I loved every part of this trip. The hike to the high camp at the toe of the Sulphide glacier would be worth doing in its own right. Views of Baker and other north cascades peaks are outstanding, and blueberries are ripe! We set out from high camp early on a foggy morning, hoping for some clearing. By the time we reached the ridge we got some sunbreaks and awesome views of Baker. The route follows a smooth part of the glacier with few evident crevassses, but we passed by some huge ones. I wasn't sure what to expect of the summit pyramid scramble, having seen many conflicting reports. We somehow missed the yellow arrow painted on the rocks, and headed off to the right of the usual gully. The climbing was lovely if a bit exposed for a while until we hit some very exposed class 5 stuff on a ridge. Scrambling around to the left we could see the gully we should have taken, but it looked like we might have to down climb a couple hundred feet to get into it. Fortunately we were able to discover a route into the gully that was a lot easier than it looked. Climbing up the gully was super fun although I was glad we were the only party climbing that day. I would not recommend doing this hike on a weekend. We climbed in and out of fog but were blessed by a sunbreak on the summit. We all exalted and ate and then had to go down. A couple of members of our party were new to scrambling and were toproped for sections of the downclimb. I was really glad I had done Del Campo a couple of weeks ago since I felt well prepared--this climb is not that much harder. I've seen all sorts of rankings for it I'd say if you stick to the standard gully route it is mostly similar to Del Campo which everyone agrees is class 3, with a few somewhat harder sections. Routefinding is needed to avoid more technical moves. The main danger is rockfall--helmets are highly recommended. We got back to high camp after about 9 hours. We had planned to hike out the same day as the summit, but that would have entailed some hiking by headlamp. High camp is so nice we decided to stay another evening and hike out the next morning. We had a great breakfast at Joy's bakery in Sedro-Woolley. 5 miles and 3500' from trailhead to highcamp. Trail is unmaintained and crosses some snowfields--iceaxes recommended to be carried for these. 4 miles and 3000' from highcamp to summit. Rope, crampons, iceaxes and crevasse rescue equipment and experience needed for glacier travel with possible hidden cravasses. 500' of fun scrambling on summit pyramid. Helmets strongly recommended for possible rockfall. Rope and a belay device may be needed for beginners. If conditions are snowy or icy the summit pyramid part may be more than a mere scramble.

Henry Custer sighted ""Mount Thuskan"" on June 8, 1859 becoming the first European to view this spectacular area. He was a Swiss topographer working with the U.S. Boundary Survey and on his first exploration that led him from the Chilliwack River to the upper North Fork Nooksack and back. Custer was enchanted with the Cascades and for someone who lived and climbed in the Swiss Alps he has flowering comments about the Cascades. ""I leave it to a better pen to describe the sublimity of true Mountain scenery in the Cascades Mts, as seen from a point of such altitude; it must be seen it can not be described. Nowhere do the Mountain masses and peaks present such strange, fantastic, dauntless, and startling outlines as here. Whoever wishes to see Nature in all its primitive glory and grandeur, in its ferocious wildness, must to and visit these Mountain regions."" Our plan was to day-climb this peak and arranged a meet-time of 0400 at Ash Way P&R to allow sufficient daylight for that objective. We drove on SR 20 and turned left onto the Baker Lake Rd. Then we drove ~24 miles before turning left onto FS Rd 1152. This we took for 4 1/2 miles until it ended at the Shannon Ridge trailhead. The Shannon Ridge trail begins as an old logging road and continues as such for a couple miles. After several switchbacks the logged areas are left behind and the pleasantness of an old-growth forest envelopes the hiker. The trail seems to be occasionally maintained but there are several large logs which have to be surmounted. The trail eventually became covered with snow and we were fortunate to follow in the recognizable bootprints of prior hikers. The trail brings you to the ridgetop at ~4600 ft. After a mile the ridge abuts a cliffy slope slope which is breached by hiking NE through a col. We then hiked NNE at ~5450 ft on moderately steep snow covered slopes to reach the terminus of the Sulfide Glacier. It was then at ~6300 ft that we put on harnesses and roped up for the glacier traverse. There are several crevasses which can be easily worked around. At the summit pyramid we removed our crampons and began the trickiest part of the climb, the summit block. The ascent involves working a gully which is peppered with short sections of Class 4 rock. This is definitely an area where you want to wear a helmet. Aside from a 50 ft section of snow where the ice axe is needed the rock at this time is bare. The handholds/footholds are nicely angular and solid. We shared the gully with a dozen other people which made rockfall a possible hazard. Some parties used rope but I think that only multiplied the risk of rockfall possibly loosening rocks as it dragged across the surface. The warm air of the day allowed us to leisurely enjoy the summit capturing the beauty around us. Again Custer writes about this magical area, ""For hours and hours, the observing spectator could sit here, contemplating the wonderful works of nature without becoming tired, the eye luxuriously feasting in the matchless diversity of forms and colors, ever changing, never alike, the mind overawed by the sublimity of the works of the creator."" On the descent we stowed our harnesses and rope walking in the bootprints of previous climbers. The portion of the Sulfide Glacier used on the approach is low angled and the risk of crevasses seemed small. Elevation gain; 6720 ft Distance travelled; 14 miles Car-to-car; 11 hrs 15 min.

