Basic Glacier Climb - Mount Baker/Coleman Glacier

Trip Report

Trip Date: 2024-07-27 (Saturday)

Party size: 4

Gear: 2x30m ropes, 4 pickets

 

12:01: AM met at Heliotrope Ridge TH

12:20 AM: started hiking down the trail

 

3:15 AM: started ascending snow roped up (6300’) as two teams of two, each on a 30m rope at 15m spacing. Conditions were partly cloudy (and clearing as we ascended) with a ½ moon, freezing levels were forecasted in the range of 12,500’ dropping to 9500’.

 

There were some step across crevasses to figure out a route through between the Hogsback camp and the Black Buttes camp.

 

4:50 AM: it was light enough to turn off headlamps

 

If you’re following the boot path in the snow, this route utilizes a snow bridge that is still in place and marked by a wand.

 

6:15 AM: arrived at 9100’ saddle

 

Snow was hard/icy, no ice axe spike penetration. Used 2 pickets on running belays to protect the steep snow step just above the 9100’ said to reach the pumice ridge. Walked up the pumice ridge carrying rope coils in our hands.

 

7:30 AM: reached the top of the pumice ridge. From the top of the pumice ridge the angle of the snow to reach top of the Roman Wall increased, ending in a steep step. From below, this step was clearly a bottleneck in the route as teams took turns slowly ascending/descending. Some of the teams of 2 stayed roped up, others unroped for this section. Before leaving the pumice ridge, we adjusted our ropes so we were traveling as one team of 4 at 15m spacing, front person (me) had all 4 pickets, which I hoped would be adequate to protect the steep step. Near the bottom of the step we paused to let a descending team pass. From this point I could see that our 4 pickets and 45m of rope would be adequate to get through this section using a running belay.

The icy step: It was not possible to self-belay with the shaft of the ice axe through the icy step (or on any of the snow above the pumice ridge). We used the pick of our ice axe in low and high dagger position for balance. The large steps were sometimes awkward. It was sometimes difficult to find a location for the pick of our axe.  Shallow rock and hard ice complicated finding purchase for our ice axe pick and limited where pickets could be placed. Two of our pickets were Yates, two were standard. I used the Yates pickets in what appeared to be the iciest sections and was able to pound them using a vertical placement, striking them with my ice axe oriented vertically, the picket pinging with each strike, inspiring confidence that placement was being driven into hard snow below.

 

9:30 AM-11 AM: arrived at the summit crater, unroped, took some time to eat, adjust layers (it was warm, no puffy jacket needed here) walked to summit where we had it to ourselves for at least 15 min before others arrived, admired the views and took lots of summit photos, and prepared to descend as a team of 4.

 

Despite the warm conditions on the summit, the icy step was no less icy on the way down. So we again protected this section with our 4 pickets. And carefully descended the steep icy snow to the pumice ridge.

 

12:10 PM: arrived at the top of the pumice ridge. We transitioned to two teams of 2, each on 30m ropes at 15m spacing and descended the ridge carrying rope coils in our hands.

 

12:50 PM departed the 9100’ saddle and traveled as quickly as possible under the Colfax seracs.

 

2:30 PM: unroped at 6100’. The last several hundred feet of descent was on uneven, mushy snow.

The wildflowers in the vicinity of the Hogsback camp and lower Coleman seracs were amazing! So much color with a backdrop of scenic mountain ridges, moraines, and Mt Baker!

 

4:10 PM: arrived at Heliotrope Ridge TH.

Map