[TR] Ptarmigan Traverse (on skis, mostly) - north

[timmy_t]

Trip: Ptarmigan Traverse (on skis, mostly) - north to south to north

 

Date: 7/9/2008

 

Trip Report:

My brother and two friends and I skied the Ptarmigan Traverse from July 5-9. We started from the Cascade River Road, went as far as White Rock Lakes, then doubled back to the car, the idea being more turns and less Bachelor Creek, which we fondly remembered bushwhacking up last year. Due to poor weather on day 2 we lost a day sitting around, so we had to scrap our plan to climb Dome Peak from White Rock Lakes, but we still had three perfect sunny days to mess around.

 

Leaving from the gated road at mile 20, with 3 fun miles of road to get to the Cascade Pass trailhead.

 

The road was driveable all the way to the snow patch blocking the last turn below the parking area, but there was debris and water in several places. By the time we hiked out four days later the entire road was clean. Here's Kev on the first dangerous ford.

 

We headed up the soggy, foggy Mixup Arm. The easier way is to go straight ahead where the sign points right to the toilet, but we took the Toilet Route up the arm.

 

A big wall of snow blocked Cache Col so we went climber's left up a dirty gully...

 

to a cold wet camp above the col. We were in the clouds, with wind and rain hammering us all night.

 

Next morning we skied down toward Kool-Aid Lake in 100-ft. visibility. The snow took us to the outflow about 150 feet below the lake, which we hiked up to and said hi to the two AAI climbers (guide and client) who were camped there. The lake was snow-free to the extent of about 10 by 15 feet.

 

Switched to skins and set off in search of the Red Ledge.

 

A steep snow finger led up to the ledge, which we could hardly see despite being directly underneath it. The ledge had sugary snow patches in two spots, making the crossing invigorating. We traversed to within about 300 feet of the Middle Cascade Glacier. We were on route without knowing it but we couldn't see a thing, so we retraced our steps back to a heather patch where we spent the entire day waiting for a break in the weather, eating, napping, and telling sheep jokes...

 

And attending to personal hygiene.

 

The clouds lifted around dinner time, and we spied a nice camp 500 feet below. Had a fun quick ski down to camp where we were finally able to see our way for the next day. Our plan had been to make it to White Rock Lakes this night, then to climb Dome the next day, so we had to scrap the climb.

 

As a way to boost morale Kev and Anthony helped each other with some "stretching exercises." Ahem.

 

Watched a beautiful sunset...

 

and had this view north to Johannesburg's silhouette.

 

By the next morning the clouds had cleared and we could see Formidable's entire bulk. Several icefalls had rumbled down the face the day before, obscured by the clouds.

 

Broke camp early and retraced our steps back along the basin

 

Up the Middle Cascade Glacier

 

past the camp of the two AAI climbers, silhouetted here against the Formidable Glacier

 

traversed across the top of the Middle Cascade Glacier

 

to Spider-Formidable Col and a spectacular view into Flat Creek Basin and across to the Le Conte Glacier and Old Guard/Sentinel Peaks.

 

Anthony skiing down from the col in style

 

Then we began the hot traverse underneath Formidable, across the Flat Creek basin.

 

Lots and lots of soft snow. We only had to take our skis off once to cross a rock band, then we skied down to a couple of hundred feet above Yang Yang Lakes.

 

One lake was mostly snowfree. Found a nice gully to take us up toward Le Conte

 

then took a lunch break at this snowmelt tarn just underneath the mountain.

 

After lunch we skinned up to Le Conte

 

then skied down and around the lowest rock rib

 

where we skinned up again until it got steep. Roped up in a shady patch, mainly because we brought the damn rope and felt the need to justify carrying it. (Also because this is where the most open crevasses lurked last year.)

 

Old Guard and Sentinel and Slackers Taking A Break

 

After climbing up to the Le Conte-Sentinel saddle and posing badly

 

we traversed under Sentinel, crossed a small rock band, then skied down a fun pitch

 

to Lizard Pass and the phenomenal view of Dome Peak.

 

A quick ski down to White Rock Lakes

 

afforded us up-close and personal contact with Actual Nature in its Actual Environs. Like this ptarmigan

 

and this marmot. One of these little guys tried running off with the Megamid in its mouth when we left it out to dry for a few seconds.

