Forum Index > Trip Reports > Getting some Tongue in the south end 08.01.09
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Bloated Chipmunk
Cock Rock Searcher



Joined: 29 Jan 2007
Posts: 2993 | TRs | Pics
Location: Margaritaville
Bloated Chipmunk
Cock Rock Searcher
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 9:34 pm 
For Saturday, Team Bloat headed to the south Cascades once again to nab a peak. Our 1st choice was South Point, but a rd. report from mid-June indicated that FR 20 to the trailhead was closed. Given it was an older report we opted to head out there anyway, & if said rd. was still closed, we could do the nearby Smith Point as its trailhead was much lower on that same FR, well before the washout. smile.gif Well, all 3 of us must of been distracted b/c we accidentally whizzed by the turn off & were soon going to enter the town of Randle. dizzy.gif I had already been talking about wanting to do Tongue Mtn. again sometime; I had made it most of the way to the top 9 yrs. ago w/a couple of friends, but neither one of those people were too hot on the idea of scrambling the last bit to the summit & I didn't bother looking too hard for a route up either. MM suggested we could keep on going & just do Tongue instead of turning back for South Point, & so it was. Plus, this way we could get a good look @ Juniper Ridge w/all its cool peaks, something else on our endless list.... agree.gif From Randle, we turned south on FR 23 & took it to 25, then 29, then 2904. dizzy.gif The last rd. has a bunch of annoying speed humps but perhaps it has helped w/keeping the rd. intact. We soon arrived @ the empty TH which is directly across the TH at the north end of Juniper Ridge. Bugs were plentiful, the trail register was not. lol.gif
TH
TH
Todd's pretty excited considering it's an empty TH register.
Todd's pretty excited considering it's an empty TH register.
The trail starts off as a pleasant, flattish forest walk. We appreciated the shade as it had already warmed up nicely. My pack felt so light compared to last wk.'s Harding trip. Today would be light, short, & easy. up.gif
Sun coming through the trees
Sun coming through the trees
The boys on the trail
The boys on the trail
Sign @ junction
Sign @ junction
Upon reaching the junction, we headed uphill to the right toward Tongue. The trees thinned out & soon we found ourselves on open brushy slopes with views to the south and west. Todd busted out the machete he's long been threatening to use. eek.gif
Sunrise Pk.
Sunrise Pk.
Nearby nub
Nearby nub
Brushy trail
Brushy trail
Todd uses the machete
Todd uses the machete
Tongue comes into view
Tongue comes into view
After just a few switchbacks we were in the cleft of the Tongue, with the lower summit to the right (easy trail to the top) & the true summit to the left (somewhat sketchy loose trail). From the gap there is a huge drop off to the Cispus River. hairy.gif We paused for a bit, then searched for the trail up to the top. Todd managed to pick up a loose rocky trail that hugs the ledges of the summit block. 1 switchback in particular is pretty exposed to the 3200' drop. paranoid.gif We all made it up OK, though it was a little nerve wracking for me. No wonder I didn't attempt it 9 yrs. ago... wink.gif
The summit of Tongue
The summit of Tongue
Rainier
Rainier
The boys head up the final exposed trail (of sorts) to the summit of Tongue
The boys head up the final exposed trail (of sorts) to the summit of Tongue
Mt. Adams & the lower summit of Tongue
Mt. Adams & the lower summit of Tongue
A couple minutes later we were on the top of Tongue. tongue.gif We had a 3 volcano view, although St. Helens was pretty washed out. There was a lot of smoke in the valleys below, presumably from wildfires but we saw no flames.
Adams w/smoke in the valley as seen from the summit of Tongue
Adams w/smoke in the valley as seen from the summit of Tongue
Barely visible St. Helens
Barely visible St. Helens
Rainier
Rainier
Lots of smoke
Lots of smoke
Goat Rocks Wilderness  in the distance
Goat Rocks Wilderness in the distance
Campsite atop Tongue
Campsite atop Tongue
The boys on the summit of Tongue
The boys on the summit of Tongue
Todd's livin' on the edge
Todd's livin' on the edge
We lounged for awhile, happy that we got some Tongue today. We took the obligatory summit photos, & yes - this included a tongue shot. hockeygrin.gif On the way down, Todd attempted to fix the one sketchy switchback. I just wanted to get down to the saddle. embarassedlaugh.gif
Todd w/a 3200' drop behind him
Todd w/a 3200' drop behind him
Looking back @ the summit of Tongue
Looking back @ the summit of Tongue
From the cleft we took the easy trail up to the south/lower summit & got some pics from there.
Rainier, zoomed
Rainier, zoomed
Adams & Todd
Adams & Todd
Adams & the Cispus River valley
Adams & the Cispus River valley
Tongue, MM, & Rainier
Tongue, MM, & Rainier
Wildfire
Wildfire
Peaks along Juniper Ridge
Peaks along Juniper Ridge
Shadow shot
Shadow shot
Shadow puppets
Shadow puppets
The trip down was pretty quick, & we decided to stop by the Layser Cave on the way out, another place I had been....~ 3 yrs. after my 1st Tongue. It's a quick easy trail downhill from the parking area along a spur rd. from FR 23. Not much had changed in 6 yrs.
Layser Cave TH sign
Layser Cave TH sign
The boys on their way to the cave
The boys on their way to the cave
The boys arrive @ the cave
The boys arrive @ the cave
Interpretive sign
Interpretive sign
Map
Map
The cave
The cave
MM enters the cave
MM enters the cave
Da boyz in da cave
Da boyz in da cave
Map of nearby peaks, incl. Tongue
Map of nearby peaks, incl. Tongue
& we even got a last glimpse of Tongue. hockeygrin.gif
Tongue as seen from Layser Cave trail
Tongue as seen from Layser Cave trail
Tongue, Adams, & Juniper Ridge
Tongue, Adams, & Juniper Ridge

