TR: Torment-ed

[Alex]

With a seemingly good weather forecast and a weekend off, some friends and I set out to try the fabled Torment-Forbidden Traverse, armed with secret beta from a reliable source who had ticked it the summer before.

 

We set off at dawn from Cascade Pass and motored up into Boston Basin. While there were a number of cars in the parking lot, we didnt see anyone else anywhere in Boston Basin, pretty wierd. We made steady progress to the edge of the Taboo Glacier, where we took a break and tanked up on glacial meltwater. The day was already heating up, but a nice breeze came off the glacier and made things pleasant.

 

Reading the beta, we traversed over to the col into Torment Basin and then up a long and strenuous snowslope to the notch on the S Ridge of Torment, where the route would begin. So far so good.

 

I lead the first pitch, which stated off with hard moves off the belay, to some more moves with no pro 100 ft up, to some final loose blocks before a belay. The second pitch was hard moves off the belay, to 4th and low 5th to a nice belay at a grey wall with quartz intrusions. Awesome exposure here, with the climb traversing up above the sheer SW face of Torment. The third pitch traverses a little, and climbs up a short gully to a steep wall with airy moves (mid 5th) to another belay. The afternoon was dragging on, and it was brutally hot, but huge thunderheads were building to the South. I lead another pitch of 4th to yet another rap/belay station slung with old slings. Thunder rolled in the distance as I set up the anchor and the two seconds came up.

 

As the next pitch was getting worked out, the skies opened and it started to drizzle, at first. Huge fat raindrops. Then some thunder in the distance. As the leader retraced back to the belay, rain turned to hard hail. I hadnt put on a jacket yet, but did now. The air temperature plummetted 30 degrees. Looking towards Joburg and Spider, it was a nice solid black cloud, with lighting arcing through the sky and hitting Joburg.

 

The steady hail only got harder, and we huddled on our packs, with a bivy bag draped over us for protection. We were getting soaked...not everyone had brought rainproof jackets, or bivy bags for the night. We sat for 2+ hours in the hail and rain and lighting, while the storm rolled over Cascade Pass. The closest strike was 1/4 mile, but we watched Joburg repeatedly get struck over and over.

 

When the storms passed, we were all too cold and wet to want to immediately get moving. But we tried. The rock dried quickly, since it had been baked all day in the sun. We got up, and in less than a minute were all shivering uncontrollably. So we got back under the bivy and brewed hot drinks.

 

A while later, it was 7 oclock and we really needed to get the show in the road. We made it to the next notch on the ridge in 2 leads of 4th, which we could have easily soloed but just didnt know. We were hoping to find a nice bivy at the notch, and expected easy low angle climbing on the SE Face over to the start of the Traverse, but neither of these things were true. No big bivy, no easy climbing.

 

A short downclimb led to the grassy dike that traverses the face to the start of Torment Forbidden Traverse, and in the waning light we went down and hoped for the best: nice bivy ledge somewhere. Instead, we found sloping ledges and terrain, with not only no bivy ledges, but no place to put an anchor. So we left a rope on a rappel horn 80 ft up, and tied into that.

 

We hung out on butt ledges in our bivy bags, enjoying the cloudless, full-moon night. Despite the uncomfortable sleeping arrangements, we were all having alot of fun, and we all got some sleep. During the night, the mysterious Snaffelhunden visited us!

 

Dawn, and we all decided to bail down the SE Face of Torment. Beckey says "A good route down" . We rappelled into the large central gully, and continued down for a total of 4 full double rope raps to the glacier. The rock on the lower SE Face is similar to Vesper: clean, solid, awesome stuff. The terrain is 4th and low 5th, similar to the S Ridge, but perhaps a little more solid?

 

Getting to the glacier was easy, and we found fresh tracks...someone had been on the SE face or S Ridge that weekend (we had heard shouts earlier on Sat - did they bail during the storm?) Hanging from one one the established rap anchors on the face was a 10.5 mil rope.

 

The cloud cover was now complete, and the Traverse was engulfed. I was glad we retreated!

 

We descended down the Taboo easily unroped, and took a long break before traversing Boston Basin again and down. SE Face of Torment looks like a great route, a bit more than the 3rd and 4th than Beckey suggests maybe, but I will be back!

