[TR] 22 days in the Olympics - east-west traverse, including Olympus 6/29/2009

[Lisa_D]

Trip: 22 days in the Olympics - east-west traverse, including Olympus

 

Date: 6/29/2009

 

Trip Report:

I spent a month playing mountain guide for a camp called Pemi West (a satellite branch of a large east coast camp in NH). The people were awesome - the best co-workers and "clients" I could have asked for. We had absurdly good weather, with our only truly rainy day being the time we stopped at the Olympic Hot Springs. The food was the best I've ever had on a trip. And it was my first time in the Olympics - my parents and Steph's parents have hiked nearly every trail in this range, and have many fond memories of adventures in the Vahallas and the High Divide. Steph's parents actually met on the Dosewallips trail! So I was excited to see a bit of my parents' favorite mountains.

 

First, we spent 3 days car camping. Doug (mtnmandoug) led us through a day of wilderness 1st aid. We continued to do 1st aid scenarios throughout the trip.

 

Then, we packed food for 22 days in the wilderness. We had two 10-day periods, with a 3 day "luxury" period in the middle.

 

Finally, we hit the trail. The first 10 days went like this: we entered at Gray Wolf and worked our way up Cameron Creek. We emerged from the trees and spent 2 nights at Cameron Basin, where Doug and I taught snow skills. Then, we headed up and over Cameron Pass to Hayden Pass, and then out the Elwha River. We averaged about 5 miles per day, and let the kids take turns being leader of the day. The kids figured out efficient hiking habits and good ways to keep the group together, although they did develop a funny tradition of taking an hour long break 400 meters away from camp! I'm not kidding! At first, it was a bit challenging for me to live so slowly and not have much of a role in the trip - we had 4 staff and 5 kids, and the kids did a lot of the daily leadership stuff. I'd had a crazy year and was stuck in the goal-oriented, go-get-em mentality of climbing. This trip was definitely process-oriented, and I soon adjusted to the different pace of life. It was hard to come back to civilization - I'm actually writing this trip report from the Hilton in downtown Milwaukee. I'm here for a conference, and it all seems so excessive and fancy! Anyway... We got to debrief with each leader of the day in the evening - that was a major highlight of the trip for me. The kids were all so articulate, intelligent, and transparent. It was really cool to be a part of their processes and hear what they were going through and learning.

 

A few pics from the first 10 days. The scenery was gorgeous, and I was so excited for the kids to see it, because they are all from the east coast and had never experienced anything like it.

 

Moonrise over Cameron Basin:

 

Avalanche Liles, which are edible!

 

Most of the crew, descending from the summit of Sentinal Peak (class 2)

 

Then, we came to the Elwha River trail head, where a van awaited to resupply and shuttle us to the Olympic Hot Springs trail head. This was our one day of rain. I came prepared, not knowing what the weather would be on our 22 day trip. Isn't this a great get-up?? It's a small umbrella from Fred Meyer, wedged in my pack strap.

 

 

The 3 day "luxury" period included meals of spaghetti with fresh veggies, smores, stir fry, tacos with guac and chicken, and bagels for breakfast. YUM! The nutrition felt great. We hiked up and over the High Divide.

 

Heart Lake.

 

 

Then, down into the Hoh, where we met a llama train at Lewis Meadow. I desecrated the GoLite philosophy. This baby weighed in at 60 lb, and although it killed my upper back at moments, the pack did well and didn't have any breaks or rips on the trip. In contrast, Pemi has broken 5 95-Liter Gregory packs in the past year. hmmm..

 

 

 

The final 10 days of the trip, we went up from Lewis Meadows, climbed Olympus, and hiked out the Hoh. Along the way, we saw Leor (off_the_hook) on an 11 hour run of Olympus! Quite the antithesis of our trip

 

A surprise visitor! Jon came in to do a solo trip. He entertained the notion of doing a complete ridge traverse of some peaks near Olympus, but after seeing the horrifying rock, he opted for one scramble summit. The next day, he soloed Olympus while our group climbed it. He found 2 pitches worth of fun 5.6 climbing up the east face (?) and then descended the standard route. Apparently it's highly recommended.

 

 

My favorite camp, where we spent 3 nights: CalTech Moraine, right on the Blue Glacier. My fellow guides, cooking up an amazing dinner!

