Trip Report
Black Peak, Dec. 7
Rick Rogers, Don Slack, George Reeves, Brad Monrad, Dave Walker, Shawn Taipale
(As told by Rick Rogers)
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We ended up going to Black Peak instead of J-berg, I'm not 100% sure, why, partners' preferences I guess. We reached the trailhead at noon and it took us a good four hours to camp below Wing Lake, at which time it was nearly dark by the time we got the tents set up. The approach into camp was maddeningly unpredictable thigh to waist-deep post-holing through a talus field. Two of 12 knees in camp were painful Saturday night.
After camp was established we partied and celebrated the lack of estrogen in camp with manly discussions about climbing gear, shooting animals, best brands of whiskey and beer, among other things.
The NE ridge didn't look to be in too good of shape from camp, with more snow on it than we hoped. After a late start out of camp we made our way past Wing Lake, Don pointed out that if only two of us went up the NE ridge that it would be much faster. Also we were carrying a rope and alpine rack weren't we? So we went, Don and me. We were at the base of the route at 10:45 and climbing by 11. Don started on lead, with the first bit being simul-climbing. Then we swung leads.
The leads on most of them were very short because of monster rope drag, not as much of an issue during summer, but a pain when there is snow on the climb. Climbing wasn't fast or fluid. Most of it was protectable, sorta, so we kept on going up.
The ridge gets real narrow, varies from about two to 12 feet wide the entire way up, with great views down both sides left down to Wing Lake and right down 2500' feet to a glacier. It was a clear day so we could see Logan and the heart of the Cascades and west.
We were about halfway up the ridge when we saw the other guys up on the summit. They had sensibly gone up the standard South route. don gave them a rebel yell and I, as it happened to be leading at that moment, just gave them my customary, sharp-end greeting of Oh God, Oh God, Oh God.
Don is a medical person, an ER doc and mountain rescue guy. This gives him a unique perspective to his climbing attitude in regards to risk assessment. Don assesses the risk at the chance of having an incident occur, where extraction, recovery and rehab would prove difficult. Not being an emergency-rescue-medical type myself, I think, Forget that, I don't want to get hurt! This subtle difference put Don on the sharp end of the rope in some of the more, let us just say, interesting pitches. Though I'm not sure I wouldn't just as soon want to be leading those ugly pitches myself anyway.
When leading, I'm very focused and workmanlike. Belaying a pitch while scrunched into a powder-infected alcove with a knee on an ice patch for what seems like hours while the rope goes out 'doink', 'doink' one bloody microscopic portion of an inch at a time gives me lots of time to think, and kind of usually pisses me off.
That day I was mostly disgruntled about decorative nite lites. I knew that if we enjoyed some sort of unsurvivable incident, there would be a memorial service and everybody would reminisce about Rick and Don. And everybody would think, Man that Rick was a dork. And why? Because people keep giving me and Beth these frigin' decorative nite lites, like we're scared of the dark. All of the time, Christmas, Easter, birthdays, just rip off the paper and what is it? Oh it's another friggin' nite lite. Let me find a place to stick it. How about that socket over there next to the other one? Yeah, the upside-down one. they're all upside down. Why? Because I rewired the house by myself, saved a bundle by not hiring an electrician, and installed all of the 110-volt outlets upside down. Man those nite lites were really pissing me off.
Well about then, we could start using the nite lites. We reached the summit pyramid at 5:15 p.m., a long time to do eight pitches. Got back to the tent at 7:30 p.m. and decided to wait until Monday to head out.