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SKAGIT ALPINE August, 2002 Newsletter of the Skagit Alpine Club Volume 40, Issue 8 SECRETARY'S REPORT: (from Allen Grenz on the SAC website) On July 11th at Bowmans Bay the SAC picnic took place. The food and company was wonderful and fun. Everybody had a wide variety of food to choose from and got plenty to eat. Good group of people enjoyed playing badmitten. Others had fun with their dogs out at the beach... One of the dogs decided to have fun and tear down the badmitten net. If you didn't attend, definitely plan on coming next year! Check out the photos on www.skagitalpineclub.com Have you seen the new website? www.skagitalpineclub.com Please send any photos, links, or stories to: ryan@neffis.com OR mail them to Allen Grenz / OASYS, Inc. 1320 Riverside Drive, St. E, Mt. Vernon, 98273 NEXT MEETING: August 1 at 7 pm We'll be meeting at the 911 Center 2911 E. College Way, Mount Vernon (East of the College) Forest Fire Lookout Association's 10th Annual Western Conference CELEBRATING 100 YEARS OF LOOKOUTS: 1902-2002 When? Friday-Sunday September 6-8 Where? the Winthrop Barn, Winthrop, WA A full 3-day agenda packed with events. VIP tour at the world's birthplace of smokejumping. Interesting exhibits and displays. Saturday evening catered special ribs and chicken BBQ with entertainment. Lots of evening campfire time for networking, sharing LO stories, pictures, and treasures. Sunday tours to many of he area's 20 lookouts. Seminars and Forums on A New Century for Lookouts include: Rehab Funding Methods Vandalism Control Lookout Restoration Successes Health and Safety Concerns Preserving Lookout History Passport-In-Time projects Material Sources Workshops on: Paint, Glass, Roof, and Lightning Protection and more by the nation's leading lookout historians and restoration experts. Register Early! If you want the BBQ dinner, reservations must be made by August 6th. Send registration fee ($12) and Saturday BBQ reservations ($23) to: FFLA, 123 W Westview, Spokane, WA 99218 All who register by August 6 will be promptly sent a confirmation packet, complete with local interest information, accommodations, and up-to-date conference details. Call 509-466-9171 or email rkresek@webtv.net for further information UPCOMING OUTINGS: RUTH'S LAST PRE-MOM HIKE!!! August 10 - Anderson Mountain 2.9 mi RT, 364 eg. Not to get this confused with Anderson Butte, Anderson Mtn. is a short, easy, and get back in the groove hike. Located near the town of Alger, this hike is through mossy trees with the reward of views to the north, east, and south which include Mt. Baker and the Twin Sisters Range. This will be my last hike for the year before maternity leave and is dependent on how I'm feeling. 8 am meeting time. Call Ruth at 360-428-6813 or rib@cascadeisp.net if interested. Late Sept. or Columbus Day - Baker via Coleman - Naked ice (the ice, not you) glacier climb, Coleman rt Baker 3 days sometime late Sept or Columbus Day weekend, depending on ice and weather conditions. Climbing on hard ice when conventional ice ax arrest is impossible. Will practice picket and screw placements, advanced footwork and protection techniques. Pre -reqs of 2 previous Cascade volcano summits and/or trip leader invitation. Who's invitation? That would be Rick Rogers, 856-4517 or ricknbeth@valleyint.com August 3-10 : PCT Trail Work Week This is one of 21 work weeks organized by the Washington Trails Association this year. Their work site on the will be halfway between Stevens and Snoqualmie Pass, one of the most popular stretches of the Pacific Crest Trail in Washington. Join them for a week of fun (Saturday-Saturday) and hard work. They still have a few openings. Join them for a week of very rewarding trail work on the beautiful Pacific Crest Trail. A $75 fee pays for all the food you can eat, all the work you can handle and all the fun you can stand. You can check out the web site at www.wta.org or call Tom Winn for more info at 360-466-3706. On the website, you find a listing of all their work parties all over the state. August 3 + 4 : WTA Trail Maintenence on the Hidden Lakes Trail You can come for one or both days. WTA provide food, tools, and fun. Hwy 20 (North Cascades Highway) near Marblemount. A great construction project in a fabulous setting. Check out the web site at www.wta.org or call Tom Winn for more info at 360-466-3706. You must register before showing up. August 18 + 19 + 23 + 31: WTA Trail Maintenence on the Blue Lake / Dock Butte Trail Hwy 20 near Baker Lake. If you get tired of working, you can take a swim in the lake. Ouch!! You can come for one or all days. WTA provide food, tools, and fun. Check out the web site at www.wta.org or call Tom Winn for more info at 360-466-3706. You must register before showing up. TRIP REPORTS: Mt Adams, Adams Glacier Route July 3-6, 2002 GUITY PARTY: Rick