Home is where the hiking is. "Peaks that have come and gone four times should halt a man in his steps." -- William O. Douglas A balanced diet is a margarita in each hand.
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Yet
Member
Member


Joined: 23 Apr 2005
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Location: Happily Ever After
Yet
Member
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 9:42 pm 
I don't see any tongue here. Please rectify the situation.

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Yana
Hater



Joined: 04 Jun 2004
Posts: 4212 | TRs | Pics
Location: Out Hating
Yana
Hater
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 9:42 pm 
I like the freaky shadow shots! up.gif

PLAY SAFE! SKI ONLY IN CLOCKWISE DIRECTION! LET'S ALL HAVE FUN TOGETHER!
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Toonces
unleashed



Joined: 16 Dec 2005
Posts: 2401 | TRs | Pics
Location: On the pavement, thinking about the government
Toonces
unleashed
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 9:58 pm 
This TR deserves a Pulitzer for "Best Title." up.gif

If you show fear, a monkey will bully you.
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MountainMan
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Joined: 15 Jul 2008
Posts: 365 | TRs | Pics
Location: San Diego
MountainMan
Member
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 10:20 pm 
Here's my pics:
Tongue Mtn. from the road.
Tongue Mtn. from the road.
BC on the trail
BC on the trail
Sunrise Peak
Sunrise Peak
Nice "Nearby Nub" as BC called it.
Nice "Nearby Nub" as BC called it.
BC and Todd almost to the saddle.
BC and Todd almost to the saddle.
Looking down gulley on east side of Tongue.
Looking down gulley on east side of Tongue.
Rainier with side of Tongue.
Rainier with side of Tongue.
Rainier with cloud.
Rainier with cloud.
Smokey valley and "Nub".
Smokey valley and "Nub".
Adams and smokey valley, looking south from Tongue Mtn.
Adams and smokey valley, looking south from Tongue Mtn.
Mt St Helens
Mt St Helens
Rainier and North Ridge of Tongue Mtn.
Rainier and North Ridge of Tongue Mtn.
MM, BC and Todd on Tongue Mtn.
MM, BC and Todd on Tongue Mtn.
Group tongue on Tongue Mtn.
Group tongue on Tongue Mtn.
Tongue shot undeer Tongue Mtn.
Tongue shot undeer Tongue Mtn.
BC under Adams.
BC under Adams.
BC does Nixon pose on lower Tongue.
BC does Nixon pose on lower Tongue.
Shadows
Shadows
Zoom of a nearby peak.
Zoom of a nearby peak.
Hmm...volcano or forest fire?
Hmm...volcano or forest fire?
At Layser Cave:
BC at Layser Cave
BC at Layser Cave
BC in Layser Cave.
BC in Layser Cave.
Tongue Mtn, Adams and Juniper Ridge.
Tongue Mtn, Adams and Juniper Ridge.

Slow down, take notice, savor the moment, appreciate the world around you and everything that you have.
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Eric
Peak Geek



Joined: 21 Oct 2002
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Eric
Peak Geek
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 10:55 pm 
I was up the road towards South Point just last week and it is in fact open FWIW.

