A lovely fall trail run. The Easton Glacier is heavily crevassed right now. 

Watch the trip-report vlog video for the full story - see link below. 

Our objective was to summit Mount Baker via the Easton Glacier route. From the very beginning, we face unexpected challenges. As we ascend, we anticipate the conditions of a late-season climb, including melted snow bridges and an icy glacier. With the freezing level at 12,000 feet, the glacier is likely slippery as heck. Add to that, we hear about a guided service turning back at the formidable Roman Wall due to a dangerous combo of icy slopes and scree. Despite these daunting circumstances, we press on, spending the afternoon at camp honing our crevasse rescue skills. However, my personal gear mishap with ill-fitting crampons casts a shadow of doubt over our summit attempt. Would we make it to the top?

The second day unfolds in the dark, with our bleary-eyed team starting our ascent at 1:30am. Roping up and donning crampons, we soon realize that we've roped up and cramponed in too early, and there's a severe lack of snow on the route. My unstable crampons further complicate matters. The situation comes to a head when we realize we've veered off course, losing valuable time. And it becomes evident that we're not going to reach the glacier as planned. Safety is our top priority, so we make the difficult decision to turn back, arriving at camp by 4 a.m. After a brief rest, we hike out, reflecting on the challenges we faced and the lessons we learned. While we didn't reach the summit, we hold our heads high, for every day spent on the mountain is a good day. We've learned valuable lessons about gear preparation, seasonal climbing timing, and the need for more mountaineering skills.

Enough time has passed since I did this trip that the conditions I encountered will no longer be relevant. However, I wanted to write this review to give people a reality check on what hiking Mt. Baker entails.

I have been a day hiker and overnight backpacker for 40 years. This year I decided to expand my horizons to learn about mountaineering on glaciers. I read that Mt. Baker was a good "starter volcano" for someone like me. I hired a guide service that ensured I had all the proper gear and gave "snow school" at base camp before summiting.

We summited on Aug. 9th and started our descent down the Roman Wall. I was in the lead on the rope. Two other people being guided were after me, and the guide was in the back. I was following the footsteps of the trail we came up on. At first, I just thought I was post-holing. Then my leg fell a little deeper. Then my whole body fell through fifteen feet down into a crevasse. The snow that fell out from underneath me got wedged in and created a small platform for me to stand on. A foot to either side of me the crevasse went down so deep I couldn't see the bottom. Since I fell through and not over an edge, there was an overhang that made pulling me out much more difficult. Long story short, my guide and team did an amazing job and got me out. My guide emphasized to me that I did nothing wrong. It was just a bad case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Anyone would have been following the trail just like I was.

This was the scariest thing that has ever happened to me, and I am never stepping on a glacier ever again. My mountaineering friends tell me something like this is one in a million and that I shouldn't stop. My guide told me that, having taken people up for five years, this was the first time something like this had happened. Still, I just want to put this out there to make people take this summit seriously. There is a serious risk, and you should be aware of that.

First time mountaineer who did the Easton glacier hike to summit--summit is a banger of a hike, and great for new mountaineers who have technical training, rope team, etc.!* Group of seven learning glacier hiking and crevasse work, super fun weekend with an all-women team. Sandy Camp is lovely with running water, we ran into a group of ptarmigan and their babies running about the glacier as we started in the dark, charming. Great run up to the caldera, lots of sulphur in the air. Roman Wall was challenging for my thighs, but doable. View from the top was lovely, even with nearby smoke from fires. World we're living in now. :( Still glad to be in it and able to go places like Koma Kulshan/Mt. Baker. :) 

*Edited to share that summiting is not for casual hikers. As someone mentioned, you need training, a guide, ice axe, crampons, etc. I thought folx would know that from the words "mountaineer," "glacier," "crevasse" + picture of the crampons and rope, but given the comment, I figured I'd spell it out!

We climbed with Queer Mountaineers, what an amazing experience on the mountain together. It was so magical to spend time outside in such a beautiful place with such a great group:) 

TH: parking lot was full Friday around noon and when we left monday cars were parked very far down the road. Bathroom at th was nice and with toilet paper. 

The hike up the railroad grade is so beautiful. No bugs. We camped at around 6000ft. There are a few tarns and water. 

The climb was beautiful, boot pack was well established. Nice steps up the Roman wall. There’s a short section of dirt/pumice to exit towards the summit. Summit is also dirt. 

Overall incredible experience with an amazing group!