 

Peanut butter at camp; Lizard Pass behind. We skied down, then right (skiers left) above the rocks, then all the way down to camp without having to dismount.

 

Explored the lakes a bit. Here's Travis and Spire Point

 

Gunsight, Sinister, and Dome above heather flowers

 

Some asshole [literally?] had taken a shit in camp! (see arrow for fecal location), then covered it and the TP with a rock. No attempt to dig a hole or to move, say, even 20 feet away. You have got to be kidding me. We disposed of it but it still smelled for a couple of hours. Whoever you are, that is some super-classy awesomeness. We'd like to formally thank you.

 

After some salmon cream cheese, meat sticks, and other, less-appealing food, we had a warm night's sleep. Left at 6am, back up to Lizard Pass to retrace our route and get some more turns and views...

 

Crossed the head of the gentle giant South Cascade Glacier, Beatles' Abbey Road-style

 

back up to the Le Conte-Sentinel saddle

 

from which we had a great ski down. Left these signatures.

 

Back across and below Le Conte

 

to the gully down to Yang Yang Lakes, which Anthony is nailing here, as not seen on TV.

 

Then to the unfun, slippery, hot traverse above Flat Creek basin. See Travis' face for details.

 

Back up to Spider-Formidable Col. Three of us climbed, but Travis skinned up the entire thing. Once again the Great Champion.

 

On the way up to the col I glanced back and got this shot of the two AAI climbers on the summit of Le Conte.

 

Locked in for a great ski down the Middle Cascade Glacier

 

to a lunch spot on a rocky bench

 

with an amazing view to the Middle Cascade's icefall, and across to towering Formidable.

 

After lunch we skied down more, then traversed back toward the ledges with this view of Mixup Peak

 

Kev and Hydration and Icefall

 

Snow on the ledges was softer and less trustworthy, so we set a quick belay.

 

Proper belay technique

 

Down the steep snow...

 

Still going down the steep snow...to our camp at Kool-Aid Lake.

 

Being intelligent, we had cached our dinner/breakfast up at Cache Col, then decided against camping up there. I drew the short straw and went up to get it, but for a consolation prize I got the ski run on the way back down. A continuous shot except for one ten-foot rocky gap.

 

While taking this photo of us at camp, Travis noticed an interesting snow feature on Johannesburg, just above and right of my head (me being the middle guy)...

 

A skull and crossbones! Beware! If you are planning on climbing this mountain, consider yourself warned.

 

Another lovely sunset

 

Back up toward Cache Col, under the watchful eye of this mountain goat

 

Then started the ski down underneath Mixup after a fun drop off the skier's-left side of the snow wall at the col.

 

Looking back up at the col, with our up and down spots, plus Free Bonus Skier in center right

 

Skiing down to the Mixup Arm trail

 

to Cascade Pass.

 

From the talus field it looked like the ski down from the pass to the road would go.

 

Since we were sad we didn't get to bushwhack down Bachelor Creek, we made sure to do a bit on the north side of the traverse. Down through a break in the cliffs...

 

Determined not to take off the skis, Kev demonstrates his patented Ass-Spin move

 

while Travis demonstrates how to ski all the way down from Cache Col to the Cascade River Road with one pole (The other one broke on the way up to the col in the morning).

 

As we hadn't summited anything, Kev got his climbing fix by free soloing this Totally Extreme Icefall, complete with skis on his back, up to the road...

 

which was actually the debris from the snowplow clearing the road while we were away.

 

Back down the 3 miles of road...chatting with a member of the road crew, who informed us that the road would be blocked on the way out, at mile 12 (the bridge washout people were concerned with this spring). Interesting. Considering we stopped in at the Ranger Station in Marblemount on day 1, it would have been nice to have heard about this...As it turned out, we only waited for 40 minutes at the bridge. They were drilling a hole to see what it was resting on, and having determined that it was on rock the county is going to repair the bridge (which is driveable now anyway) instead of replacing it.

 

Almost at the car. Notice Anthony's footwear (but try not to notice his pants-wear. See previous closeup crotch shot on day 2). Time to buy new liners?