Rogers, Angie Vandenhaak, and Brian Heinrich By: Brian Heinrich Our trip began the day before the 4th of July with the much-anticipated drive down I-5 to Chehalis and points beyond. As we didn't leave the Rogers compound until about 7pm, we figured we would be sleeping along Highway 12. Our plan was on the money as we tired out somewhere near Riffe Reservoir and found a patch of mostly flat ground just off the highway. While it was late and we were tired, the night proved to be somewhat sleepless as old pick-ups with either no muffler or very loud ones, conveniently drove by about every hour. The added bonus was the conversation between a mama cow and her lost calf. Some discussion was had on whether said cows were drawing out Rogers for a reunion. Onto Independence Day which found us at the Adams-St. Helens diner (or is the St. Helens-Adams diner?) and a gigantic breakfast that would cause me no amount of discomfort later in the trip. We made the gesture of driving by the Ranger Station and were shocked to find that they were indeed open. After dropping $45 on ³volcano permits² and an additional $5 on a mostly useless map we were merrily on our way. Word to the wise: don't ask complicated ³climbing² questions or anything relating to the condition of a ³trail² at the Ranger Station. It seems our friendly Forest Service is mainly concerned with the cutting of the forest, rather than silly recreational opportunities afforded withinand yet, I digress The weather gods treated us to rain just as we hit the trailhead. In a moment of snap decision making we headed unimpeded onto the restricted Yakima Reservation and Eastern Washington to feel the warmth of the sun and to pack up. After a short hour-long visit we were encouraged to leave the reservation by the clearing skies and a couple of hunters. Just prior to our departure from the trailhead we were ambushed by three Yakima residents who intended to climb the same route and another rough bunch that was packing beer. We tried in vain to befriend the latter. Having no such luck we hit the trail and were soon passed by the irritatingly cheery Yakimonians who were nothing short of a walking GPS billboard. They could positively move with only the aid of oh-so-many former and current Defense Department satellites. A fantastic campsite was afforded us at about 7100 feet and soon after setting camp the clouds parted from the mountain and we had a front row seat of our objective. The Adams Glacier route is, oddly, a route up the glacier. Roughly 3000ft of sustained 40-50 degree ice/snow with some route finding problems, crevasse avoidance and good times. Up early the next day we made the approach to the foot of the glacier roped up and proceeded to pick our line which already had the Yakimonians scurrying up it in style. Prior to this, I developed some sort of stomach/intestine problem that would cause us to be slow and me to be no more than rope weight for the other two. This became more and more apparent the higher we went and after the first few pitches I was positively worthless. However, it was a sight to behold as Angie kept the rope team together and turned in the most outstanding climbing performance I've ever witnessed and Rick managed to pick a solid line, with or without the incessant Yakimonian presence. We took two ice screws and five pickets and with three on the rope we were able to do running belays the entire time. Actual time on the glacier was 5 _ hours, which put us on top at 2pm. There were several difficult sections that were hard to cross, as the crevasses were gigantic. There was almost no icefall or rockfall from the neighboring cliffs, but we were fortunate to have had a cold night before the climb. We made the descent down the northeast ridge that keeps giving and giving. We were back at camp by 6pma mere 12 hours after we left. We stayed another night at the campsite that afforded great views of St. Helens and Rainier. It's probably worth taking the trip just for the camping, an absolutely beautiful high alpine setting with plenty of water and quality campsites. The Adams Glacier Route is a great trip that is ideal for a group of three with a challenging climb and an ideal setting. TRIUMPH REVISITED - JULY 20, 2002 GUITY PARTY: HAROLD MEAD AND WADE BESSETT By: HAROLD MEAD Long ago, before I did fifth class with a rope, I saw Triumph from Trapper's Peak. It looked so scary. Triumph on the left, the Pickets on the right. Sharp, jagged rock. As my skills grew I kept thinking about Triumph. It seemed attainable, but hard enough to be a prize. Most of the approach is on trail. How hard could it be? A few years ago, Joe Eckerson and myself went for it. A few things went wrong. We bivied at Triumph Col and crossed the glacier early. At the ridge I discovered my rock shoes were not in my pack. I had grabbed the wrong stuff sack. Never use two stuff sacks