woland Posted July 22, 2004 Posted July 22, 2004 Hello, I am hoping to do Northeast Buttress of Slesse (via bypass) and any beta would be greatly appreciated. In particular: Do I need Ice Axe and crampons? Is it possible to get water on the route? How long is the approach for people with no cense of direction? Thanks, Alex Quote
dberdinka Posted July 22, 2004 Posted July 22, 2004 Evidently the bridge across the river at the start of the trail is washed out. In Late June it was declared "IMPASSABLE!". Probably could get across one way or another now, just one more thing to think about.... Quote
woland Posted July 22, 2004 Author Posted July 22, 2004 So, has anyone crossed the river after the collapse of the bridge? Quote
Dru Posted July 23, 2004 Posted July 23, 2004 Hello, How long is the approach for people with no sense of direction?  up to 3 days Quote
North_Cascades_Mtn_Guides Posted July 23, 2004 Posted July 23, 2004 A friend and I just climbed Slesse yesterday. In response to your questions, you can get by without an ice axe and crampons, esp if you try and avoid any snow on the pocket glacier (doable on slabs, but a bit sketch). We just had a ski pole each and minimized our time on the snow. There is plenty of water on the slabs below the route and a big snowpatch at mid height (bivy site). No water on the South (Slesse creek) side of the peak. I would say 4-7 hours to the base of the route depending on your packs and fitness. The bridge is washed out at the start of the trail, though there is a log nearby that you can cross. The road is impassable about 1 mile from the trailhead. The trail is extremely overgrown, but not too difficult to follow. Best of luck. Larry Goldie Quote
Spliffy Posted July 23, 2004 Posted July 23, 2004 The best part of the water-free descent is that you can HEAR water the entire way down through the woods, you just can't GET to it. It's quite maddening. There is a slime-covered wall on the logging road, though, for the daring. I took a suck... Quote
Karl_Manzer Posted July 26, 2004 Posted July 26, 2004 Brock and I climbed the NE Buttress on Saturday the 24th and we brought axes and left them on the pack the whole day. We also didn't find any water on the route (some snow at the 4th class section) or the decent. Both the Slesse and bypass glaciers are pretty much gone and it is possible to avoid walking under very much ice if you cross into the bypass glacier via the upper notch in the wooded spur (coming from the propeller monument). Great route! Good luck. Karl Quote
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