Your email address will not be published. go back until there was a more favorable forecast and potential for The name was officially accepted in 1955. Since Dragontail lies east of the crest, it tends to be warmer and have better weather in spring making it a popular peak to climb in May and June when the permit system is not yet in effect. Looking forward to many more together . It was still fun climbing and goes in probably almost any condition. It would be some of the best May conditions that we could think of as the snow was bottomless. Little Annapurna. From the base of the east facing snowfield, begin climbing the 35 degree snow slope aiming towards the obvious saddle between the summit ridge to the right and the jagged ridge coming off Witches Tower to the left. As I followed, I noticed a huge snow patch blocking the route, but seemingly no footprints in the snow. Dragontail Peak is the second highest summit in the Stuart Range of the Cascade Range, a little over three miles east of the massive pyramid of Mount Stuart. From our camp, it appeared there was at least some ice over the runnels, but it did not look like a lot. Great day and perfect conditions- sounds like ~10 people climbed it and three skied it? It felt like forever as we bushwhacked for the next few hours and crossed numerous creeks we. This post may contain affiliate links. Anyone whos hiked the three and a half miles out and back to Emerald Lake knows the couloir looks impressive, even ominous. Mt. Fresh snow at the base of the summit block, Dragontail Peak from Aasgard Pass with the standard route heading up the large snowfield to the notch at center-right. Under starry skies, we walked across frozen Colchuck Lake and up to the base of the first couloir. From the north side of the lake, follow the trail around its western shore and locate the Colchuck Glacier heading steeply up to the right upon reaching the south end of the lake. In the second couloir, the snow quality continued to deteriorate. updates, images, or resources. Cross the Snow Lake dam which could be difficult in early season and continue up the well maintained trail but steep trail and reach Lake Viviane at 6,800 feet. Reach Leavenworth by driving US 2 east from Everett or west from Wenatchee. The Mountaineers, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. 2.5 Baths. Followed by the Robins Lake area to Stevens Pass. FEATURING NEW Granite KITCHEN COUNT I just think being able to climb a classic and then ski one makes for one great day in the mountains. If you want to see more ski tours within the Stevens Pass Backcountry check out this link. Box 329 Leavenworth, WA 98826 phone: 509-548-5823 fax: 320-388 . Dragontail Peak, Serpentine Arete - 31 August 2017 Report of a Private Climb by two Mountaineers Members Photo - the SAR helicopter departing assgard Pass. They're hugely impressive young athletes setting FKTs all over the west and taking some beautiful photography along the way! During the day, we were radioed additional information that they might be on . Dragontail Peak. Thanks for busting trail! Yellow = Dragontail Peak, Triple Couloirs (III+ WI3 M3), Red = Dragontail Peak, Gerber-Sink (IV WI3+ M4), Green = Colchuck Peak, North Buttress Couoir (II). On March 28, Thurmer's wife called 911 and said she was concerned because she . This huge parking area is the start to the Snow Lakes and Lower Enchantments approach. This route is done using the Colchuck Lake approach. For Colorado adventure skiers, springtime means hunting season. Powered by Invision Community, [TR] Dragontail Peak TC Ski - Triple Couloirs: Option #3 3/21/2010, WELCOME TO THE CASCADECLIMBERS.COM FORUMS. There are two trailheads used to climb Dragontail. Sure, email them to me: touring29@gmail.com. It started with an easy slab traverse and then a super fun 5.8 dihedral! Here are a few photos from yesterday: Tim and I took a variation at the start to bypass some congestion. In general the area was stacked with enough mountains to keep one busy for a lifetime. Low around 21. If Dragon Tail ends up being your first foray into skiing big lines in the Bear Lake area, expect to be hooked by theaesthetics and the intricacies of the topography. Stuart. 316 summits. Thanks. It was going to be a great day riding down Dragontail Peak. Not wanting to commit to the three 60m raps down the un-ice runnels between the 2nd and Hidden couloirs, I discovered the following option for the ascent and descent. Even at the top, I struggled to find any belay anchor given the rotten snow and thin ice. Snap! Glad we did not go that way! At the summit, we gained the familiar view of the Enchantments, Stuart Range, and greater Alpine Lakes Wilderness area. Jacob led more easy terrain until reaching a 5.5-5.6 corner. - Supermarmot, Routes Challenges featuring Dragontail Peak. In addition to the stated desireable climbing season of July-October, Dragontail is also one of the more reasonable large backcountry peaks to be climbed in the