[NinJosh]

Being my last Bulger summit I decided what better way to do it than solo. This being my 41st solo Bulger summit was nothing new to me. In my opinion there’s nothing more pure than being out there totally self-reliant upon oneself in the middle of nowhere. I would do it as a day trip via Thunder Creek TH. The drive out Friday after work gave me time to think and reflect upon this journey and all that it has done for me. I woke up a smidge late and ended up hitting the trail by 5am. I was feeling strong and motivated, which was good for I had a long ways to travel today. It was nice to crank out some miles in the shade along Thunder Creek, then to Fisher Creek. At Rock Cabin Avalanche I found a spot to cross the creek and took my first break. The sun was just starting to come up over the ridge and I could tell it was going to be hot. Nervous that I didn’t have enough water for the hot south side of the ridge I drank as much as a could before taking off up the slope. The progress up was slow and hot, fortunately there was still some drips up high that I could top off my water. Once around 5800’ I started making a rising traverse easterly to through the easiest path until I hit a series of meadows just below the ridge. More streams quenched my thirst along the way which was crucial with how hot it was. I was about to cross the last meadow until I saw a bear chilling in the meadow, not wanting to disturb him I choose to head straight up to the ridge proper and then start the traverse over to Cosho Peak. It was 1pm at this point and I could tell time was going to be an issue on this venture but was committed and continued anyways. It was a long traverse over mostly staying on or just below on the south side of the ridge until below Cosho where you take the gully up to the East Ridge. I was really starting to get tired at this point but had to continue on up the East Ridge. It was some easy fun scrambling to the top where I could finally lay claim to a “Bulger Finisher.” It was 3:15pm when I got up there and took 15 minutes before the long journey back. As I was following the same traverse back I thought in my mind, what better way to finish than make it a loop trip up and over Red Mountain back to 4th of July Pass, then to Thunder Creek once more. The travel for the most part was easy with a few ups and downs until I got closer to Red Mountain where the loose scree was really slowing me down. The only way to prevent this was to follow the ridge proper, which involved a lot more ups and downs. It seemed to take forever, which it did. However I had the best seat in the house with 360 degree views right in the middle of the North Cascades. You couldn’t get much better than that! I hadn’t taken a break since the summit and still had no time to stop as the sun was starting to set just as I was approaching the forested area below. I had about an hour of daylight left I had figured and kept moving as fast as I could making sure to keep a good compass bearing. As it darkened it became quite a challenge to stay on route and soon found myself wondering if I was actually on the right track. I was nervous since I was running low on water, time, and energy. I had descended a long ways it felt like at this point and was becoming frustrated with where I was at. Which in the dark at this point I didn’t really have a clue. At one point I started to hear water and headed straight for that to find a small stream. I was so relived I stopped to take a break and check the time. It was 11pm, 18 hours after I left the trailhead. I doubted that I was going to make it out tonight and thought it was best to stick by the water and rough it out until morning and reevaluate my situation in the morning. I was able to start a small fire along a dry spot in the creek bed to keep me warm for the next several hours to come. I only got 30 min intervals of sleep before I woke up again cold having to put more wood on the fire to keep warm through the night. Morning came fast enough and was able to follow the stream down to a bigger creek which I didn’t know what it was at the time, but thought I should follow it down for a ways hoping to run into something familiar. Shortly after, I ran into a trail….but which trail? I follow it downstream until my initial thought of being the Panther Creek Trail was confirmed when I ran into Panther Creek Camp. Not wanting to make this trip any longer I decided to continue out Panther Creek and hitch a ride back to my car at Thunder Creek. At this point I was completely exhausted and mentally drained. Forcing myself to move on I stumbled to Highway 20 just before 8am. The journey wasn’t over yet though as I still had to hitch a ride back to my car. I had a feeling it wasn’t going to be easy as car after car passed I was getting frustrated and was about to break down. I kept it together and was soon picked up by some fellow hikers who graciously gave me a ride to my car. Major thanks!! During the 11 years I have been working on this list, I have learned more about myself then I had ever thought. The lessons you learn in the mountains, directly correlate how you live your life and to keep pushing. It’s been an amazing journey and have met some awesome people along the way that will stay friends forever. In particular this trip is exactly what I look for when I get out, something to challenge myself and keep pushing myself to be better at whatever I do. It’s amazing what oneself can do when you really put your mind to it, the opportunities are infinite. 28 miles 10,000' gain

Looking up just past Rock Cabin Avalanche

Pretty meadows

Mt Logan

Cosho Peak in the distance

Cosho's summit block

My route back along Red Mountain

Kimtah in the distance with register

The man himself Mr. Roper

Oops, forgot to date it!

The bear I had to avoid in the meadows

Buckner, Boston, Forbidden

Endless views along the ridge

Looking back at Cosho Peak

No place I'd rather be, its like my second home

As the sun sets...

[RichP]

It sounds like you finished in style, unplanned bivy and all. Congratulations.

[Distel32]

Congrats

[FiresideChats]

Well played and congratulations on the accomplishment! We do love our mountains around here.

[Paul M]

congrats on finishing. 41 solo too!

[Yet]

What a way to finish! Thanks for sharing your story. Congratulations!

[gray matter]

Congratulations! What an accomplishment.

[sound2summit]

Congrats Josh! What a way to finish the list - nothing like an unplanned bivy. How did you manage to get the Cosho register open? We had no such luck last year.

[NorDub]

Congratulations! And what a good view up there of the mountains, flower explosion, and healthy looking bear.

[NinJosh]

I heard the same thing about the register not opening but the lid just kinda pulled off. It wasn't perfectly sealed when I found it but made sure to pile a lot of rocks over it to protect it.

[scottk]

Congratulations! You finished on a quintessential Bulger peak. Bushwacking, loose rock, isolated; and rarely climbed, for all the qualities listed above. You get style points for finishing with an un-planned bivy.

[trent]

Congrats! Way to git er done!

[Mesahchie Mark]

[raising3hikers]

nice job josh

[ozzy]

Hell yeah brother that's kick ass, congrats!