Glacier Peak/Frostbite Ridge

Day 1: Approach: North Fork of Sauk, North on PCT until climber cutoff trail just before Glacier Creek.  Trail is in good condition until bridge at Baekos Creek.  Several blowdowns after that.  Rough trail right before Kennedy Creek and the log across Kennedy Creek to cross has washed out.   

Camped at a sandy camp ~5700 ft.  Overcast day and low cloud ceiling.  Could not see up toward route.    11 hrs to camp.

Day 2:  Delayed start due to poor visibility.  Start time: 7:30.  Ascended to Kennedy Glacier.  All snow is melted.   Climbed above the clouds after about an hour.

Moved up a mix of rock, sand and boulders on and in ice for 2 hrs to ~7500 to put crampons on to ascend bare ice glacier with open crevasses.   

Stayed on Kennedy Glacier instead of going around on Vista and Ermine Glaciers to gain the saddle leading toward Rabbit Dick.  Took crampons off at 11:00, 8800' and began climbing mix of mostly sand with rocks and boulders.  One step forward, two backward-time consuming. 

At the Rabbit Dick conditions improved and became scrambling.  Scrambled to the right of both the Dick and the Ears and avoided a small snow finger.  Descended to the notch, easy 3rd class.  Roped up at 1:00pm for a short pitch of AI-1 due to steep icy terrain, visible cracks, fall consequences and remoteness.   

Moved toward crater and downclimbed steep ice w two tools that started at 35 degrees and flattened out. 

Found nice camp at saddle of crater with water, 3:00pm.  Decided it was to late for up and over.  Set up camp and did a lap on the ice to test conditions and get stoked.  Wind kicked up and got fierce all night.  Tarp tent somehow held through the night.  White out conditions soaked in and outside the tent.  Little sleep led to sleeping in to let the sun/wind dry things out and warm up before starting.

Day 3:  By 8:00 am the clouds cleared and the sun dried things and began to shine on the ice.  Still very windy conditions.  9:00 am: Climbed the first ice step, one full pitch (We doubled the rope so 1.5 pitches) and moved climbers left to climb the second step, 2 pitches (lower angle so we used single strand).   

Great ice conditions.    Reached the summit @ 11:45.  Descended and reached the Cool Glacier @ 1:15. 

Most people are climbing the scramble route as the glacier is very broken up.  We mitigated many crevasses with more opening up and saw several leg holes through snow bridges. 

3:00pm: transitioned to tennies and got onto solid ground.  Descended to very nice camp at ~7800', 5:30 pm.

Day 4: 8:30am hike out to car ~ 13 miles, 5 hours

Gear used: 60m 8.1 rope, two tools per climber, 7 screws (brought 8), 2 pickets (brought 4), crampons, glacier gear