early season. A few hop turns and we were below the entrance cliff to TC's. There was no more 5th class to the summit. For the walk-up route on the south side of the peak, either the Colchuck Lake/Aasgard Pass approach can be used, or you can hike the Snow Creek trail and ascend to the Enchantment basin from Snow Lakes. Print/PDF map. In the upper half of the pitch, I kept wandering upwards, eventually running out of rope and needing Jacob to simul a few feet to make a belay. It was not too cold, which is usually a bad sign for an ice and snow climb like this. Kyle leading the short mixed section, looking for that turf! Not wanting to commit to the three 60m raps down the un-ice runnels between the 2nd and Hidden couloirs, I discovered the following option for the ascent and descent. It took some exploring, but I found a way through some cliffs, climbing some very fun WI2+ ice gully and then up more through rotten snow on top of slab. This approach is both longer and has more elevation gain. Way to hit it under perfect conditions. Copper Mountain Ski Area. But use cautionserious accidents have happened glissading from Aasgard Pass. Still, there was one tough looking chimney ahead of us. Head southwest on the Stuart Lake Trail. Dragontail Peak; Dragontail Peak Triple Couloirs; Dragontail Peak; Aasgard Pass Hike; Goose Egg Mountain. The couloir faces southeast and receives ample sun. If snow free, there is a climber's trail in the scree on . Only 10cm screws were really worthwhile because of the thin ice. .GPX File. Use radios to communicate from one stopping point to another. If I do this again, I will unrope here and just move together. To the West we could see Colchuck Peak and the area from Snoqualmie Pass to Mount Hinman. Forecast Discussion. A "wrinkle in the granite," Jeff called it. 208SX. Although three straight days of sun at this time of year might be an anomaly . you can take at this route/place. Dan getting ready to drop into the Hidden. Instead we continued up and right. Dragontail Peak is the second highest peak in the Stuart Range, exceeded only by 9,415 foot, . Sign in|Recent Site Activity|Report Abuse|Print Page|Powered By Google Sites. Awesome! The pitch ended with some 5.8 lichen covered slab, probably the crux of the entire route! Will descending the variable snow of the Hidden. Small cams and pitons were helpful. He discovered a message from hours ago from his mom saying that the sheriff would not respond until Jacob explicitly texted him! Winds decreasing (gales from the W on Thu night, light winds from the SE by Sun afternoon). Saying yes was a bit of a leap for me. Triple Couloirs 4/1/2017. searching for extra of your magnificent post. Get to know this 24.6-mile out-and-back trail near Leavenworth, Washington. Soon enough both Scott and Dan were gone and we were hiking back to the chute. The easiest routes are scrambles from the south and / or the Colchuck Col at the top of the Colchuck Glacier to the east. The 3rd couloir was incredible skiing, with the powder compact but soft, and the pitch steep but not extremely so. Stevens Pass WA. (jOkE!). Seasonality. A lengthy and difficult hike up an iconic peak inside the Enchantments. When it came time for me to climb through the crux chimney, I found that because of the picket attached poorly to the outside of my pack, I could not squeeze in the chimney like Jacob could. Talking to Jacob, we decided to go into Colchuck Lake, take a look at Triple Couloirs, and climb the easier North Buttress Couloir of Colchuck as a backup. We climbed to the top of the Hidden Couloir, and broke out onto the North Face. Ed skiing down the Colchuck couloir after summiting Dragontail Peak, WA It certainly made for the quickest, most enjoyable part of the whole descent. Washington Scrambles Challenge. This is a list of titles that represent the variations of trips Hike up the final hill to the Upper Enchantment Lakes and reach Isolation Lake at 7,715 feet where the ascent using the standard route begins. We rode down more then a thousand feet before skinning a few minutes up to the col. Back up at the north col we were excited. This beautiful and very popular 4-mile trail is accessed from Stuart Lake Trail #1599 which starts at Stuart Lake Trailhead (3400' elevation). I led the next pitch. With solid hand and foot holds we pushed up the final 20 feet and soon enough we were on the summit. At this time, Dan Helmstadtler popped up on the summit with intentions to ski TC's as well. Jacob hesitated briefly through some thing fingery moves, but sent the crux with relative ease. Mailbox Peak. Not bad for a 2000 ft grade IV route! Some of the text below was written by Bob. A heavy fall of snow, heaviest during Thu night. It was quite exhausting. Eventually, I spotted a rappel anchor. Still, it is awesome. and Ski Mountaineering Guides, as well as IFMGA Licensed Guides. I manage to flop out of the icy water like a beach whale and enjoyed a frozen minute of sun bathing on a