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Jake Robinson Member
Joined: 02 Aug 2016 Posts: 521 | TRs | Pics
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Glacier Peak has always been one of my bucket list trips. With a perfect forecast and wildflowers in peak condition, I threw out the idea of doing it in 2 days to Aaron (awilsondc on this website). He quickly agreed and informed me that there's a bivy site on the summit. Well, I guess we're hauling all of our overnight gear up there! There was no way either of us were going to pass up the opportunity to camp on top of Glacier Peak. It was to be the first summit bivy for both of us.
We slept in our cars at the N Fork Sauk trailhead and were hiking by headlamp at 4:20 am Saturday morning. The first 5.5 miles to Mackinaw Shelter were uneventful - I felt great, but I could tell these miles were going to be a slog on the way out.
N Fork Sauk trail Just before Mackinaw Shelter
Soon after the shelter, the trail gains 2500' in a series of switchbacks and rising traverses. We took plenty of breaks and kept the pace easy.
Flowers along the switchbacks
After about 8 miles, we joined the PCT and began hiking south to White Pass. The wildflowers and meadows were spectacular!
Upper N. Fork Sauk trail scenery Along the PCT Aaron and the Monte Cristo Group The Hills Are Alive With awilsondc Approaching White Pass
After White Pass the beautiful meadow scenery continued, with excellent views into the Alpine Lakes area.
We crested a small ridge, dropped and then regained a few hundred feet, and reached the first of several snowy basins. Glacier Peak appeared, still miles off in the distance. We traversed easy snow slopes until reaching a broad flat area with large boulders at the edge of the former White Chuck Glacier. We took an extended break for lunch here, 6 hours after leaving the car.
Views of Glacier from lunch
After lunch we traversed the remainder of the White Chuck, climbed some scree, traversed another small basin, and arrived at Glacier Gap. We topped off our water just before Glacier Gap, the last running water we encountered on the route.
Aaron traverses the White Chuck Final slopes to Glacier Gap
From Glacier Gap, we gained and lost a few hundred feet, and we were finally on the slopes of Glacier Peak! After another short break, we buckled down and began the long slog up towards the summit. The first part of the route follows a climbers' trail up scree, then gains the gentle slopes of the Gerdine Glacier.
Route transfers onto the Gerdine here, then climbs the left side before angling right under Disappointment Peak to the Cool Glacier Kololo Peaks Climbing the Gerdine Near the Cool Glacier
At the top of the Gerdine, the route transfers onto the Cool Glacier. This section contained some broken up ice and a few small cracks below. We took our time here since we weren't roped up, but with careful footing it was a non-issue. We never even took our ice axes off our packs. After this minor obstacle, we climbed the steeper slopes of the Cool to a notch at the top of Disappointment Peak.
Climbing the Cool Summit above A rope team entering the small broken up section at the Cool-Gerdine junction Aaron and the one crevasse we encountered on-route
The last 900' to the summit was a steep hike up loose pumice and snow. We made the summit at 3:30 PM, 11 hours and 10 minutes after leaving the car. The views are some of the best I've seen in the Cascades. Glacier Peak isn't particularly close to anything, but it feels like you can see everything from up there! The view extends from Mount Adams and Mount Rainier all the way up to the Chilliwacks and peaks of British Columbia, with everything in between. Puget Sound was smoggy, but we could see the Olympics pretty well. We also noticed the Diamond Creek fire out in the Pasayten. It didn't look good, but luckily the wind was blowing all the smoke to the east.
Last bit to the summit Slog! Aaron explores the summit area Survey marker Looking down the route with Kololo Peaks, the Stuart range and ALW lie beyond Bonanza and the Diamond Creek fire North Cascades Fire
After signing the register and taking it all in, we established camp. The little bivy site is perfect for a small tent, and we even had liquid water! We spent the next few hours before sunset exploring the broad summit area, scrambling, drinking tea, drinking bourbon, and eating our gourmet dinners. Freeze-dried food tastes amazing after 17 miles and 9000' of elevation gain. I'll let the pictures do the talking here:
The wind kicked up a bit in the evening and blew out all the haze from the Puget Sound. It was so clear that we could see the skyscrapers in downtown Seattle. At around 8PM, the sunset spectacle began. Watching the sunset from the summit of Glacier Peak is one of the most beautiful things I've ever experienced, and will certainly stick with me for the rest of my life. We live in a truly special place. Pictures and words simply cannot do it justice.
After sunset, we hunkered down and tried to get some sleep. We were breaking down camp by 5:30 AM and heading down at 6:40. The wind was pretty strong on the descent to the Cool Glacier, enough that it could knock you off your feet if you didn't brace yourself.
The descent went quickly, and soon we were hiking through the meadows near White Pass. They were just as beautiful on the way out, and made these miles go quickly and painlessly.
Last views of Glacier
The switchbacks and last 5 miles of the N. Fork Sauk trail were a bit of a slog, but we cruised. We got back to the car exactly 8 hours after leaving the summit, tired but still somewhat in awe of the night we spent up there. Of the many amazing trips I've been lucky enough to take this year, this one truly stands out.
North Fork Slog Victory!
