Successful summit of Mt. Baker. We based at Hogsback Camp. I thought we would be camping on snow, but there are many small islands of rock that have melted out, some with rock wind walls already built. We practiced some roped travel skills, got our gear ready, had some dinner and went to bed early.
In the morning, one of our team members was not feeling well, so we switched from two ropes to one rope. It took us a bit longer as we had to reorganize, so we didn't start hiking up out of camp until 3:30 p.m. The terrain was well covered, with no visible crevasses near the main boot path up. It is over-all pretty gentle terrain until the Roman Wall. In my mind, I had pictured it a lot steeper and shorter. In reality, it is not as vertical as I expected, but goes on a lot longer than I thought it would. Allow 60 to 90 minutes to get up it. Also, leave early enough so that you can reach the summit before the sun hits the face of the Roman Wall.
Once we crested the summit rim, it was a short walk to a cone that is the true summit. Totally worth it to go to the true summit as the view of Mt. Shuksan was really fantastic. Mt. Rainier and Glacier Peak were also out in full glory.
One note of concern, the top of Colfax Peak has formed a crack and is headed toward a catastrophic fail, perhaps this summer. Quickly move through this section and the debris field under it.
Comments