little iceberg. I've had my eye on the N. Face of Dragontail all season as it relates to Triple Couloirs. Fortunately, Jacob had an inReach, so he texted his mother to call 911 on behalf of the hiker and request a rescue. This was definitely Jacobs pitch. He was approaching it Teleross style, by hiking up the backside, and planned to do the raps. They had followed me the entire route all the way to the summit! Mount Shuksan is a glaciated massif in the North Cascades National Park.Shuksan rises in Whatcom County, Washington immediately to the east of Mount Baker, and 11.6 miles (18.7 km) south of the Canada-US border.The mountain's name Shuksan is derived from the Lummi word [qsn], said to mean "high peak". Luckily, it was dead calm and I was able to communicate with them from 1000 ft above. Tyndall Gorge, which runs perpendicular to the base of Dragon Tail, evidences the Rockiesglacial history. I'm too wussy to drop in blind, especially on a route like TC's. At 6,400 feet, make sure you stay left of the small cliff band with the waterfalland stay near the base of the huge cliffs coming down from the Enchantment Peaks. I'm excited to see what they'll do in the coming years. From the northwest was the Chiwaukum area. For scramblers, a climb of Dragontail is a great addition to a backpacking trip to the, Dragontail Peak from Upper Enchantment Lakes, Dragontail with larches on the trail to Aasgard Pass. For the rock routes on the north side of the peak, approach via Colchuck Lake. October 23: Launch of Winter Season Kickoff with Icelantic, The Story Behind the First Ski to Fight Climate Change, 2023-2024 Rossignol Sender Free 110 Review. It is 4.5 miles one way to the lake with 2,000 feet of elevation gain. Early season starts whenever the Mountaineer Creek Road opens to the Stuart Lake Trailhead, usually mid-April (call Leavanworth Ranger Station). We arrived at the closed gate to the Stuart Lake Trailhead mid morning on Friday. LEAVENWORTH, Wash. - The Chelan County Sheriff's Office says a man has died while climbing on Dragontail Peak after falling "several hundred feet." Deputies say 66-year-old Richard Thurmer . Andy and Jeff had climbed it just the weekend prior. Colchuck Lake and Lake Stuart Trail offer the most direct way to . Both approaches are reached via the Icicle Creek road south of Leavenworth. Thanks to my friends willing to get up early even when they don't have to! Dragontail Peak is the second highest peak in the Stuart Range, exceeded only by 9,415 foot Mt. Ascend snow (early season) or talus to glacier (no crevasses but can be icy by mid-season) and follow glacier to Colchuck Col. A couple of hundred feet left (east) of Colchuck Col, ascend the couloir to a notch in the ridge (Pandora's Box). as long as the avy danger is low and the snow is firm. "This route follows a prominent ridge for about 2000 feet on the NW face of Dragontail Peak to just below the summit block. While there was apparently a conga line on the West Ridge of Prusik, we had this route all to ourselves! That is very fascinating, Youre an excessively professional blogger. With that settled, I followed the pitch. For information regarding the permit system or to apply for a permit visit the Recreation.gov site linked below. Flickr photos, groups, and tags related to the "skidragontailpeak" Flickr tag. That is one of the things I love about alpine climbing: analyzing what improvements are needed for a goal, putting in the work, and reaping the benefits. Bear Lake offers some of the best bang-for-your-step views in the park. Climbing gear and expertise required. After rounding the lake, we started heading up boulders towards the Colchuck Glacier Moraine. A few days before heading out a storm came from East to West. From there, it was more steepness over hardpacked crud. However, the answer quickly became clear. The suede leather upper is durable, equipped with Gore-Tex Extended Comfort technology for versatile climate comfort. Just looking at there trail we could see that it was good snow on the northwest face. Upload or insert images from URL. In this snow condition, the pickets were mostly useless. Spring climbing can make for awesome skiing conditions and almost always brings lots and lots of snow. Page edited to reflect that. The summit ridge extends about 1/2 mile and includes several summit towers. As spring rolled around, we set our eyes on loftier goals. The climbing was sandy and loose in some places, but it was never loose and difficult. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. For example, theAconcagua mountain page has the 'Aconcagua Group' and the 'Seven Summits' asparents and is a parent itself to many routes, photos, and Trip Reports. We were in. Although this route is one of the easier routes for any high Bulger, it isn't a cakewalk and good fitness is required to make it happen. 10-20 feet of Class 2+ scrambling gets you to the top. Thanks for the pix guys. 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