Hello climbers,
Summer continues in full swing around Washington. Temperatures should hover around seasonal norms for the rest of the week before a slight disturbance over the weekend. There will be a slight dip in the temperature and there may even be a bit of precipitation in the mountains. It should be a nice break as high pressure returns for the start of next week, bringing sunny skies to the mountains.
Mount Rainier (Tahoma)
Only minor changes have occurred the last week on Mount Rainier as all routes are still being climbed successfully. Trails are melted down to dry trail low on the approach and it’s a great time of year to see wildflowers and animals roaming around Paradise in the park. The Muir Route is still continuing up the Disappointment Cleaver from Ingraham Flats and climbing a direct line after traversing to the Emmons Shoulder from the top of the Cleaver. Two of our teams climbed the Emmons last week and reported happy disbelief with how direct the route is from Camp Schurman. Our last Emmons climb of the season departs this weekend and we should still have favorable climbing conditions all week. Finally, the lower Nisqually glacier melted out very quickly last week. Our last climb of the season is just wrapped up and approached via the Van Trump adding a bit more hiking to get to camp.
Mount Baker (Koma Kulshan)
Even though its been warm lately, the Easton Route is holding up exceptionally well. The lower part of the Easton is very direct with minimal crevasses to end run. Higher on the mountain, a bit of a redirect towards the Squak Glacier is occurring to avoid some crevasses to reach the crater. The Roman Headwall continues to climb well with a very well-established trail through the steepest parts of the climb. Over on the North side, climbers should expect another mile to the approach up the road as the closure was kicked back to mile 3 for road repairs on FS 39.
Across the Cascades
Elsewhere in the Cascades, climbers continue to report outstanding conditions across the range. Wildfires throughout the Cascades have had no impact on climbs in the Washington Pass or Glacier Peak zones. Recent trips to Washington Pass continue to climb stellar granite in the Liberty Bell group. Glacier Peak is still in prime summer climbing conditions with a well established track on the glaciers all the way to the summit.
See you in the mountains!