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Magellan
Brutally Handsome



Joined: 26 Jul 2006
Posts: 13116 | TRs | Pics
Location: Inexorable descent
Magellan
Brutally Handsome
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 11:03 pm 
Timely report. We are going down in September to get some Tongue and Juniper to 'finish' the Dark Divide. The shadows crack me up. up.gif

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goats gone wild
Mr. Goat



Joined: 19 Aug 2007
Posts: 2524 | TRs | Pics
Location: Vampireville
goats gone wild
Mr. Goat
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 11:05 pm 
ditto.gif on the cool shadow shots. tongue.gif

.....leaving me wanting to return over and over in what ever capacity that may be, even if one day my knees are too old and I can only see the mountains from my porch. Jason Hummel
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Bloated Chipmunk
Cock Rock Searcher



Joined: 29 Jan 2007
Posts: 2993 | TRs | Pics
Location: Margaritaville
Bloated Chipmunk
Cock Rock Searcher
PostMon Aug 03, 2009 11:07 pm 
Eric wrote:
I was up the road towards South Point just last week and it is in fact open FWIW.
Yeah I forgot to mention in the TR that on our drive out, we spotted the turn for FR 20 & headed up a little ways to check it out & discovered that it is now open. up.gif

Home is where the hiking is. "Peaks that have come and gone four times should halt a man in his steps." -- William O. Douglas A balanced diet is a margarita in each hand.
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EastKing
Surfing and Hiking



Joined: 28 Mar 2007
Posts: 2082 | TRs | Pics
Location: 77 miles from Seattle!
EastKing
Surfing and Hiking
PostWed Aug 05, 2009 11:49 pm 
Nice TR and photos! up.gif up.gif Tongue Mountain reminds me of Sauk Mountain. The trail is mentioned in many children book but they managed to leave out the end, which can be quiet thrilling. eek.gif eek.gif

YouTube | SummitPost Saw the depths of despair. Now I am salvaging what time I have left on Earth.
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treeswarper
Alleged Sockpuppet!



Joined: 25 Dec 2006
Posts: 11272 | TRs | Pics
Location: Don't move here
treeswarper
Alleged Sockpuppet!
PostFri Aug 07, 2009 11:02 am 
Bloated Chipmunk wrote:
Eric wrote:
I was up the road towards South Point just last week and it is in fact open FWIW.
Yeah I forgot to mention in the TR that on our drive out, we spotted the turn for FR 20 & headed up a little ways to check it out & discovered that it is now open. up.gif
And it should be getting repaired next week. It has been very rough with a slide and cracking on it.

What's especially fun about sock puppets is that you can make each one unique and individual, so that they each have special characters. And they don't have to be human––animals and aliens are great possibilities
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Eric
Peak Geek



Joined: 21 Oct 2002
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Eric
Peak Geek
PostFri Aug 07, 2009 11:30 am 
Yeah there are several places both above and below that TH where the road is starting to sluff off into oblivion. That's good if the USFS is doing repairs but even still, it might be worth tagging any peaks you want to do in that area sooner rather than later in case that road really fails.

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Mtn Dog
Technohiker



Joined: 01 Aug 2004
Posts: 3336 | TRs | Pics
Location: Bellevue, WA
Mtn Dog
Technohiker
PostFri Aug 07, 2009 12:30 pm 
MountainMan wrote:
Here's my pics:
BC on the trail
BC on the trail
BC, I can't tell if you're going hiking in this picture or wearing your uniform to go to school! lol.gif confused.gif wink.gif

Footprints on the sands of time will never be made sitting down.
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Bloated Chipmunk
Cock Rock Searcher



Joined: 29 Jan 2007
Posts: 2993 | TRs | Pics
Location: Margaritaville
Bloated Chipmunk
Cock Rock Searcher
PostFri Aug 07, 2009 4:18 pm 
Yeah, I started out w/the long sleeves while we were in the shade to avoid getting too many bug bites....guess it looked kinda weird w/the shorts. dizzy.gif
EastKing wrote:
The trail is mentioned in many children book
OMG I can't believe I hiked something that was in a children's book! hairy.gif gag.gif

Home is where the hiking is. "Peaks that have come and gone four times should halt a man in his steps." -- William O. Douglas A balanced diet is a margarita in each hand.
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meandmyaussies
Member
Member


Joined: 01 Nov 2007
Posts: 182 | TRs | Pics
Location: The Quah
meandmyaussies
Member
PostFri Aug 07, 2009 8:44 pm 
Nice TR and photos although I have to admit that after reading the TR title I thought the report and photos would be a lot different... wink.gif

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