Forum Index > Trip Reports > Tieton Peak + Gilbert Peak, day hike - 9/9/2015
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Gimpilator
infinity/21M



Joined: 12 Oct 2006
Posts: 1684 | TRs | Pics
Location: Edmonds, WA
Gimpilator
infinity/21M
PostThu Sep 10, 2015 1:58 pm 
Michael and I hit the trail at 5:15am. We knew it was going to be a long day. We hiked up to Suprise Lake and I spotted a crawfish in the lake while I was fetching a liter. We left the trail at 5400 feet above Surprise Lake and hiked up to the main ridge crest / Klickton Divide. Followed goat trails on the ridge, we reached the Meade Glacier. Michael walked on the top of the glacier just for the fun of it. We both realized it's days are numbered.
first view of Gilbert
first view of Gilbert
Surprise Lake
Surprise Lake
fetching water
fetching water
fall colors
fall colors
Tieton south face
Tieton south face
Adams
Adams
Michael on the Meade Glacier
Michael on the Meade Glacier
Michael below the first scramble step
Michael below the first scramble step
main divide
main divide
just below the summit
just below the summit
There were two short steps of class 3 below the summit of Gilbert. Wow, nice views! This cleared up a failed attempt for me because I once tried the “7000 Foot Traverse” route from Big Horn with Redwic and Greg Slayden. Also it's number 75/100 for me on the Smoot List. smile.gif
Tieton and Conrad Glacier
Tieton and Conrad Glacier
Tieton
Tieton
Rainier
Rainier
Conrad Glacier
Conrad Glacier
Gilbert summit
Gilbert summit
We descended to Warm Lake where Michael took a swim. Not living up to it's name, it was cold! I went to fetch some more water and noticed a dead rat on the lake-shore. Yuck! frown.gif
Warm Lake
Warm Lake
Michael swimming
Michael swimming
Seeing as there was plenty of daylight left we decided to give Tieton Peak a try. It's the 4th highest in the Goat Rocks with over 400 feet of prominence. We followed a creek drainage north past several pretty waterfalls until we intersected a trail. The trail took us northwest to Conrad Creek. We crossed the creek and climbed from some meadows up to a bowl at 6700 feet on the south face of Tieton Peak.
Tieton south face above
Tieton south face above
this view of the southwest ridge intimidated us
this view of the southwest ridge intimidated us
Gilbert north face
Gilbert north face
in the bowl
in the bowl
I've looked a Tieton from a number of summits in the Goat Rocks and it has a gentle sloped appearance with a reddish gradient color scheme, which I interpreted to mean that it's a loose rotten choss pile. Sure enough. Plenty of loose scree, sand, and talus to make footing tricky and annoying. Anyhow, we eventually reached the southwest ridge below the false summit.
loose slopes
loose slopes
summit and false summit above
summit and false summit above
Michael coming up
Michael coming up
Tieton summit seen from false summit
Tieton summit seen from false summit
loose ridge
loose ridge
Following the ridge up, it became increasingly rotten and exposed. From the valley bottom we had our doubts if the route would go because it appeared to be blocked by one or more cliff bands. But from the false summit we could see there were multiple loose possibilities. Dropping down from the false summit was knifey and a bit sketchy, but getting up to the actual summit block was even more serious. There was one large cliff band guarded by a prow, but we worked around it on the left.
in the saddle with false summit behind
in the saddle with false summit behind
cliffs and prow above
cliffs and prow above
Michael working the ridge
Michael working the ridge
summit view
summit view
Tieton summit
Tieton summit
panorama
panorama
Adams and Gilbert
Adams and Gilbert
Goat Citadel and Big Horn east faces
Goat Citadel and Big Horn east faces
We scrambled up very loose class 3 and crossed more than one knife-edge section of ridge. On the summit we had a spectacular views of the main crest of the Goat Rocks. No register was present. We decided to descend the east ridge to get back to Conrad Creek and this turned out to be a great choice. Much safer with no real exposure, although still loose. I found an awesome quartz crystal along the way.
looking back up the east ridge
looking back up the east ridge
Michael descending
Michael descending
quartz
quartz
creek crossing
creek crossing
During the hike back to the car we encountered two large toads in the trail and I accidentally kicked one, but thankfully didn't step on him, and he appeared unfazed. We got back at 9:40pm for a round-trip time of 16.5 hours. I estimate that we did 26 miles and 6500 feet of gain but it could be slightly more.
route map
route map

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RichP
Member
Member


Joined: 13 Jul 2006
Posts: 5628 | TRs | Pics
Location: here
RichP
Member
PostThu Sep 10, 2015 2:49 pm 
Awesomely clear skies. Big day fellas. up.gif

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Redwic
Unlisted Free Agent



Joined: 23 Feb 2009
Posts: 3292 | TRs | Pics
Location: Going to the Prom(inence)
Redwic
Unlisted Free Agent
PostThu Sep 10, 2015 6:02 pm 
That's a great trip, guys! Congratulations! up.gif up.gif up.gif

60 pounds lighter but not 60 points brighter.
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Michael Lewis
Taking a nap



Joined: 27 Apr 2009
Posts: 629 | TRs | Pics
Location: Lynnwood, WA (for now)
Michael Lewis
Taking a nap
PostSat Sep 12, 2015 8:48 pm 
Thanks for having me along on this cool trip cool.gif

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