Forum Index > Trip Reports > Mt. Stuart (9,415') - NW Face Couloir (1984) - 06.11-12.2011
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Tom_Sjolseth
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Tom_Sjolseth
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 3:02 pm 
Mt. Stuart's NW Face - Photo courtesy of John Scurlock.
Mt. Stuart's NW Face - Photo courtesy of John Scurlock.
Photos can be found by following the links, below. I had climbed three routes on Mt. Stuart (Cascadian Couloir, North Ridge, and Stuart Glacier Couloir), and after the last route I told myself I was done with Stuart for a while. The lure of this big mountain is strong, however, and Friday I found myself heading up the Stuart Lake Trail once again in search of great climbing and stellar companionship in a beautiful alpine setting. The NW Face is a seldom-climbed ice route with an assortment of challenges, and forms an aesthetic line heading more or less straight up Stuart's dramatic (and steep) NW Face. Wayne, Daniel, and myself had been looking at climbing the route for quite a while, but conditions and schedules never seemed to cooperate. It's been a big snow year, and although conditions have been excellent for backcountry touring and ski mountaineering, good climbing conditions have remained elusive except for the occasional small window. We were unsure whether or not the NW Face would be "in" this late in the season, after all, it's more commonly a Winter or Spring ice route. But with recent trip reports indicating continuous ice (barely), and with the recent reopening of the Mountaineer's Creek road, we were encouraged to give it a try. The approach to the basin below the N side of Stuart is more involved than it would appear from the map. The trail is covered in snow at the convergence of Mountaineer's Creeks, and it becomes difficult to follow past that point. We did not follow any tracks, we put in our own, and the going was made slower by frequent (but random and annoying) deep post-holing. We brought snowshoes, but snowcover was intermittent down low, and we kept them on our packs. Eventually, the snow became continuous and we donned our snowshoes, but not before much groveling had already ensued. It took us a little more than 4 hours to reach camp at ~5400'. We found a small, flattish rock and proceeded to try to cram three people onto it. I took the flattest spot to make the choices easier for my fellow compadres.. you know, taking one for the team. embarassedlaugh.gif We heard and saw very little activity from avalanches and serac calving during the day, but that night we heard a few rumbles from the Ice Cliff itself, which we expected. Overall, conditions seemed ideal. We awoke at 3AM and finally broke camp at 4:15, heading up to the base of the route, about where the Stuart Glacier Couloir's bergschrund is located. It starts to get light around 4AM at this time of year, and we only needed to use headlamps for a very short period of time. We were treated to one of the most amazing sunrises I have ever seen. Pictures can not do it justice, although Wayne managed to capture a great one with his point and shoot (see link to photos, below). Definitely a treat! After crossing a sketchy bergschrund, we arrived at the base of the first pitch. The lower portion of the first pitch of the route was devoid of ice, but it protected well and there was a small patch of ice to shoot for ~20 feet off the ground. Wayne led up and dry-tooled the first portion of the first pitch, smearing a steep slab with his crampons while pulling up on his drytool. Eventually he was able to sink his tools into some ice, but the placements sounded hollow and sketchy. Ice screws wouldn't be any use, so he continued up, running it out above his only piece (a bomber cam) right off the ground. Within about 50', he set up a belay and brought Daniel and I up. From there, we simuled the remainder of the route which consisted of steep snow and ice, and mixed moves (to about 5.8 or M4). The middle of the route consisted of a long, 50 or so degree couloir which we made quick work of as a result of a huge cornice looming above. Wayne set a furious pace up this couloir and my calves were screaming by the time we set up a belay at the top, out of harm's way. He may be 47 years old, but Wayne is as tough as they come. I regretted all the "old man" jokes I've told at his expense along the way. clown.gif Topping out was a bit tricky. We finished on the same pitch Steph and I climbed to the summit by on the Stuart Glacier Couloir route one year ago. This time, there was even less snow and ice, and it was a bit trickier. Some mid-fifth moves in crampons led us to the summit ridge, less than 100' from the summit. The views from the summit were great, and the winds calm and temps relatively warm. It took us 6.5 hours from our camp to the summit (4,000', ~13 pitches). The descent down the Sherpa Glacier was direct and straightforward. The snow was soft and we were able to plunge step the majority of it, only turning around to front point a few times for a short distance. The bergschrund is opening up right now, and we were able to find a fairly good bridge along the climber's left side. Back to the cars at ~4:30, for a 12 hour day. Another great trip with Wayne and Daniel! Unfortunately, I left my camera at home. Wayne put some photos up on his website.

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honey badger
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 3:27 pm 
Another trip and tr to live vicariously through. Thanks wink.gif I'm humbled. I'd seen pictures of that area from one of Jim's climbs and was wondering... And I was whining over a little mid class 5 Saturday. Had a thought Saturday or, wonder where Tom got to. Almost crossed paths.

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the Zachster
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 4:36 pm 
Only one word comes to mind...WOW. Nice trip. I do have one question...on your first pitch when you said Wayne was smearing a steep slab with his crampons, was that like crampons on rock, like finger nails on a chalk board?

"May I always be the kind of person my dog thinks I am"
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silence
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 5:18 pm 
sweeet!! the mountain is definitely alluring .. i mean even fm a lowly onlooker .. way to go tom .. a beautiful line

PHOTOS FILMS Keep a good head and always carry a light bulb. – Bob Dylan
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Tom_Sjolseth
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 6:10 pm 
@Zachster.. if you can get your legs perpendicular enough to the slab, you can put your weight on your feet into the slab (the higher, the better), and hang from your arms on a solid and positive dry hook. So imagine yourself hanging there from your tools, the picks of the tools held on positive rock edges, but your legs are bent at the hip (forward) and your body weight is being forced into the rock at an [ideally] positive angle. This makes crampons on slab less desperate, but can make it a nails-on-chalkboard kind of thing if you can't get your weight onto your feet and are desperately seeking purchase. @Silence.. a beautiful line indeed!

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the Zachster
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 6:41 pm 
Kind of what I thought...! I have no doubt you did it in style without as much as a scratch on the rock! hockeygrin.gif Again, great TR.

"May I always be the kind of person my dog thinks I am"
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iron
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PostMon Jun 13, 2011 8:30 pm 
yawn. tom, you need to start doing something hardcore, like 2x mailbox. then we can talk doh.gif

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The Angry Hiker
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PostTue Jun 14, 2011 6:43 pm 
Looks like a real hoot. But I hope you didn't leave your big red rope up there.

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Tom_Sjolseth
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PostTue Jun 14, 2011 7:59 pm 
Ha, AH, I left it exactly how it's pictured!! embarassedlaugh.gif

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Matt
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PostTue Jun 14, 2011 11:39 pm 
I notice you didn't invite Daniel and Wayne to spend the night in your bivy cave on the descent this time.

“As beacons mountains burned at evening.” J.R.R. Tolkien
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cartman
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PostTue Jun 14, 2011 11:45 pm 
Tom_Sjolseth wrote:
Ha, AH, I left it exactly how it's pictured!! embarassedlaugh.gif
Perfect! I'll prusik up tomorrow! Seriously, that's really strong work to get that done in 12 hours. Interesting choice and route for Stuart in June.

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Don
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PostWed Jun 15, 2011 11:14 am 
Excellent work indeed, Tom! I too am surprised that such a route would still go so late in season, but then again, what do I know about ice! Congratulations on a great trip. Don

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Forum Index > Trip Reports > Mt. Stuart (9,415') - NW Face Couloir (1984) - 06.11-12.2011
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