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awilsondc Member
Joined: 03 Apr 2016 Posts: 1324 | TRs | Pics
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Truly epic trip. Summit view, camp site, and sunset are all in the running for best ever for me. Here are my photos:
THE ASCENT:
Flower heaven Lovely trail tiger lilly? long shadow Jake working up the trail, Monte Cristo peaks in the back Nearing White Pass Another group works towards the saddle Marmot! They were everywhere! Ahhhh, first views of Glacier Peak Marmot supervising Jake as he ties his boots Jake working his way through White Chuck Glacier basin Ascending Lake 6433 Another group hiking through the White Chuck Glacier Basin Cool Glacier
THE SUMMIT:
Glacier Peak summit and bivy spot Ridges Baker Jake looking out at the Kololo Peaks Bonanza and Jake - he climbed it just a few weeks ago Glacier Peak summit rim panorama Jake marveling at the beauty of the Cascades Shadow fun Copper, Fernow, Seven Fingered Jack, and Maude Jake peepin the views from a rock Jake on a ledge Admiring the golden hour light on the Kololo peaks and Indian Head
THE SHOW:
IT BEGINS!!! Sloan and Co Baker Glacier Peak summit crevasse Cascade alpenglow panorama Glacier Peak's summit at sunset Twin Sisters and Baker Jake on Glacier Peak's summit Jake - probably thinking, damn this is awesome!!! Rainier Three Fingers and Whitehorse Sloan It feels like that red sun ray hits me right in the heart. I love this shot! Glacier Peak's shadow Baker in fading light going... going... gone Glacier Peak sunset panorama Sunset from the summit of Glacier Peak
THE HIKE OUT:
Morning alpenglow on Dissapointment Peak Camp with Glacier Peak's shadow oh, hi there! More marmots Indian Head White Pass
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Hiking_Husky Member
Joined: 07 Nov 2012 Posts: 79 | TRs | Pics
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Hey! Met you guys in the parking lot after our climb (I'm the guy who almost unintentionally stole your pack). Definitely an inspiring report! I camped on top of Baker last summer, and a Glacier Peak bivy is now definitely on my list. Great photos, and what a place to spend an evening!
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Triciaann777 Member
Joined: 13 Jul 2013 Posts: 66 | TRs | Pics Location: Snohomish County Gold Bar wa |
Great shots. Thanks for sharing. Really appreciated the sunset pictures on the Mountain, those are rare especially for those like me who cant get there this yr.
Tricia's Mantra
You were made to move,
Tricia's Mantra
You were made to move,
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BarbE Member
Joined: 28 Jul 2006 Posts: 1153 | TRs | Pics
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BarbE
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Mon Jul 31, 2017 3:59 pm
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Fabulous trip and pictures!
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Distel32 Member
Joined: 03 Jun 2014 Posts: 961 | TRs | Pics Location: Edmonds, WA |
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Distel32
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Mon Jul 31, 2017 4:13 pm
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mbravenboer Member
Joined: 20 Oct 2013 Posts: 1422 | TRs | Pics Location: Seattle |
Great photos and update of the conditions there! Looking forward to the photos by awilsondc.
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Fletcher Member
Joined: 29 Jul 2009 Posts: 1870 | TRs | Pics Location: kirkland |
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Fletcher
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Tue Aug 01, 2017 9:55 pm
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So awesome guys! I want to bivy up there someday!
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Brushbuffalo Member
Joined: 17 Sep 2015 Posts: 1887 | TRs | Pics Location: there earlier, here now, somewhere later... Bellingham in between |
Excellent trip report. Thanks for stirring the memories ( trivia: pic at left is a young BB on Frostbite Ridge en route to one of several GP summit camps)
Jake Robinson wrote: | It was to be the first summit bivy for both of us. |
It becomes habit forming, as you can appreciate. One of the privileges of a hard-earned summit is spending a few hours there instead of a few minutes.
Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
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awilsondc Member
Joined: 03 Apr 2016 Posts: 1324 | TRs | Pics
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Just updated with my photos in the first post. Sorry it took so long, life is busy sometimes! lol
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mbravenboer Member
Joined: 20 Oct 2013 Posts: 1422 | TRs | Pics Location: Seattle |
Great photos awilsondc! Really enjoyed those. Couldn't have been better .
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raising3hikers Member
Joined: 21 Sep 2007 Posts: 2344 | TRs | Pics Location: Edmonds, Wa |
really good stuff guys
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GaliWalker Have camera will use
Joined: 10 Dec 2007 Posts: 4929 | TRs | Pics Location: Pittsburgh |
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GaliWalker
Have camera will use
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Thu Aug 03, 2017 8:31 am
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mbravenboer wrote: | Great photos awilsondc! |
Yeah! My favorite was "Admiring the golden hour light on the Kololo peaks and Indian Head".
And yes, that's a "tiger lily" (or a Turk's Cap Lily) in your third photo.
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Jackal Member
Joined: 21 Jul 2012 Posts: 102 | TRs | Pics Location: Mazama |
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Jackal
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Thu Aug 03, 2017 10:02 pm
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Fantastic photos - successful climb vs magical moments is not being in a hurry. Smart decision to savor the summit.
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contour5 Member
Joined: 16 Jul 2003 Posts: 2963 | TRs | Pics
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contour5
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Fri Aug 04, 2017 8:10 pm
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Excellent TR and photos. I'm super jelly, having just chickened out for the third time...
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