that are the same color! Then a rock fell on one of the ropes and damaged it. With the intimidating ambience, I was shook. With extra socks packed in behind my heels, I led upwards in boots. It took longer than I thought. It wasn't difficult, but it was exposed. Being shook, and the lack of many small refinements in technique cost time. We climbed for most of the day. The exposure was thrilling. The ridge at times was very narrow. On both sides there were smooth slabs of polished rock at the base of the ridge. The glaciers had been busy. After lots of low fifth class climbing, and a few thrilling moves, we arrived at a notch, high on the ridge. The shadows were growing long, and the routefinding uncertain. We were close to the summit, but it was an epic in the making. We turned back, descended rapidly, and made for home. I had left my shoes at the col. Joe had no spare batteries for his headlamp. Several mistakes had added up to failure. Wade also wanted to do Triumph. Since the weather was clear we went for it on this past Saturday, July 20th. This was a stronger party with myself being the weak link. Hopefully the sum of all the skills and experience we had together would be up to the task. On Saturday, about 1:00 p.m., we passed a party descending at the creek between the lower and middle lakes. They had left camp at the lower lake at 6:00 a.m. They had done the northeast ridge and were going home. Their fast time gave us false hope. Later we realized that they must have third classed almost the entire route. On this attempt, we bivied on a large rock formation a little north of the col. It was very pleasant. But sitting there all afternoon, looking at the intimidating landscape, had a way of undermining our resolve. In hindsight, I would bivy one pitch up the ridge where there is room for two. Of course, you would really get spooked then. In our confidence we didn't leave camp till 6:30 a.m. We planned on moving fast and sending this route. However, the terrain and surroundings had a way of making you be cautious, and move slowly. Wade led the hard stuff and he sewed it up. I was glad he did, I was feeling it. Halfway up the ridge, we were in the groove and simulclimbed a couple of pitches. Then it got harder. It is worth noting, that where Becky and Nelson say to traverse the exposed south side of the gendarme, we did something different. Wade led straight up and over. It wasn't even very run out. At the crux of the route, Wade went differently than I had before. Becky says to lieback the offwidth crack. I had traversed to the right and ascended broken slabby stuff. Wade went to the left, and up the arete. It protected okay. It was definitely the crux, with thin loose flakes. This brought us to the dark, scary notch where I had turned back before. The shadows were getting long again. It was looking like we might not summit after all. Nelson says that after dropping into the gulley that going left was easier. Of course we went right. Our route went up the first gulley to the right, low to mid fifth class. Two pitches from the notch we arrived at third class scrambling and left the gear. A short scramble and we were on top. The views just get better. It was 3:00 p.m. This was an "easy" climb, only 5.6 or 5.7. It is a long ridge. The intimidation factor, and the lack of willingness to run it out, made it take a long time. We did lots of double rope rappels on the way down. We were able to look down on the route that goes left out of the notch. It is sustained, steep scrambling (45 degrees). Definitely fourth or fifth class. It took a long time to go down. We reached the base of the route around 6:30 p.m. There is quite a bit of elevation gain on the way out. We reached the car at 11:58 p.m. I was home at 2:30 a.m. and at work at 7:30 a.m. The route is do-able and technically moderate. There are parts where the rock is excellent. On some parts the rock is mediocre. Intimidation is definitley a factor for normal people. This route requires a well rounded package of skills. At this point, I am glad I did it, and glad I don't have to go back. Of course, I'll probably forget how scary and hard it was and want to do something even worse. Especially if Wade gives me a call. Harold Skagit Alpine Club Membership Form $15 / year Name Address City State Zip Phone I would like to receive the newsletter by ___ mail ____Email _____both Mail to : Skagit Alpine Club, Kathleen Grimbly - Treasurer 4658 Blank Rd, Sedro-Wooley, WA 98 The Skagit Alpine is the monthly newsletter of the Skagit Alpine Club. Opinions expressed are not necessarily those of SAC. All contributions are welcome, however modest. Please mail your stories, advice, drawings, jokes, photos and announcements to Skagit Alpine c/o Leigh Agler 4324 Ginnett Rd, Anacortes, WA 98221, or email to lagler@fidalgo.net. |
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