Climbing Conditions

North Cascades National Park offers a lifetime of mountaineering objectives.

Winnie Hsieh

 

October, 2024

Snow has started to fall in the mountains and nighttime temperature is low. Make sure to check weather forecast and freezing level if you decide to venture into the mountains. Expect lots of exposed blue ice on glaciers, weak snow bridges over crevasses, and large moats between snowfields and rock. Recent snowfall can create icy conditions on exposed rock slabs and start covering crevasses. Be conservative in your route choices with the shorter amount of daylight available - winter is just around the corner!

Many climbs in the North Cascades involve several skillsets and the most difficult aspect is usually the transition from rock to snow and vice versa. Early season and late season present different challenges. Many routes can have multiple ascent/descent options that go in and out of shape depending on the time of year. Know your options, research them in advance, try to get recent beta and adapt in the field based on what you see. Just because you see footprints going one way, does not mean you should blindly follow them: Is that snow bridge no longer supported? Is that moat too big? Has there been significant rockfall in the couloir? Maintain your situation awareness and budget plenty of time for your climb - things almost always take longer than most parties expect.

Be sure to check the weather forecast, trail conditions, and closures beforehand. As always, leave a detailed itinerary with a friend or family member, including the date and time you plan to exit the backcountry.

 

Helpful Links

• Planning a Climb
• Road Conditions
• Trail Conditions
• Fire Closures
• Food Storage Requirement
• Backcountry Permit

Closures and Notices

Stay up-to-date with road, trail, and camp closures related to wildfire and seasonal winter closures using the helpful links provided. Understand the rules and regulations, including food storage requirements at each camp or cross-country zone, prior to your visit. You can find the backcountry permit process and regulations on the backcountry permit page. ALL overnight trips in the park require a backcountry permit.

Note: Overnight camping at trailheads in the National Park is prohibited. This includes the Eldorado, Boston Basin, and Cascade Pass trailheads.

 

Current and General Climbing Conditions

Climbing conditions are reported by climbing rangers, and updated as frequently as possible.

Mount Shuksan

A detailed climbing blog and composting toilet location on Sulphide Glacier can be found here: 

Climbing Conditions - Mt. Shuksan

Route	Reported Conditions
Fisher Chimney	9/17- Highway 542 is open all the way to Artist Point.  9/17 -The trail to the Chimneys is in great shape thanks to efforts of USFS personel. Winnie's Slide and Hells Highway require both snow and ice protection to ascend and descend. The traverse across the Upper Curtis Glacier is tricky with sections of blue ice and snow bridges over crevasses. The summit pyramid is dry most days, but watch out for ice and snow after precipitation.
Sulphide Glacier	9/19 - The toilets at the lower and upper bivy sites are open. 9/17 - The upper Sulphide Glacier route is exposed blue ice for much of the lower portion of the glacier. The upper portion of the route is snow covered with tricky route finding for crevasse hazard mitigation. The SE Ridge and central gullies are snow free, but watch out for ice or snow after periods of moisture in the fall storms. 9/4 - The road to Shannon Ridge trailhead is passable to high clearance, all-wheel drive vehicles. The trail is in good shape, and there are snow free tent sites at the lower bivy.

Eldorado Area

A detailed climbing blog and composting toilet location on Eldorado can be found here: 

Climbing Conditions - Eldorado Area

Route	Reported Conditions
Eldorado Peak - East Ridge	7/11 - There are multiple options for crossing the creek this season. Many groups have had good luck at lower flows finding a log downstream of the parking area. Other groups have waded across the creek near or just upstream of the parking area. Patchy snow starts above the boulder field at about 5500'.The descent into Roush Creek basin is snow free. The rock slabs below the Eldorado Glacier are mainly snow covered, but watch out for glide cracks especially on steeper rollovers.  The Eldorado Glacier and East Ridge are snow covered with minimal crevasses showing, but this could change quickly with warming temperatures, especially if there is no freeze overnight. There is running water at the Bivy Sites, and the toilet is no longer buried in snow.
Dorado Needle

