation at the time. It makes sense with all I know as well. I remember that their climb was just supposed to be an afternoon climb, and when they didn't return back later that day, Curt's girlfriend started getting worried. I believe the accident occured sometime between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., not exactly sure, I never thought to ask Curt. They had just ascended to the base of the glacier, and were preparing to cross it. I know Curt had just taken pictures with Gary at that point. What I thought was ironic was that Gary was usually the one to take the photos. Yet I don't believe he took his camera on this climb. He was an environmental journalist and photographer, and had worked with Pat O'Hara on many occasions, shooting his yearly calenders and such. Curt did tell us that Gary knew the ice fall was happening last second, yelling "It's coming down on top of us..." Next thing Curt knew, he awoke later, buried up to his chest with a punctured lung. I'm thankful it was sudden, and that Gary experienced no pain.

 

On a side note, I got a slight feeling from your last post it may have bothered you that Gary's body couldn't be extracted as soon as you'd hoped for. Well if it's any consolation, I know everything in the world had been done in Curt and Gary's rescue, and that I applaud the fact that there are people like you that are there to help save lives. I think it's great that you were able to visit Curt the next fall to look at slides and chat about the experience. I'm sure you both are better people after all this.

 

Gary was an experienced climber, and he knew the risks. And like Bug mentioned, it's not how you die, it's how you live. Gary did more in his almost 34 years, than most of my family. I have very fond memories of Gary taking my other brother, Derek, and myself climbing in the Tucson mountains as kids. I miss his intelligence, his smile, his kindness, and his gentle hug. Even the times when I used to have girlfriends calling the house, and Gary would answer, they'd think it was me, and he'd just chat with them, impersonating me all the while. He always got a laugh from that. Me too.

 

I was angry for a long time, wanting to know why Gary had to go on that climb. Yeah, it's purely selfish reasons, I know. Climbers are a different breed, which I've really come to understand over the years. I'm glad Curt continues to climb, and that he hasn't let his experience keep him from living. When you have a passion, you have to follow it, regardless of the risks. That, to me, is what makes life worth living.

 

Bug, thank you for your response. I understand completely!

 

John

 

p.s. I received an email from my mother yesterday. She just received Gary's wallet yesterday from Emily. Unbelievable how good the condition is. Nine years on Shuksan, and four years Emily held on to it, in hopes of returning it someday. This is a perfect ending to a long saga.

 

 

Thanks to all who may have known Gary, and to the rest whom were interested in reading this thread. This is the perfect early Christmas present anyone could ask for.

 

John Gray

Edited November 28, 2004 by JohnGray

[JohnGray]

I almost forgot.

 

On a much happier note, not all is lost with Gary. His photographic work continues to live on. Several photo banks throughout Arizona have been using Gary's slides over the years, whether it be school text books, brochures, you name it. It's nice to see his work live on, now with people getting to see Gary's photographs taken through his eyes.

 

And lastly, there is now a Gary Gray Memorial scholarship for Environmental Journalism that was established at Huxley College in Bellingham that students can apply for, who share many of the same passions as Gary.

 

John

Edited November 28, 2004 by JohnGray

[curtveld]

Funny the things you find being kicked around on the web these days, isn’t it! I was Gary’s partner on Shuksan – AKA the guy that survived the accident. I recently discovered this thread on a tip from Gary’s mother.

 

Was pleased to see that the accounts of our accident provided by John Gray and Jeff Clark, both of whom I’ve spoken with at length, are pretty darn accurate. I can resolve a few details for those that are still reading along. The accident occurred between one and two in the afternoon of a warm day. As I learned, this was at the early end of the typical period of increased icefall activity (~noon until 8 or so). As I sat there for the next 48 hours after the accident, this cycle became evident. As Gary and I geared up for the glacier crossing (crampons, prusiks) we were well aware of occasional icefall activity above us. But as Jeff pointed out, we were several hundred feet downslope of the icefall and the glacier step between was pretty low angle. We perceived that the main risk would come as we traversed the glacier, presumably across below the main active area. However, the slide caught us by surprise along the glacier edge.