[Cpt.Caveman]

Tell anyone to fuck off while you were up there

[DPS]

quote:

---

Tell anyone to fuck off while you were up there ?

---

Yes, asnaffel hound. In fact I tried to crush it with a rock, but it was too fast. I left my food bag as a sacrificial offering, but it chewed on my new pack instead.

[Cpt.Caveman]

Bastards are quick, alert and smart. The infamous snaffle will eat anything, including gaurded items and run across your head while you sleep to annoy you. I am sure you already know this by now but the casual reader must beware if they are not educated.

 

Fires are the best ways to kill snaffles. Lure them in with food next to a fire , kick them into the hot coals and watch them burn alive. Bastard snaffles!

 

[ 08-28-2002, 11:40 AM: Message edited by: Cpt.Caveman ]

[allthumbs]

I heard a couple dudes that post here have replaced gerbils with snaffles.

[Cpt.Caveman]

Trask - nobody wants to know what you do with gerbils when you are alone.

[allthumbs]

It ain't me, it's a couple bellevue dudes.

[vegetablebelay]

[allthumbs]

saucy!

[Doug_Hutchinson]

Sorry to bring the subject back to the traverse, but I have an important question. Let just say that I might have a "friend" doing this route soon. Does my friend need to worry about getting a camping permit if my friend will be spending all his camping time on the ridge way above the masses and the police?

[Fence_Sitter]

your main concern will be gettin in...if the rangers see you with overnight shit it may be a problem...do it anyways... jsut be smart...and if they ask..."missa offica! i am a mountie and this is emergency bivy gear!"

[Norman_Clyde]

When I talked to the rangers in July, wondering if I didn't need a permit to bivy on the north side of the Forbidden/Torment ridge, they said that a permit is required for the north side as well, and that they regularly cross over at Sharkfin Col to check on rogue permit-free parties. The ranger was happy to hike up to our bivy at the foot of the glacier beneath Forbidden's W. ridge, when we were a sight higher than most other parties, to make sure we were in compliance. But I doubt they'd be checking the north face of Torment, if you're inclined to dig out a flat spot at the top of the snowfield and bivy there. One spot I could see looked favorable for this in July-- not that that counts for much in September. In general I support the permit system (spray away), but if a party's using blue bags and bivying on snow or rock, what's the harm?

[wotan_of_ballard]

go in via in Torment basin. or get a permit for the forbidden glacier bivy zone. chances are your'll be bivied on the N side of the ridge

[vegetablebelay]

quote:

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Originally posted by Doug Hutchinson:

Sorry to bring the subject back to the traverse, but I have an important question. Let just say that I might have a "friend" doing this route soon. Does my friend need to worry about getting a camping permit if my friend will be spending all his camping time on the ridge way above the masses and the police?

---

Seems to me you're bringing the topic to permits...

[ncascadesranger]

Doug Hutchinson, Wotan, et al:

 

The North Cascades National Park permit that you need for doing the Torment - Forbidden traverse is a Boston Basin permit. Exception would be if you approach through Torment Basin and actually camp in that basin a first night. Most parties though are gonna approach through Boston Basin, climb Torment via S Ridge or Taboo Glacier (SE face), then head E to Forbidden - all on a required Boston Basin permit. The Forbidden zone permit is for ... the Forbidden Glacier. (NW face parties etc). The entire ridgeline is considered in Boston Basin.

 

Some people are under the impression that "bivies" somehow are exempt from the permit requirement... but even camps in high, dramatic places will fall into one of the cross-country zones for permitting purposes. For the most part, the permits are easy to obtain, with only a few being "competitive" such as, yes, Boston Basin on sunny weekends. This has dropped off dramatically though lately, and Doug Hutchinson's friend could likely pick up that Boston Basin permit at the ranger station in Marblemount faster than it took to write out that message of inquiry on how to sneak around it!

 

Call 360-873-4500 x39 for North Cascades National Park permit info 7 days/wk or my x35 directly with questions about the zoning, reasons for permits, outlook for changes, etc.

 

Kelly Bush, Park Ranger

[ivan]

all the cool people bivy sans permit

 

all the cool people use the word "sans" in everday conversation too