I had a chance to revisit a climb of Mt. Shuksan via the Sulphide Glacier so I put on my boots and packed up for two beautiful days. The trip requires a permit to camp on the Sulphide Glacier so we spent a few anxious minutes around 8 AM at Sedro Woolley waiting to see if we could get one of six ... we did (the last one). The road continues along 20 and then up Baker Lake Road ... which is in great shape. The final few miles are on well-maintained Forest Road (1152, I think) and then the -014 spur. Parking is spacious but a trailhead permit is required. The trip in has a few distinct stages. The first stage is about 2 miles of well-graded, nearly flat path that could be an extension of the road. It gets progressively bumpy and brushy but no real problems ... a few wettish areas. The bugs were moderate but tolerable. About 700 vf or so and then the trail goes up in earnest ... hacking about 1300 vf in a mile and a half or two miles. This stage is nasty with overgrown trail and a lot of roots. I've been on worse but that doesn't make this section ""good"". We took a break once on a auspicious log but the bugs (black flies, a few mosquitoes) got bad enough we took off at a good clip. The trail exits onto a ridge where you get a phenomenal view of Mt. Baker. There's a little shade, it's flat, and if conditions are right, you get a bit of a breeze. It's a great place to stop for a bite and catch your breath. From there the trail becomes dusty and very like the Eastern Washington trails ... dry and with a Ponderosa Pine scent when enough is kicked up. This lasts only a short while as you wind your way over and gently up the ridge to a cleft up a rock face. There are easy steps but you are definitely leaving your short walk on the ridge behind as you exit into the southern exposure and a traverse across a face. After you traverse the face, you pop out onto some tumbled rocks and the exit of the glacier. A short walk up puts you at low camp and from there you can walk onto the lower end of the glacier to a high camp, ~6500'. After this, not a trail ... you head up the Sulphide Glacier (avoiding exposed ice and crevasses) to attain the a high pass. From there, aim at the summit pyramid, avoid move glacial hazards, and climb as high as snow will allow on the pyramid. From there it's a class 3-4 scramble to the summit ... from what I've seen lately, no more than a class 3 if you stay on route. Return by same route. It was a gorgeous day in all but one aspect ... I forgot my camera. I'm attaching a photo someone shot from their phone. Not great quality but a great hike. The stars were absolutely phenomenal ... best I've seen in a long while.

The Sulphide Glacier on Mt. Shuksan is one of the most beautiful places we have been. We arrived at the Sedro-Wooley ranger station at 8:00AM on Friday to secure a permit, then started up the Shannon Ridge trail, which is a little rooty and steep in areas, but easy to follow. Once on the ridge there are nice views on both sides. The route follows the ridge northerly, then ascends steeply to a notch. You then contour around the east side of the high point. From here there is sketchy trail to follow ,sometimes in snow, to the camps. No water is available until about 5700ft. There are supposed to be camps here, but we did not see them. We continued to the next camp at 6200ft, which is melted out. (toilet and running water). We set up our tent, having great views of Shuksan, a sea of peaks to the East, and Baker Lake. There are also camps at 6500ft., but they are not melted out yet (toilet and running water there, too). From these higher camps you also have a stunning view of Mt. Baker. Saturday morning we left camp at 6:30 AM. The snow was perfect for crampons. We had chosen not to bring rope for this trip, which turned out to be a good decision for us. Although a few crevasses are opening up, it was easy to get around them. We had planned to not climb the summit pyramid, since it sounded like it was beyond our skill and comfort level. Instead we crossed over to high point 7846, then went to the base of the summit pyramid, then went East toward high point 8165. We were surprised to see 4 tents set up here. On the way back down we glissaded the last 1000ft. or so. The snow was soft, so it was a slow glissade, but better than nothing! We slowly packed our gear for the 3 hour hike out. Anyone who would like more information can contact us via our website:www.trailpair.com

Wanted to get one last climb in before winter - and was this the weekend or what? Started mid-day from trail head - a few blowdowns in the trees as you get to the top of the ridge. However, this weekend the views were amazing of Baker and points east. Once over the notch we remembered not to take the obvious trail to the left, rather the harder to find trail to the right gaining Sulfide. Camping in the evening was an experience - late enough in the year no bugs up there - early enough that it was comfortable - and clear skys around. We had a great discussion of stars, and a quarter moon shone brightly for quite a while. Next morning we were up before dawn, heading up the glacier - crevasses were obvious, but it was really icy throughout the trip on the glacier, including on the way back. The pyramid was snow-free except near the top - we had a large group and rapped down, crossing the glacier in early afternoon. The trip out was uneventful - other than the breathtaking beauty of the views back to the car...we couldn't name half of the mountains we saw in the distance. What a weekend to call the last this year!!!