Forum Index > Trip Reports > ~* Mount Forgotten 10/27 *~
 Reply to topic
Previous :: Next Topic
Author Message
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess



Joined: 08 Jul 2019
Posts: 58 | TRs | Pics
Location: Seattle
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess
PostMon Oct 28, 2019 4:22 pm 
Mount Forgotten 10/27/19 Headed to the hills with a gaggle of guys on Sunday- thanks Albert for the invite and putting the group together! Admittedly I hadn’t even heard of Forgotten… or maybe I had forgotten about it? :P It was a big group and I had only hiked or climbed with a few of them before, and hadn’t met another few, ended up being a v fun and chill group. (Myself, Sean, Albert, Tim, Ron, Ben, & Ashkan). I don’t think I’ve ever hiked with a group that large (7 of us) and had such a chill vibe to the trip AND all been on the same page pace-wise. We had read TRs from other snowy attempts of Forgotten in which other parties wished they had a rope or other gear and had to turn around. So we came fully prepared with a 40m rope, harness, helmet, ice ax, crampons, should we need them. On just two hours of sleep (hween party the night before) Sean and I left Ballard around 6:20a in the Davey mobile (thanks for the swoop Tim!) We made it to the TH at 7:58a including a stop at PCC for breaky and another stop for gas. Slowly but surely the guys trickled in. Something about a forgotten ice ax and forgotten sunglasses… fitting for the peak. We all brought snowshoes after I had a convo with the ranger about snow conditions and they reported 2-3 feet of snow and a recent TR for Dickerman in which the author stated they wished they had snowshoes for the upper mtn. But after driving down mtn loop highway and seeing the nearby snow levels and amounts for ourselves we decided to leave the snowshoes in the car. After ditching the snowshoes & making an indeterminate number of fart jokes, we were on our way ~ 8:35a. The day was cooooold and clear. We headed up the trail, and made it to the falls just before 10a. The ground was frozen in places and covered in leaves. Kept on truckin along the trail to the creek crossing which was made trickier with verglas on the rocks that would have otherwise been v conducive to crossing. Some nice nearby samaritans were tossing rocks and small logs to make for a better crossing. Thx! All members eventually made it over without getting too wet. Def want to be extra cautious at these crossings this time of year as temps drop and crossings become slick with ice.
don't go chasin waterfalls
creek crossing, altho this pic is from the descent The trail gains a bit more elevation and for awhile and eventually you end up at a v nice viewpoint of Baker, Shuksan, and Forgotten. Patchy snow began around 4600’ and was pretty compact and icy along parts of the trail. (For future parties microspikes might be nice for this bit esp on descent, but we made do without them). Snow was consistent at 4900’. It was pretty crunchy in the morning.
thar she blows
"Is that Mt. Rainier?!?" :P some of the crew at the viewpoint We made it to the viewpoint around 11:15a and delighted in gummy bears and gummy coke bottles (Thanks Ron!) at our break. We retraced our steps and descended a few feet to traverse east below the bump in the ridge to get to Forgotten Meadows. The snow was still pretty crunchy, varying patches of wind scoured and wind loaded (only a few inches) made for inconsistent post holing here and there but nothing too bad. The views of Glacier and surrounding peaks at the meadows are incredible. This spot alone would make for a worthwhile day hike.
sunglasses shmunglasses
almost to the meadows
struttin
Dakobed <3
Sean takes the best pics of me *heart eyes* We putzed around the end of the meadows looking for a good spot to drop down to start the traverse over to Forgotten (~12:30). “Hmmm this way looks questionable…” “Hmm this way looks slightly less questionable but goes through some trees and brush…” There was a nice fella sitting under a nearby tree who told me he had been here a few weeks prior and thought the steep tree bush drop down option was the one. So we looked at it some more and decided to go for it. The snow was soft enough to descend without crampons, some party members face in down climbed, others faced out, the angle was right on the edge for necessitating face in down climbing. From here we descended a bit more, going through some trees and began traversing towards Forgotten. We ended up at a small boulder field and spotted a cairn on the other side with a piece of flagging nearby in the tree. We were able to follow the route which was mostly soft snow at this point. We eventually came across a small gully with unfavorable runout and carefully made our way across and around the corner until the final gully was in sight. This part of the mtn was pretty wind scoured and the snow was firm and icy for the most part. Some members donned crampons before ascending the gully and some did not (myself included), but in hindsight crampons would have been the best option for all. We ascended the steep gully, toe pointing up. There were a few wind loaded sections of dust on crust (couple inches) and a few icy sections in the gully. I had to chop a few steps with my adze in the harder sections bc I made the mistake of not donning crampons earlier AND the mistake of not sending the crampon wearers ahead to kick steps. Woooooops.
The gully (seen here on descent) After exiting the top of the gully we headed up and towards the right (climbers R), aiming for the summit. Similar snow conditions between the gully and summit- mix of wind scoured and wind loaded (few inches) it was steep and icy for this final bit as well, getting icier as we ascended. Finally I called for the cramponers to kick steps because the slight indentation I was making with the toe of my boots was unnerving. Made it to the summit at ~2:20 and the views were amazing. Some of the party opted to go to the true summit complete with a straddle move to get over the crux. I eyed it, checked it out and attempted, but the presence of snow and ice on some of the foot steps made me retreat. Its a very exposed section, def a no fall zone. Half our party went the true summit and the other half enjoyed the remaining gummy bears on the other side. Watching some of the dudes reverse cowgirl down the straddle section on descent was pretty entertaining. :P Because we had the rope we could have set up a handline, but we were pressed for time since the days are so much shorter now... RIP summer.
yeehaw
yup looks like its gonna be a no from me dawg. incredible views
Keeper of the gummies aka Ron We descended the ascent route, and made it back to the meadows at ~4:35p.
Just about to ascend a bit to get back to the meadows here, up and to the right out of photo, thru some trees is the way we went.
Furry trees
I just learned that this whole area is a part of research natural area designation because of the high concentration of precious and unique plantlife- over 250 species are home here! Talk about biodiversity. Beautiful. We made it back down to the creek crossing at 5:45p and one of our crucial logs was now covered in verglas. Hah! We still managed to make it across just fine. Bc I was being stubborn and didn’t pull the trekking pole off my backpack and crossed without it, I paid the price with a wet foot after sliding my foot in the creek. Made it back to the cars at 7:15p. Which meant headlamp hiking out- well for some of us, with the excpetion of a few who wanted to, “strengthen their night vision,” and hike out in the dark. Albert's watch said 15.3 miles, 4800' gain, and 10:40 elapsed time.
Mood: doin Forgotten on two hours of sleep Had some Mexican food in granite falls (free horchata refills at playa bonita yaaaaas), and went home to catch up on zzzzzzzzzs.

