Liberty Ridge Route Photo 6-17-15

[Danager]

 

Here was the route from our high camp on curtis, decided not to commit after watching perpetual rock and ice fall on and around the route all afternoon and into the night.

[Buckaroo]

Thanks for posting.

 

Liberty ridge is normally an early season climb. That looks like Sept in a normal year. This year was good for late winter ice climbs but it looks like Liberty Ridge got shorted.

 

The climbing rangers should put up a sign at registration that this thing is out of condition.

[Rookie675]

Anyone else have current trip report information? is it worth attempting or is it completely out of season / unsafe?

 

Any idea where people are camping? I read in previous post that below Thumbrock was bad due to rock fall?

 

Thanks!

 

[Danager]

We planned on doing a push from curtis Rookie due to the rockfall falling off the thumb rock feature.

[Rookie675]

We are thinking about driving out this weekend and doing the same. But im wonder if the conditions are too crappy? has any other parties summit via the Liberty Ridge route?

[Bronco]

It looks out to me due to more frequent rockfall as the snow and ice continue to melt out. With the hot temperatures forecast for this weekend, it'll only get worse. I climbed it in 2003 during a hot spell in early June and experience several close calls with rocks zinging down the ridge despite it being a "normal" snow year.

 

Personally, I'd wait for next May/June. Typically this route is best done immediately after the White River Trailhead is opened for the season. I believe it's been open since April. Is there any current info on the Mt. Rainier Climbing Ranger blog?

[Rookie675]

I checked the Blog but the last update was from June 19 (which were only aerial photos).. The prior update was from May 29th... I would have to assume the conditions a month away are completely different. Especially how warm it has been.

 

 

http://mountrainierconditions.blogspot.com/2015/03/liberty-ridge-2015.html

 

[jared_j]

Ran into a team of two successfully coming off of Liberty Ridge Sunday 6/21 heading to the summit as we were coming down (having done the Emmons ourselves). So someone did it as recently as two days ago.

[Michael Scott]

We climbed Liberty Ridge on 6/14 in stellar conditions. Since Thumb Rock camp was obliterated, we pushed from the Curtis Ridge Camp. The Carbon was challenging but manageable in the dark. There was no bootpack on the Carbon. The climb to Black Pyramid was firm snow and it was essentially water ice at Black Pyramid and another section above. There was a terrifying Serac hanging above the route from the Bergshrund that you could not see until 30 feet away. Bergrshrund was either an overhanging AI section or a vertical ice reach around corner. We gave it the reach around but parties had gone both ways. I had never done the route before but I can't imagine better conditions. Go Light. Get some.

[Buckaroo]

Ran into a team of two successfully coming off of Liberty Ridge Sunday 6/21 heading to the summit as we were coming down (having done the Emmons ourselves). So someone did it as recently as two days ago.

 

Climbing successfully and climbing safely don't always go hand in hand. If it's warm and the sun is shining and in these low snow conditions, this is dangerous. As long as you realize that going in...

 

The other 50 classic climbs in the state (and Slesse) are in primo condition.

[Buckaroo]

We climbed Liberty Ridge on 6/14 in stellar conditions. Since Thumb Rock camp was obliterated, we pushed from the Curtis Ridge Camp. The Carbon was challenging but manageable in the dark. There was no bootpack on the Carbon. The climb to Black Pyramid was firm snow and it was essentially water ice at Black Pyramid and another section above. There was a terrifying Serac hanging above the route from the Bergshrund that you could not see until 30 feet away. Bergrshrund was either an overhanging AI section or a vertical ice reach around corner. We gave it the reach around but parties had gone both ways. I had never done the route before but I can't imagine better conditions. Go Light. Get some.

 

did you experience any rock or ice fall?

 

What was the freezing level when you did it? That's what is probably the main criteria. Right now we are heading into a warm spell with lows on the summit to be above freezing by the weekend.

[Michael Scott]

The freezing level had been high (around 14-15K) when we arrived. I believe on our summit day it came down to 11K or so. There was some limited ice and rock fall, but nothing unexpected. The kind that we could hear/see and if it was near (it wasn't) we could have dodged it. There was a massive avalanche on the Willis Wall that covered the top half of the Carbon. We were on top of the Black Pyramid ice a little after 10am and conditions were still pretty firm. Looks like things are warming up though.