Sloan Peak via Bedal Creek Trail
We did this as an overnight, but overall hiking time was just under 10 hours. Most Trip Reports suggest 13 - 15 hours, but here's our breakdown:
- Car to Camp (Tarn @ 5300'): 2.5 Hours
- Camp to Glacier: 1 Hour
- Glacier Crossing: 30 minutes (Open crevasses, we took the high route)
- Glacier to Summit: 1 Hour
- Summit Lunch: 1 Hour
- Summit to Camp: 2 Hours
- Camp to Car: 2 Hours
First off, there are 2 different approaches: Bedal Creek Trail (#705) and Cougar Creek (#608). After talking to a couple on the summit who attempted Bedal Creek last weekend unsuccessfully, they reported that Cougar Creek was much easier in terms of route-finding. This brings me to my second point, navigational skills and GPS are required for this approach. My partner and I are quite seasoned and had plenty of difficulty route-finding through the dense trees above Bedal Creek Trail. Plenty of bugs and bushwhacking, but wildflowers and berries to keep spirits high.
We slept under the stars near a tarn on the saddle between Sloan and Bedal, stayed warm through the night but woke up with a thin layer of ice on the sleeping bags. As you leave the tarn, there is no clear trail so start traversing up and toward the saddle to climbers right (see photo for route).
The glacier crossing was uneventful with a solid boot pack, but there are areas of the high route that cross just above open crevasses -- ice axe, crampons, rope, and crevasse rescue knowledge are essential regardless of route selection. Once across the glacier, the trail is well-defined with some exposed rock scrambling to reach the summit, cairns mark the path. Overall, this was a challenging and rewarding summit, would like to try again from the Cougar Creek approach.
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