Boston Basin Area (Forbidden Peak, Sharkfin, Sahale via Quien Sabe)

A detailed climbing blog and composting toilet location at Boston Basin can be found here: 

Climbing Conditions - Boston Basin Area

Route	Reported Conditions
Boston Basin Approach	7/11 The lower bivy site is snow free and the composting toilet is fully melted out. The upper bivy is a mixture of snow with some melted out tent sites, and the toilet has fully melted out.
Forbidden Peak - West Ridge	7/11 Both the Cat Scratch Gullies and the West Ridge Couloir require steep snow travel to get to the base. The West Ridge Couloir is melting quickly and might not be a good option much longer. The Cat Scratch Gullies and the West Ridge Route are both snow free.
Forbidden Peak - East Ridge	No recent report
Sahale via Quien Sabe Glacier	6/23: Below the elevation of the glacier there are many glide cracks and holes melting out as the warm days and above freezing overnight temps move the snowpack towards a summertime snowpack. The Quien Sabe Glacier is covered in snow and has a few options for route choice. The crevasses are mainly covered by deep snow and snow bridges. Most teams are reporting slow travel conditions with deep post-holing in wet snow. The summit ridge is fully covered in snow, with massive overhanging cornices hanging off the east side of the ridge. It is possible to summit without climbing rock at all at this time, which is unusual for this time of year
Sharkfin	6/23: The approach to Sharkfin is snowy and teams are reporting slow travel in deep wet snow. The normal approach gulley is still mostly snowy, with a moat forming at the bottom and some exposed rock in the gulley. The rock pitches are snow-free.
Torment-Forbidden Traverse	No recent report

Northern Pickets

Mt Challenger
8/4/2024 The Easy Ridge approach is in descent shape right now. The old abandoned trail is easy enough to follow once you are on it, but it is overgrown and steep. Once above treeline Easy Ridge has water options and a few lingering snow patches in places. The Imperfect Impasse is snow free, harder than any of the climbing on Challenger, and difficult to protect. Most parties will want to do the extra 1000' descent to bypass the Impasse low.

Once at Pefect Pass, the Challenger Glacier route is in great shape for August. Many options exist for getting across the glacier to the Challenger Arm and then up to the summit. The route up from Eiley Wiley Ridge to the summit was equally as snow covered and straightforward. There are some patches of blue ice showing at this time, but are easy to avoid.

Southern Pickets

Mount Triumph

7/25
The trail in to Triumph is as straightforward as it ever gets, with the trail to Thornton Lakes leading to a hard-to-follow-at-times and steep-at-times route to the col. The bivy sites have running water and plenty of mosquitos.
The approach to the NE Ridge is mostly snow with a few slabby rock sections, water sources and options for moat crossings before getting on the ridge. The NE Ridge has its normal amount of adventure. 

Colonial/Snowfield Area

 

Route	Reported Condition
Pyramid Lake Approach	7/7 - Snowline is around 5500' and rising quickly. Warm temps making for variable snow conditions and weakening snow bridges over runing water on the traverse to Colonial Glacier tarn. Popular camps near Colonial and at Neve Col (~6870') are dry with reliable water.
Snowfield Peak/Neve Glacier	7/7 - Minimal crevasse visible, firm snow in early mornings. The summit ridge of Snowfield is mostly melted out with one lingering patch on a ledge halfway up the west ridge.

Other Areas

Mt. Goode  NE Buttress  7/12/24
Crossing N Fork Bridge Creek is easy, shin-deep.  Small crevasses and moats to access the buttress.  No snow on the route, snow 100' below summit for water source.  Rappel stations for W side descent in good condition, SW couloir is 2/3 snow-filled.

Bacon Peak, Mount Hagan, Mount Blum  9/2/24
The Blum High Route is a challenging route that is in late season conditions. Expect lots of navigation practice, exposed blue ice on the glaciers and loose scree and rock travel in and amongst the beauitiful lakes.