 

This is what we had been thinking about for the past 4.75 days...

 

The reward. Marblemount Good Food's olive burger.

 

The one group shot, taken by the AAI guide at the Le Conte tarn. Anthony, Kev, the apparently 6' 5" (or levitating) Travis, and Tim.

 

One more thing...

Originally, our friend Kevin LaFleur was supposed to go on this trip with us. Kevin and I had talked this past March about skiing the Ptarmigan Traverse in June, but Kev disappeared on a solo climb of Mt. Baker in April. We were thinking about him during the trip, knowing how much he would have loved it. We miss Kevin a lot, and we took his spirit with us into the mountains. Here are a couple of photos of Kev to honor his memory. We will continue to climb Baker to look for him this summer, and we ask anybody else who is climbing it to keep an eye out for any sign of him, particularly along the Coleman-Deming route (he was last seen on the upper Deming Glacier at the end of April, just before a big snow storm).

 

Kev LaFleur on the Sulphide Glacier

 

Kev jumping in the Baker backcountry

 

Kev in Yosemite

 

Thanks for reading. Thanks to Kev T., Anthony, and Travis for everything else.

 

Gear Notes:

meat sticks

salmon cream cheese

SKIS

 

Approach Notes:

Cascade River Road gated at mile 20; probably open by now?

Edited July 16, 2008 by timmy_t

[Peakpimp]

Awesome TR mate! I MUST do that traverse in the near future!

[mtgurus]

Excellent! We saw you guys heading up the pass as we were heading out from Sahale Traverse. Nice Pic's

 

mtgurus

[akhalteke]

Good old good food. I used to live 6 miles east of there. Nice pics and cool trip guys.

[crazy_t]

Great tr

[Sol]

Nice job guys! So sorry to hear about the loss of your friend, i'm sure you made him proud.

[sparverius]

nice work and sweet pics. The picture of J'berg above the clouds is a great one. I think that the mad campsite crapper should be tarred and feathered and left on top of Dome peak, unless there were extenuating circumstances.

[akhalteke]

nice work and sweet pics. The picture of J'berg above the clouds is a great one. I think that the mad campsite crapper should be tarred and feathered and left on top of Dome peak, unless there were extenuating circumstances.

 

I would love to know what extenuating circumstances those were. Bad venison?

[sparverius]

nice work and sweet pics. The picture of J'berg above the clouds is a great one. I think that the mad campsite crapper should be tarred and feathered and left on top of Dome peak, unless there were extenuating circumstances.

 

I would love to know what extenuating circumstances those were. Bad venison?

 

bad venison or a rabid marmot

[akhalteke]

I have seen some big marmots. Maybe it was actually marmot shit.

[timmy_t]

I have seen some big marmots. Maybe it was actually marmot shit.

If marmots are using toilet paper and picking up rocks to hide their shit, then we have a whole new set of problems on the horizon in the North Cascades...

[Whatcomboy]

Amazing. Thanks for sharing.

[akhalteke]

I have seen some big marmots. Maybe it was actually marmot shit.

If marmots are using toilet paper and picking up rocks to hide their shit, then we have a whole new set of problems on the horizon in the North Cascades...

 

I have some more information equally as frightening but you would have to verify your security clearance level for me to divulge. Be wary in the woods gents.

[Alex]

Fun times. Looks like you carried the skis alot though, which is a bummer. White Rock Lakes is one of the prettiest spots I've found.

 

After lunch we skied down more, then traversed back toward the ledges with this view of Cascade Peak

 

Actually, that's Mixup.

[timmy_t]

Mixup, thanks, duly noted.

 

It wasn't exactly a bummer that we carried skis. Most of the time we were carrying them on snow, because the conditions (steepness, slop-ness) made it easier than skinning. And the downhill parts completely made it worth the weight. I would say it wasn't a bummer, but at the same time it would definitely be better earlier.

[JoshK]

Real men deal with bachelor creek!

 

J/K, i'd avoid that hellish mess at any cost as well. I've done it with skis and know that pain. *Ugh*

[sweatinoutliquor]

Moderator, please move these mountains to Oregon.

 

 

[runningclouds]

Sweet traverse! Some very cool shots. Thanks