 

Many who know of our accident (including the North American Journal of Mountaineering Accidents) have focused on the time of day as a possible “judgement error”. Yes, an earlier arrival would have reduced the risk slightly, but I don’t think we had stepped into an obvious high risk situation. Several climbers that have repeated the route said they found the spot where we got hit to be spooky, but more because they knew about the history, rather than what the observable risks were. And most readers of this site are savvy enough to realize that on Shuksan and other big peaks, you can’t do a technical route and be off the glaciers by noon.

 

In reflection, I feel a more practical lesson is to be super careful where you stop, and avoid spots with poor upslope visibility. I honestly don’t recall if we missed a better alternative place, but I would certainly look very thoroughly or even crampon up on the adjacent rock before stepping onto the glacier to avoid that kind of situation. But even if we would have seen the slide coming, it’s questionable whether we could have gotten out of the way with the available lead time. It’s all 20/20 hindsight I suppose, but worth thinking about.

 

Otherwise, I echo many of the personal acknowledgements that have been made previously in this thread. Gary was a truly wonderful guy – who can guess what contributions he might have made toward environmental photography, the climbing community or something else? The Gray family has handled his loss with grace and patience. The folks from North Cascades NP did an outstanding job back in ’91, later recovering Gary’s body and continue to this day in arranging the return of Gary’s pack last fall. I renew my thanks to Jeff, Kelly, Hugh Dougher and rescue copter pilot Tony Reece among others.

 

And no, I haven’t given up on mountaineering, but have pursued one of my great personal inspirations, which is exploring the alpine terrain of the North Cascades. And since then, I have had no serious close calls (knock on wood!). Hope you all got something out of the retelling of this tale - glad to finally contribute.

[mountainsinjuly]

hey, Curt sent me to this website. Greetings to people who know me, my first time at this website. i have climbed with both Gary and Curt, climbed and guided this route, as well as generally been around the cascades during 13 yrs of guiding. I was last at the site 2 1/2 yrs ago with a course.

 

as to the accident, i was on Baker at the time, and i remeber it was exceptionally hot...90+ at the time, which i am sure was a contributing factor. in talking to the Jeff (ranger on site), looking at the accident site (telescope after the accident and binos on several occasions since), visting the site, and talking with Curt, i have come to some of my conclusions. the main one Curt has added. you can gear up for the ice on the rock (yes a slabby somewhat steep descent to the ice), and yes you can see the glacier proper from this vantage point on this route. there is an unstable area in the ice in the fall line (my assessment, tho it is definitely true the block that hit Gary and Curt curved climbers left considerably) about 250 vertical feet above. depending on ice conditions you are looking at a short section of steep ice to get onto the glacier proper (some front points or step chopping) and exposure while you climb up and right to get out from underneath. an average party of two this is under 8 minutes.

 

the other main point is since Gary and gear have been released from the mountain, there is not a lot of ice hitting this area directly. i really feel this is just one of those long shot odds things that just happen sometimes (tho climber actions can minimize...)

 

as to the orginal question of route safety, the route is completely sheltered from the main ice cliff of the Hanging Glacier (it is an arete afterall). there are, however, other hazardous parts of this glacier as it has a very steep gradient with substaintial mass (upper section which changes constantly). the issue that caused the accident is easily seen from picture lake (thin bulging section of ice with rock sticking through and multiple fracture lines segmenting the ice) late in the season. my take in observing this area is that it is worse some years than others perhaps on some sort of cycle (4-5 yrs??) depending on snowfall. some years there has been blocks of ice on the surface of the glacier climbers right of the accident site (and highier) you have to cross this zone to do the climb (tho you could down climb about 500 vert and traverse into the NW couloir). on some heavy snow years the rock never shows, tho increasingly such years are scarce; i suspect this area will get worse in coming years unless our temp/snowfall situation changes.

 

i really enjoyed knowing and climbing with Gary. he was a good person, solid climber, ambitious about life along several fronts, calm and competant, and he was warm...i know all too well having an unplanned bivi with him on a summit. i will say seeing his pic online and reliving some of the history tugs at feelings put away in the corner deep inside; life goes foward, but it is good to have memories.

 

more Kudos to Kelly, Galen, Bill, Jeff and all those at the NCNP (both now and in the past). you (public) don't know the resources we have here until you need them. to work with these folks on a rescue is really an amazing experience.

 

blessings,

tom bridge