Forum Index > Trip Reports > RR to Baker 092709
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furthur
Berry Bagger



Joined: 21 Sep 2006
Posts: 341 | TRs | Pics
Location: onward and upward
furthur
Berry Bagger
PostTue Sep 29, 2009 5:38 pm 
Six-oh-three is a trail for many tastes. Schreiber’s Meadow is a pleasant sashay for walkers, the forest climb is a good workout for most hikers, the berry valleys of Lower and Upper Morovitz are a gold mine for foodies, and the Railroad Grade Trail is a thrill for altitude addicts.
Baker at Schrieber
Baker at Schrieber
baby got back
baby got back
golf ball mushroom
golf ball mushroom
Trail intersections offer Scott Paul and Park Butte as options. For a native flatlander like me, elevation trumps everything. So, it’s up the stone stairway, across Cathedral Pass and over to the RR.
RR from Cathedral Pass
RR from Cathedral Pass
Early Grade
Early Grade
Baker's lil bros
Baker's lil bros
Twin Sisters
Twin Sisters
The Grade follows the western lip of the Rocky Creek gorge. Beginning as a dirt footpath with meadows on the windward side, it moves onto rock piles and lava cylinders for a pick-your-route adventure.
Grade looking back
Grade looking back
At this point, Easton glacier is at your side, carved with blue crevasses.
Thanks to the low snow pack and sunny summer, on this day a hiker can traipse the cliffs parallel to the glacier well up Baker’s south face.
darn high for hiking boots
darn high for hiking boots
snow condos
snow condos
stone recliner
stone recliner
recliner view
recliner view
You can go as far as your comfort and skill allow; however, there were areas that a helmet would be useful. Boulders thunder into the glacial creases and echo up with sharp cracks, a discomforting sound while below tippy rock piles.
rock sculpture
rock sculpture
feathered rock
feathered rock
Baker’s orange brothers curve west, suggesting to my imagination a massive mountain of Everest proportions eons ago. In my mind, the moraine is a remnant of the exploded flank of Monster Baker.
bros up close
bros up close
Deming Glacier
Deming Glacier
RR terminus
RR terminus
Humans are just mites here. The magnitude of the geography puts my little brain in it’s place. But it is comforting to be surrounded by these nearly eternal things when our human existence is so transient.
bookworm
bookworm
climbers packing up
climbers packing up
crevasse practice
crevasse practice
distant peaks
distant peaks
so close!
so close!
The afternoon descent is slow; hard to leave this place. Two-toned marmots waddle across the ridge. Birds cruise overhead, singers, cawers, and silent gliding kestrals. The meadows are heavily scented with blueberries.
two-tone model
two-tone model
waiting for you!
waiting for you!
One warning: early morning Rocky Creek becomes an afternoon torrent on a warm day; little critters might balk at stone stepping or log crossing the boisterous current.

"You're either on the bus or off the bus." Kesey
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peltoms
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Joined: 13 Jul 2006
Posts: 1760 | TRs | Pics
Location: Worcester MA
peltoms
Member
PostWed Sep 30, 2009 12:18 pm 
Abolutely horrible shot of Easton Glacier, that is if you are the glacier examining yourself in the mirror. After working on this glacier for 20 straight years, I know every crevasse. Well your pictures show a new rock outcrop in the middle of the glacier, that is horrible. Thanks for your great capturing of the situation. bawl.gif

North Cascade Glacier Climate Project: http://www.nichols.edu/departments/glacier/
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Pepper
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Joined: 10 Apr 2009
Posts: 80 | TRs | Pics
Location: Ballard
Pepper
Member
PostWed Sep 30, 2009 12:26 pm 
Can you give directions from Seattle to this TH, I would like to do it? Thanks,

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aywolfpac
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Joined: 27 Jan 2008
Posts: 1286 | TRs | Pics
Location: Burlington, WA
aywolfpac
Member
PostThu Oct 01, 2009 10:17 am 
Pepper wrote:
Can you give directions from Seattle to this TH, I would like to do it? Thanks,
I-5 north to Burlington Highway 20 east for about 20 miles to Baker Lake Road Baker Lake Road for maybe 8-9 miles? to FR 12 FR 12 for a mile or two, turn right onto FR 13 and follow it to the end

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furthur
Berry Bagger



Joined: 21 Sep 2006
Posts: 341 | TRs | Pics
Location: onward and upward
furthur
Berry Bagger
PostThu Oct 01, 2009 7:23 pm 
From Spring / Manning's 100 Hikes, which is very accurate: On Rte 20, between MP 82 & 83, turn north on the Baker Lake / Grandy Lake road. In 12.5 miles, after crossing a bridge, turn left on the gravel Loomis Nooksack Rd 12. In another 3.6 miles, turn right on Sulphur Creek Rd 13. Take this 6 miles to the end, where there is a large parking area. The trail starts behind the restrooms. After this week's precip, conditions will be probably be different up there. The road to Artist Point on the other side of the mountain just closed for the season due to snow. But, Park Butte would still be a very fine option, so give it a shot, and take your camera!

"You're either on the bus or off the bus." Kesey
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Highwalker's Daughter
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Joined: 12 Aug 2006
Posts: 1575 | TRs | Pics
Location: Bothell, WA
Highwalker's Daughter
Member
PostThu Oct 01, 2009 7:36 pm 
nice pix from one of my favorite places - hope to hike with you again soon

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