 

Climb time. Doug and I went into guide mode, dictating wake up time (2 AM?! Yes, really, we mean it!), number of breaks, and summit protocol. I love alpine starts for their thrill and epic feeling - especially after I have coffee. Olympus was one of the most beautiful glacier climbs I've done, and I was so thrilled that we were able to bring the kids here and give them the skills to safely enjoy the climb. They were all solid athletes and climbers - I felt totally comfortable roping up with them.

 

sunrise, with Mt. Baker in the distance:

 

Heading toward Middle Peak, our objective.

 

Doug and I fixed 2 lines on Middle peak and had people prusik up and down one and at a time. All in all, it took 5 hours to get everyone safely up and down. But boy was it worth it! The views were amazing, the summit was rewarding, and the day went perfectly. We were all thrilled! 2 of our kids on the summit:

 

After our climb, we had a rest day where we did some cragging on the moraine. The rock is surprisingly awesome - reminded me of Red Rocks! We found a cliff near the edge of the moraine that was about 35 feet high and had routes that we rated 5.4, 5.6, a slightly overhung mantle/matcing problem that came in at 5.9+ with boots, and a 5.8+ corner with stemming and fingerlocks.

 

Too soon, it was time to leave the beautiful high country. Down goes the Pemi Monster, a terrifying beast with 18 legs, 300 teeth, sharp weapons, consuming pound upon pound of food each day, audible from a mile away, and emitting a cloud of toxic methane gas!

 

We made our way out the Hoh, leisurely. The kids did a 24 hour group solo, then a 24 hour individual solo, where they were taken to their own camp site and left alone to contemplate, rest, and process. Meanwhile, the 4 staff members set ourselves to the task of finishing the food. Doug, Mike, and Jake came up with the mantra that "everything must go." I have to confess, I didn't really pull my weight with the food consumption on this trip. Jake was the champ, though... here he is finishing off his 7-liter portion of chili.

 

We ended our time in the backcountry at 5 mile island with a beautiful campfire. The kids wrote tributes to each of us, and I was bestowed the title of "jacked up the heezy," referring to my well-toned muscles!

 

It was strange to re-enter civilization - we could smell the soap and detergent wafting off dayhikers and incoming climbers.. and could only imagine the horror of our tailwind. My shirt has a permanent stench. The showers we took at the campground and the amazing food we ate after: a slice of heaven!

 

Here's my plug for Pemi-West. If you know any teenagers 16-18 who would be interested in this experience, point them to this trip report, my photos here, or to the Pemi West website. The price tag is high, and you have to supply your own gear, but Pemi-East is very well-funded and gives generous scholarships, including a few full rides, every year. The kids had a lot of fun, and became close friends. They're already planning reunions, and all are equipped to start backpacking on their own.

 

Gear Notes:

we filled up the blue bag depository at the toe of the Blue Glacier. And be warned: the ranger station has these miniature blue bags, appropriate for 4 year olds. One kid used 5 in one sitting..!!!

 

Approach Notes:

hike hike hike!

[mountainmatt]

Wow! Fantastic trip! Definitely makes me want to spend some more days in the Olympics.

[OlympicMtnBoy]

Nice Lisa (and Doug)! I've been wanting to do a traverse like that for a while. You guys sure lucked out on the weather too!

- S

[tazz]

great report and awesome trip! good work.

[zoroastr]

Looks like fun, but 22 days without television? Brutal!

[Lisa_D]

Looks like fun, but 22 days without television? Brutal!

 

It was tough, but I managed. But I did get to live vicariously through the kids, as they had many fierce debates about the latest iPods and MP3 players. When we emerged from the backcountry, they were glued to their iPods! They listen to some good music. Being a violinist and an academic, I'm slightly illiterate on pop culture..

[Off_White]

I had a great time talking about that Pemi West gig and the Olympics in general with Doug at the Ski-In this year. He made the case that the Olympics offer one of the best general wilderness experiences you can find in the lower 48, and your great TR confirms it. Thanks for the pics and story.

[olyclimber]

Yours for rent for 2 bucks a night per person +$5! + parking $.

22 x 2 = $44 per person plus parking and $5 = a bargain!

lulz. it is a nice place.

[olyclimber]

anyway, lisa, i worked doing "high adventure" taking kids from seattle in for week long hikes into the olympics for a summer for the boy scouts. definitely one of the coolest jobs possible. tons to learn from both the kids and from just being out there.

 

you're lucky to have found such a gig.