Mt. Olympus and Glacier Pk.

[chilly]

What are the typical climbing conditions on Olympus and Glacier peak on the standard routes in early September?

[Goat_Boy]

Is this a typical year? They're both pretty much walk ups with long approaches. On Glacier, you could probably expect some snow above Boulder Basin, then rock & pumice up Sitkum ridge to the ice cap. It's a trail, basically.

 

Olympus has some glacier travel and a short summit block, so you'll want to bring a rope and know how to use it. It's quicker to rapp off the tower than down climb. If your party doesn't mind hauling packs up, a nice bivy can be had on Five Fingers ridge, a little rocky plateau just below the summit. It definately beats the buggy camp below the morraine and the evening views are exceptional. There is plenty of room for several people. It'll definately make your trip more memorable. Expect open crevasses and a moat or two, but I'm sure there is a cattle path accross the Blue, up the snow dome, and on up to the top. Weather is the biggest hazard on the standard routes.

 

Good luck and have fun.

[fleblebleb]

I was there 10 days ago and typical year or not, Goat Boy's Glacier Peak description is pretty much right on the money.

 

In good weather the climb is more like an easy hike. By the time we descended, after hanging out on the summit in sunshine and no wind for a good long while, the snow had softened up to the point where crampons were quite unnecessary. The freezing level was at 12000' that weekend.

 

We climbed the Sitkum with a bivi in Boulder Basin, you can stay on snow above that. I liked the area enough to want to go back up there by Frostbite Ridge next year, but only car-to-car and running the approach trails. The bugs are really nasty and the approach quite a slog with plenty of opportunities to get lost after missing a trail fork etc.

 

Olympus... don't know yet but I'll be there in early September

[chilly]

Thanks for the info. I will point that direction early Sept. and hope for good weather.