Trevor Dickie
If you didn’t notice, the larches were out in force this month, along with exceptionally sunny October weather inviting us to play outside. I think Mother Nature remembered to let the trees know it’s autumn, but she forgot to invite the rain. That's just dandy by me.
Also, I promise this is not a contest, but if it were, Susan Shih would be crowned winner with three reports making this list from the five trips she led in October!
This month, we have five scramble reports, two climb reports, and one each from a sailing trip, a backpacking trip, and a day hike.
You can find recommendations for how to write a solid report here. The following write-ups are listed in the date that the trips occurred, not ranked in any way. Click on the photos to read the full reports from the volunteers and members.
scramble - little annapurna 10/6-7
“First off, let me say I will never do this as a 1-day out and back again. I am not a fast hiker, so this was a 16hr day (16mi, 6100ft, including a good deal of boulder-hopping), in and out by headlamp, followed by a 3-4hr drive home in the middle of the night. A faster leader could do this justice.”
Hopefully, Meryl Lipman’s report is from a day filled with Type 2 fun. Perhaps she looks back on it happily at this point? If not, fun of the third variety is sometimes inevitable if you pursue a life recreating in the outdoors. Regardless, a great write-up from the adventure.
backpack - thunder creek 10/7
“A quick descent back to camp, then dinner, then (since conditions permitted) we were able to enjoy a small campfire using wood we had collected from the 4th of July Pass area, which was much drier. We followed park rules and only collected dead and downed wood.”
Gabriela Orsi’s report exemplifies proper attention to land manager guidelines, and a great way to make the most of early October. Perfect time to get in a hike after the reservation period (and maybe crowding) earlier in the season.
day hike - alpine lookout/round mountain 10/7
“Much of ridge's views are obscured by trees, but we get occasional southern and western views. The new snow makes the peaks look prettier.”
Susan Shih makes a good point in her report, those peaks sure do look pretty. A great write-up filled with photos and a nice step-by-step description of the Sunday outing.
basic alpine climb - north bessemer mountain 10/13
“9 hours round trip from the spur road below south bessemer, mainly due to routefinding through the brush. Could easily save several hours on a return trip (not that I would ever go back).”
Tom Girard’s trip may not sound too pleasant, but it’s a nice, succinct report with great photos and a bit of beta.
scramble - ingalls peak/south peak 10/13
“The decision to wander up to Ingalls South Peak on a Friday was well rewarded as we only encountered about half a dozen people on the trail to the lake. The Larches were as beautiful as expected and appeared to be nearing their peak; golden leaves with just slight hints of chartreuse.”
Dan Casady’s trip happened to be on one of the few fair-weather weekends we got in October. Wait, wasn’t there at least one sunny day each weekend? It seemed to me like the weather conspicuously got better in time for almost every weekend—I think Mother Nature was making sure everyone had no excuse to miss the larches. A detailed report from a great trip.
sail - esther, port of edmonds marina 10/14
“And we were off, only a few seconds behind the line, on starboard. But the big boys were also on starboard, and started gobbling up our wind. We made a strategic tack to port and headed inshore, with a reminder to the crew to watch for swimming sea stars so I didn't run us aground again.”
Carl Harrington is back on the list with another report from the water. It wouldn’t be tough to argue his reports as some of the most thrilling and entertaining reports out there, as the captain and crews’ adventures never seem to disappoint.
intermediate alpine climb - observation rock/north face 10/24
“From the elevation of the rock, one party did an entire full rope length and then a very short quarter pitch to the top. Other party split the final section into about two half pitches to complete the climb. Ice was very solid almost the whole route and especially so near the upper portion. Brought 12 screws each team. Could have gone with 10 if needed, but nice to have a couple extra.”
Another report celebrating the great weather we had for much of October. Craig Taylor was lucky enough to get a solid ice climb in, with t-shirt weather at the summit. Sounds like an ideal trip!
scramble - malcolm & johnson mountains 10/22
“The only scramble section was about 30 feet in length. We quickly traversed to the summit by 9:15 AM (2.25 hrs to the first summit). I made a quick call to my family back in India (9:45PM) to show them how beautiful the mountains are and also some larches.”
Ananth Maniam’s report is as fast paced as his trip, with a nice amount of detail. The weather, summits, and larches sound incredible. Their brisk time of 5 hours and 20 minutes with 12.1 miles and 4,900 feet of gain is definitely something to be proud of.
scramble - revolution peak via thompson point
“This is when the scrambling starts. It takes us about an hour mainly staying on the treed ridge, following sometimes faint, sometimes very defined bootpath to a saddle and then up to the summit of Revolution. There is some bushwacking although some might be avoided by dropping down a bit.”
Susan’s second report on the list comes from what appears to be a nice trip up Revolution Peak with some fantastic weather. The report features great annotated photos and beta. 67 degrees on October 22? Count me in.
scramble - grindstone mountain 10/27
“It's been warm and pleasant until we reach the saddle at about 11:15am. It's breezy and chilly here and the north side of the ridge is in shade. We put on jackets and helmet and drop 200' traversing under the ridge. The ground is hard with a bit of snow so we can't edge with our boots. Spots are slippery so we have to be very careful while aiming for the bench.”
Our last great trip report of the month, again from Susan Shih. Looks to have been a good trip (albeit chilly in some sections) with a return to the car just beating the incoming weather. A great outing on what may have been one of the last good opportunities at this scramble this season.
Last month's Top 5 blog post is also online for you to check out. If you have a trip report you've really enjoyed, or wrote one yourself that you are quite proud of, send them our way at info@mountaineers.org. We may be featuring the best of the best in an upcoming edition of Mountaineer magazine!