Choss is a girl's best friend
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
bk
Member
Member


Joined: 01 Jun 2012
Posts: 266 | TRs | Pics
bk
Member
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 3:03 am 
*Upvote* nixing the true summit. Are there any photos looking towards Dickerman and Vesper? Thank you for the good report.

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess



Joined: 08 Jul 2019
Posts: 58 | TRs | Pics
Location: Seattle
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 11:38 am 
bk wrote:
Are there any photos looking towards Dickerman and Vesper?
The photo with the caption "incredible views" is looking SW from the summit of Forgotten, so I think that's Dickerman in the middle right foreground?

Choss is a girl's best friend
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
olderthanIusedtobe
Member
Member


Joined: 05 Sep 2011
Posts: 7687 | TRs | Pics
Location: Shoreline
olderthanIusedtobe
Member
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 12:12 pm 
up.gif Nice. I've summitted Forgotten once, but have turned back several times. The traverse from Forgotten Meadows over to the gully leading to the top can be tricky, depending on conditions.

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
olderthanIusedtobe
Member
Member


Joined: 05 Sep 2011
Posts: 7687 | TRs | Pics
Location: Shoreline
olderthanIusedtobe
Member
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 12:15 pm 
~*CutebutChossy69*~ wrote:
I'm fairly certain that the summit of Dickerman is just out of view further to the right in the foreground. That is a ridge that extends from the back side of Dickerman. Saw a pic on summitpost that seems to match this, it is referred to as Twin Peaks in the photo.

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
bk
Member
Member


Joined: 01 Jun 2012
Posts: 266 | TRs | Pics
bk
Member
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 12:29 pm 
Yes, that looks to be Twin Peaks East in "incredible views" (mid-right foreground). Dickerman would be one over to the right (immediately adjacent) of Twin Peaks East . . . just off frame. (Directly behind Dickerman, Vesper would be visible . . . Forgotten -> Dickerman -> Vesper would form a visible straight line.)

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess



Joined: 08 Jul 2019
Posts: 58 | TRs | Pics
Location: Seattle
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 12:51 pm 
bk wrote:
Dickerman would be one over to the right
Ah yes, good catch! Here is a photo that might be helpful smile.gif

Choss is a girl's best friend
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
bk
Member
Member


Joined: 01 Jun 2012
Posts: 266 | TRs | Pics
bk
Member
PostTue Oct 29, 2019 1:09 pm 
Yea, that's perfect, thanks.

Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess



Joined: 08 Jul 2019
Posts: 58 | TRs | Pics
Location: Seattle
~*CutebutChossy69*~
bluebagprincess
PostWed Oct 30, 2019 9:07 am 
Yo Klenke thanks for the labels!

Choss is a girl's best friend
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
Backpacker Joe
Blind Hiker



Joined: 16 Dec 2001
Posts: 23956 | TRs | Pics
Location: Cle Elum
Backpacker Joe
Blind Hiker
PostWed Oct 30, 2019 4:43 pm 
Nice pics. Good report. Do you think that you'll "Forget" this hike? hockeygrin.gif

"If destruction be our lot we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen we must live through all time or die by suicide." — Abraham Lincoln
Back to top Reply to topic Reply with quote Send private message
   All times are GMT - 8 Hours
 Reply to topic
Forum Index > Trip Reports > ~* Mount Forgotten 10/27 *~
  Happy Birthday speyguy, Bandanabraids!
Jump to:   
Search this topic:

You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum