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Matt Tea, Earl Grey, Hot
Joined: 30 Jan 2007 Posts: 4307 | TRs | Pics Location: Shoreline |
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Matt
Tea, Earl Grey, Hot
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Mon Oct 19, 2009 11:53 pm
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Date: 10/9/09
Destination: Frisco 7780 & Rainy 7768
Party: Matt, cartman
We went up the Heather/Maple Pass trail to the col above Maple Pass, dropped down to Lake 6100, curved south around the obstructing shoulder to the east bowl of Frisco, up snowy talus to the 7500-foot shoulder of Frisco, and up the ridge to Frisco’s summit.
I followed the crest down to the Frisco-Rainy col, then went up Rainy on the other side, curving onto the south face to bypass a steeper step.
On our return, we went from Lake 6100 directly uphill to catch the trail on the ridge between Lake Ann & Rainy Lake, and followed it back down to the trailhead.
Frisco & Rainy route map
Rainy Pass TH 4850 to Col Above Maple Pass 6950
From the Rainy Pass trailhead, we hiked up to Heather Pass, for a first view of larches & Black Peak.
Then we continued up over Maple Pass to the high col that crosses the north ridge of Frico.
Heather Pass view of Larches & Lewis Lake Heather Pass view Larches, Lewis Lake, & Black Peak Larches angling down from Heather Pass cartman on the Trail Maple Pass view of Benzarino, Corteo, & Black Lake Ann from col above Maple Pass
Down to Lake 6100
Then we had to drop 800 feet to Lake 6100, taking the first few switchbacks of the trail, then down a boulder field the rest of the way.
The lake was frozen to an icy clear mirror surface.
Looking down to Lake 6100 Frozen Lake 6100 Lake 6100 reflection Hillside beyond Lake 6100 Frozen pool at Lake 6100 outlet cartman neat the lake outlet
Lake 6100 to Frisco Shoulder 7500
First we had to get around the obstucting shoulder of Frisco south of the lake, an obstacle that had required the descent to the lake in the first place. We crossed the shoulder somewhat steeply just below the cliffs, about 150 feet above the lake.
Then we were in open terrain in the large eastern basin of Frisco. Much of the terrain was beautiful meadows of green heather, white boulders, and bright larches.
Larches angling up the hillside King larch and smaller acolytes Beautiful meadows cartman ascending the meadows
However, the higher shadier sections were a snowy minefield of potential slips. There was good footing where the ground was heathery or where granite slabs had melted clear. But the dirt sections were frozen hard, and the boulder fields were filled with snowy voids.
At 7100 feet, we reached the terminal moraine of the deceased western lobe of the Lyall Glacier. From here, it was all snowy boulders up to a 7550-foot shoulder, where we could get onto the east ridge of Frisco. Footing turned out to be mostly good, but only after testing each snowy step to find whether a hole or a slippery angle might lie underfoot.
Larches & Frisco’s lower shoulder Frozen boulders up to Frisco’s 7500-foot shoulder 10 labels Horizon of peaks viewed from the morraine cartman ascending the snowy boulders, with Frisco’s shadow on the morraine 12 labels Frisco east basin (viewed later from Rainy)
Frisco 7780
The shoulder marked a happy transition from dark/cold/snowy to sunny/warm/dry. Easy class 2/3 scrambling, mostly a bit west of the crest, led to the summit.
8 labels View from shoulder back down past the moraine & Rainy Lake Benzarino (next year’s destination) Corteo, Black & Horsefly Pass Me on Frisco, with Rainy behind 4 labels Looking east past cartman on Frisco-Rainy crest, to east ridge of Rainy, and Copper Creek/Stiletto (tomorrow’s destination) Summit shadow on Rainy Lake Eric departing Frisco
Frisco to Rainy
Looking west to Rainy, I kept wondering… It was already 3:30 in the afternoon, and there was snow on the reputed 4th class step on the ridge up to Rainy. But… It looked like there was an alternate that would work better anyway. Off to the right of the ridge, Rainy’s south slope looked easy and dry in the sun. It appeared to be just a walk-up rock-and-dirt slope, if you could just get off the ridge and round the corner onto it.
I decided to do a reconnaissance down to the col and check it out. The ridge crest downward was easy, except for a bit of class 3 to get down on the south slope and bypass Point 7275 right before the col at 7150 feet. Then going up the far side was even easier. But I still needed to get across one rocky gully on the right to get onto Rainy’s south slope. And there, at 7500 feet, just below the steep section of the ridge, was a perfect ramp leading across the gully, leading to a distinctive clump of three larches at the far end. Class 2, with just a few bits of class 3, all the way.
