Cliff Lake, Mt. Chaval — Friday, May. 25, 2001

Saturday's perfect weather forecast prompted my partner and me to attempt Mt. Chaval, which is the prominent triple-peaked mountain located northeast of Darrington. Our route of choice was via Grade Creek Road (No. 2640), Bluff Lake, and Cliff Lake, then continuing along the west ridge. We had attempted a one-day climb of Chaval by this route last year in mid-July, after reading a WTA report from a late-June climb, but we were unsuccessful because of (1) a late start, (2) being slowed down by brush below the snowline, and (3) totally underestimating the time required. Our new plan called for (1) car-camping on Grade Creek Road to allow for an early start, (2) scheduling the trip earlier in the summer to benefit from greater snowcover, and (3) not totally underestimating the time required. We left our vehicle at 5:15 AM and walked up the spur road (No. 2643) about 2 miles to a sharp switchback, from where a fisherman's path contours the hillside and crosses several branches of Jug Creek. This path is well-defined in some places and vague in others. Despite being familiar with the path (from last year's approach), we continually got off-track and had to relocate it. Two of the creek branches required a bit of searching to find safe crossings. Fortunately, the path does not cross the main (eastern) branch of Jug Creek; instead, it switchbacks up the western bank until dropping slightly to a small basin at 3700 feet. From here, we could walk on snow-covered slopes all the way past Bluff Lake and Cliff Lake, eventually coming to a 5400-foot spur east of Cliff Lake. This ridge provides a nice view of Mt. Chaval's west ridge. Getting to the summit pyramid involves traversing the steep southern side of the ridge for 1 mile to a 5900-foot saddle, then traversing the gentler northern side for another 0.5 mile. Our progress was slowed by mushy snow on both sides, and the midday sun broiled us. The summit pyramid features moderate snowfields leading to a steep, intimidating snow ramp that angles up to the right shoulder, with near-vertical cliffs above and below. We donned crampons and proceeded up the lower snowfields. Not having brought a rope and snow anchors, we opted to ascend some steep but friendly heather slopes and a rock band to the left of the snow ramp. The rock band required a few Class 3-4 moves, which would have been more fun without wearing crampons. Above this, another heather slope leads to a short but very steep and exposed snowfield that arcs across the summit crest. My stomach securely tied itself into a quadruple-bowline-on-the-bight as I negotiated this last pitch, wishing we had come prepared for such dicey terrain. Finally, there was the narrow, airy summit! The views were dramatic in all directions, especially toward the east, where Chaval's two subordinate peaks projected upward like fins. Sadly, no summit register was to be found. Downclimbing the steep snow and rock band did nothing to loosen my stomach knot, but eventually we reached the base and could relax. Now, only 7 miles of snow-slogging and rough hiking lay before us. The snow had become even softer since we originally broke trail across the hillsides, so backtracking was not much easier. Also, the increased runoff from afternoon snowmelt made the creek crossings more interesting. We reached our vehicle scant minutes before nightfall. Stats: 14 miles round trip, 6400 feet, 9 hours 23 minutes up, 6 hours 37 minutes down.