Last Updated: September 17, 2023



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Reports in the queue for posting are coming soon!

Upcoming reports & photos:

Oh my! Quite the backlog here, eh? Busy with life and adding to the queue every chance I get...

  • Caltha Peak - hike/scramble (September 2022)
  • Beauty Peak - hike/scramble (September 2022)
  • Markhor-Needle Traverse & Flatiron - hike/scramble (September 2022)
  • Conway Peak - hike/scramble (September 2022)
  • Green Mountain/Pk 2200 - hike/scramble (September 2022)
  • Mount Brew (Whistler) - hike/scramble (September 2022)
  • Mount Barbour - hike/scramble (October 2022)
  • Mount Gillespie - hike/scramble (October 2022)
  • Cougar Mountain - hike/scramble (October 2022)
  • Barn Bluff (Red Wing, MN) - hike/scramble (October 2022)
  • Mount Steele - hike/snowshoe (November 2022)
  • American Mountain (attempt), Hunter Lookout - hike/snowshoe (November 2022)
  • Belcarra Mountain - hike/scramble (November 2022)
  • Oyster Dome - hike/scramble (November 2022)
  • Mount Thom & Cilliwack Mountain/Hillkeep - hike/scramble (December 2022)
  • Frenchman Mountain (Las Vegas, NV) - hike/scramble (January 2023)
  • Rolley Peak/Lookout - hike/scramble (January 2023)
  • Round Mountain - ski tour (February 2023)
  • Blowdown Peak - ski tour (February 2023)
  • Silverdaisy Mountain - ski tour (March 2023)
  • Spearhead Glacier/Husume Coulior - ski tour (March 2023)
  • Cowboy Ridge/Peak 2026 - ski tour (April 2023)
  • Slahanay Peak - hike/scramble (April 2023)
  • American Mountain & Mount Lincoln - hike/snowshoe (May 2023)
  • Mount Mclean Attempt, Red Rock Trail, Dragons Back Trail - hike/scramble (May 2023)
  • Stawamus Chief (South, Middle & North) - hike/scramble (June 2023)
  • Flint & Feather - hike/scramble (June 2023)
  • Goat Ridge (Squamish) - hike/scramble (June 2023)
  • Grouty/Mortar Peaks - hike/scramble (June 2023)
  • Pebble-to-North Creek Traverse incl. Pebble, Thiassi, Wesley & Sugus - hike/scramble (July 2023)
  • Mount Truax - hike/scramble (July 2023)
  • Blackcomb Buttress - rock climb (July 2023)
  • Whitecap Peak - hike/scramble (July 2023)
  • Mount Hanover - hike/scramble (August 2023)
  • The "Long Traverse" incl. Long, Tynemouth, Arrowhead, Tabletop & Anemone - hike/scramble (August 2023)
  • Armchair Traverse - hike/scramble (August 2023)
  • Snowspider Mountain - hike/scramble (September 2023)
  • Mount Trorey - hike/scramble (September 2023)
  • Macleod Peak - hike/scramble (September 2023)
  • Ben Lomond - hike/scramble (September 2023)
  • Mount Killam & Gambier Island - hike/scramble (September 2023)

*As of 09/24/2023


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Tuesday, February 26, 2019

Recourse Peak - ESE Ridge, July 2018



Unbelievably, 11 years have elapsed since my previous trip to the Chehalis Range. This time I was indifferent to going whole hog on the Viennese-Recourse-Clarke Traverse, as classic a route as it is reputed to be. Mount Clarke, the highest in the area (Grainger Peak to the north excepted) and typically the last of the three summits climbed on the traverse would be reward enough. Besides, the description in the Scrambles Guide speaks very favorably of Clarke's standard Southeast Ridge route, an endorsement worth acknowledging IMO. So, with all that said one might ask why this trip report is for Recourse Peak then?

Recourse is the middle of the three summits and the second highest. Unlike Clarke and to a lesser extent Viennese, the route to Viennese-Recourse Col and start of the ESE Ridge is by far the most direct of the three. Factor in especially warm weather, a brutally steep and somewhat brushy grunt up from Lower Statlu Lake the previous day and an ugly vertical bushwhack in order to gain the upper basin and suffice it to say that certain member of this party simply had had her fill. For the third consecutive outing I was to complete the climb solo, oh and "please hurry" because there's no shade (in the upper basin).

Recourse, as it turns out is a worthwhile climb unto itself and presents its own challenges and excitement, albeit short-lived ones. It's position and perspective on the knife-edge WSW Ridge of Viennese is incredible. I'd be lying if I said I didn't briefly consider running the ridge over to Clarke from Recourse's summit and back, a kind-of half-traverse, but then there would surely be hell to pay for such indulgence! All-in-all a beautiful place and well worth a visit, but I might be another decade before I attempt a Chehalis Range hat trick!

Click here to view.

Thursday, February 21, 2019

Mount Marriott - Southeast Ridge, July 2018



An outlier to a collection of crowded peaks ENE of Pemberton which include Cirque Peak and Cayoosh Mountain, Mount Marriott is a sprawling massif that also bears the distinction of being the highest in the Western Cayoosh Range. Just shy of the 9000-ft mark, Marriott is characterized by a long SE Ridge that offers a most pleasant ramble on granitic rock. The recently remodeled Wendy Thompson Hut, situated in the lake basin southeast of the peak makes for an ideal base from which to bag the peak, not to mention escape the swarming mosquitos.

We timed this one just right, taking full advantage of a still mostly snowbound basin well above the hut, sparing us from what would otherwise have been a lot of tedious boulder hopping. Some steep snow and hardpan had to be negotiated in order to gain ridge crest, after which a delightful stretch of sidewalk-in-the-sky ends with a descent to a large sandy saddle. I continued up from the saddle by passing a prominent gendarme to its left before regaining the blocky ridge crest for the remaining climb to the summit. If from any point along the ridge you find yourself thinking that the summit seems rather far away, rest assured that your eyes are not deceiving you. The SE Ridge does seem to go on forever!

Click here to view.

Wednesday, February 6, 2019

Cayoosh Mountain - South Ridge, July 2018



Cayoosh Mountain is a prominent peak directly opposite the highway from the ever-popular Joffre Lakes Provincial Park. It stands relatively isolated and boasts a fantastic 360-degree summit panorama overlooking the southern portion of the Duffey Lake Valley and surrounding area. While it apparently makes for a popular ski touring objective in Winter, its Summertime popularity pales in comparison to the park just to the south.

The standard South Route I followed entailed a fair amount of route finding and travel over hardened scree, dirt, and rotten snow to eventually reach a pair of slanting snow fingers, and arguably the crux of the route. After some shenanigans following the upper finger and rock rib to its right, I finally reached the mostly horizontal South Ridge...think sidewalk-in-the-sky. A small saddle separates the ridge from the blocky slabs that make up the final summit block. Once up on top, I briefly exulted in the view and choked down an energy bar before returning the way I came to relieve Dan from his nap in the basin below. I'd give this one a 3.5 - 4 out of 5 stars, with the deduction for the tedious boulder hopping and overgrown forest road on the approach and return.

Click here to view.
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