Route from Frisco to Rainy, with south slope finish 7500-foot ramp onto the south slope of Rainy The Ramp Looking back at Frisco from thefar end of the ramp (it’s less steep than it looks)
Rainy 7768
Now I was standing on Rainy’s south slope with a moral quandary. The summit was only 15 minutes away, and returning another time would take all day. Plus it would be valuable to confirm that this route worked. But I had told Eric I was only going to do a reconnaissance, and he had already headed back down from Frisco. If the roles were reversed, I know that I’d want the other person to go ahead and finish the summit, but not everyone would see it that way. In this case, with the summit so close, I decided there was more benefit to finishing than to turning back.
I tagged the summit, barely paused for a few pictures of the late afternoon view, and hurried down to race against darkness and lateness.
Rainy summit benchmark Looking down at the east Lyall Glacier tarn & Rainy Lake Frozen tarn below remanant of east Lyall Glacier 3 labels Looking north to Hardy, Ballard & Azurite, & Golden Horn Looking NE to Stiletto, Copper, & the Gardners
Exit
Then I hurried to race the shadows down the mountain.
But first I had to descend to the col and ascend back up to the 7500 shoulder of Frisco. Cliffy edges left no way to get off anywhere earlier.
Color flora reappears below the glacial wasteland Evening sky over Rainy Snowy boulders below Frisco
At the 6100 lake, I was able to shortcut the route by zigzagging up slopes northward directly to the Rainy/Ann ridge trail, reaching it at the minor col east of Point 6685. (You might be able to descend from the same point and avoid the boulder field east of the lake, but it would be hard to see the route and avoid rock bands from above.)
I had to use my headlamp down the trail. Small larches appeared as bright surprises standing up in the dark when my light hit them.
Larches in the dark Bright highlights on a dark trail
Alas, my delay made us just late enough that the only place open in Winthrop was an incongruous French bistro, where they served fries wrapped in a paper cone on a stand like a display of flowers, but much more expensive.
Statistics: 8.5 miles, 5300 gain, 10:15 hours
Gain components: TH to Maple Pass Col +2100, Lake 6100 to Frisco +1700, Frisco-Rainy Col to Rainy +600, Frisco-Rainy Col to Frisco Shoulder +300, Lake 6100 to Rainy Lake Trail +600
“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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Dayhike Mike Bad MFKer
Joined: 02 Mar 2003 Posts: 10958 | TRs | Pics Location: Going to Tukwila |
"There is only one basic human right, the right to do as you damn well please. And with it comes the only basic human duty, the duty to take the consequences." -P.J. O'Rourke
"Ignorance is natural. Stupidity takes commitment." -Solomon Short
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Magellan Brutally Handsome
Joined: 26 Jul 2006 Posts: 13116 | TRs | Pics Location: Inexorable descent |
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Magellan
Brutally Handsome
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Tue Oct 20, 2009 5:20 am
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Nice work fellas. What do you think of using the ridge you went down to go up?
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BirdDog Member
Joined: 09 Jan 2007 Posts: 1067 | TRs | Pics Location: Seattle |
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BirdDog
Member
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Tue Oct 20, 2009 8:19 am
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I've been waiitng for this one Matt. Nice lake/larch pics.
"There can be no greater issue than that of conservation in this country."
Teddy Roosevelt August 6, 1912
"There can be no greater issue than that of conservation in this country."
Teddy Roosevelt August 6, 1912
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Matt Tea, Earl Grey, Hot
Joined: 30 Jan 2007 Posts: 4307 | TRs | Pics Location: Shoreline |
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Matt
Tea, Earl Grey, Hot
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Tue Oct 20, 2009 8:52 am
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Magellan wrote: | Nice work fellas. What do you think of using the ridge you went down to go up? |
It's probably shorter and more efficient that way, but less scenic.
“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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DIYSteve seeking hygge
Joined: 06 Mar 2007 Posts: 12655 | TRs | Pics Location: here now |
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DIYSteve
seeking hygge
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Tue Oct 20, 2009 9:41 am
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Great work, guys. Nice pics of a lovely area.
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goats gone wild Mr. Goat
Joined: 19 Aug 2007 Posts: 2524 | TRs | Pics Location: Vampireville |
.....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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Tom_Sjolseth Born Yesterday
Joined: 30 May 2007 Posts: 2652 | TRs | Pics Location: Right here. |
Thanks for a great TR on two peaks I have yet to climb.
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twodogdad Member
Joined: 21 Nov 2006 Posts: 846 | TRs | Pics Location: seattle |
Fascinating itinerary, guys Funny how close and out of the way these peaks are, at the same time. tdd
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