EARLY MARCH MODERATES

[TERRAPIN]

Hey so my good friend is coming out to Bellingham second week in March and were wondering what some good late winter peaks were worth checking out within a couple hours from Bellingham. I was thinking the west ridge of the North Twin; any other sugestions? We are looking for awesome routes of moderate difficulty. Hey what's Baker or Shuksun like in March? Recomendations?

[Cpt.Caveman]

I think Baker or Shuksan can be certainly done in March. You just have to see how the snowpack and weather pan out before you arrive

[nobody]

Usually getting into the trailhead is the problem with spring climbs of Baker & Shuksan. Unless of course you want to hump that pack up the road?

Good Luck

[DPS]

Terrapin,

Your main consideration will be what peaks are accessible at that time of year. Certainly W Ridge of N Twin is a good choice and can be very good in the winter. Baker and Shuksan will require a longer approach than is typical in summer. A ski ascent of the Sulphide glacier on Shuksan would be a fine objective with probable lower avalanche danger than other routes on the mountain.

Other areas with good winter climbs include the Snoqualmie Pass region (Chair, Red Mtn, the Tooth)and the Tatoosh Range (Pinnacle Peak, Plummer Peak, etc).

Bear in mind that the Cascades typically recieve a lot of snowfall in March and avalanche danger can be considerable. The weather can be downright miserable. Be prepared to drive a ways if you really want to climb. Rock climbing at Vantage or Smith Rocks are usually good rain day alternatives.

[mattp]

No disrespect to Nobody, but if you want to climb a real North Cascade peak, with multiple glaciers on it, Baker and Shuksan are the easiest peaks to reach in March. On Baker, the road up Glacier Creek to the Coleman Glacier route is often open pretty far up by then, and the snowmobile launch point on the road up from Baker Lake is not too far from the bottom of the Sulphide (if you don't want to share the climb with those motor heads, don't go this way). For Shuksan, the approach to the White Salmon Glacier from the ski area is very short (though both the approach and the route itself can be extremely dangerous and the route takes you through so many different elevation zones and aspects that there will almost certainly be something unstable somewhere along the way). As DPS noted, the Sulphide is generally a safer route, and in March the road toward the Sulphide is often open to within 4 or 5 miles of the Summer trailhead.

You noted North Twin, and this would be a good choice but snowpack and/or gated roads may be an issue. Another reasonable choice might be Whitehorse via the Snow Gulch route. It is a 6,000 or 7,000 foot climb in terrain that frequently sees very large avalanches, but in the right conditions it can be fun.

[mattp]

Philfort reported that the road was blocked at about mile 5 or so just two weeks ago. Unless the situation changes, that would make for a very long ski in the Cascade River road to get anywhere near Boston Basin-Eldorado-Sahale. Snowking might be a little less distance, but I would think the effort necessary to get there would render it something more than a "moderate" even if technically it were relatively easy.

[Cpt.Caveman]

Lameboner sux. Jon you can suck it too for erasing good shit because he instigated the shit. Talk shit about people wearing gear in restaraunts etc then direct bs at me. Fuck your faggety ass Lamebone moderator. I will moderate his face into the fucking ground

[vegetablebelay]

[allthumbs]

[Alpine_Tom]

The trailhead for Fischer Chimneys on Shuksan is basically the ski area parking lot, so access isn't much of a problem.The road to the Sulphide glacier trailhead will probably be blocked with snow and fallen trees.Nelson (vol 1) recommends Ruby Mtn in winter, but I've never done it.Hood and Rainier aren't close to you, but they've got about the easiest trailhead access in winter.Snow Gulch on Whitehorse is good in winter, I've done it. And, of course, plenty of routes in Snoqualmie - Granite Mtn, Snoqualmie, Red, Guy, Silver,

[ 02-22-2002: Message edited by: Alpine Tom ]

[dberdinka]

So Cpt. I here you're a nice guy. But in the middle of a completely mellow, maybe boring, information based thread you unleash with this syphilictic rant against people who haven't even posted in it. Excuse my ignorance, but what in the hell are you talking about?

[ScottP]

quote:

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Originally posted by dberdinka:

So Cpt. I here you're a nice guy. But in the middle of a completely mellow, maybe boring, information based thread you unleash with this syphilictic rant against people who haven't even posted in it. Excuse my ignorance, but what in the hell are you talking about?

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I think it was a tantrum. They tend to not have a particular direction.

[Mike]

You might be able to get part way up Cascade River Road and do something in Boston Basin - Eldorado, Sahale, Snowking, something. Probably be fun with skis. Keep a close eye on avalanche conditions.

[genepires]

Check out ruth mountain for march. It might involve a bit of skiing to get to the trailhead but it is very flat. Ruth definately has good views of shuksan.

[allison]

I have NO IDEA what the following post might be referring to.

[ 02-22-2002: Message edited by: allison ]

[MysticNacho]

Oooh Allison, them be fightin' words. I have to agree with you 100% though, after all its just a website. I can't imagine what all the fuss is about unless Lambone did something personal to Caveman in real life, not just this fake ol' website. I'm tired of all this tom-foolery and ballyhoo.

[Biff]

A mellow, short-approach alternative might be Mt. Washington, in the Olympics. Nice, steep snow routes on a S. facing slope. Even mellower is Ellinor, next to it, with great views, to boot. Definately not in the same league as Baker, Shuksan or Ruth as far as alpine goals, but fun for the whole family. And Cpl. Caveman gets to get back on his lithium.