Glacier Peak via the Cool and Gerdine Glaciers Trip Report

Glacier Peak is an incredibly isolated stratovolcano in the Cascades. Though closer to Seattle than Mount Rainier, it’s limited and difficult access keep it off of many mountaineer’s radar. Requiring over 30 miles round trip to its summit and back, our GPS logged 42, and over 11,000 feet of vertical gain it is the most exhausting of the Cascade Volcanoes. We started our journey up this imposing mountain with an even more imposing weather forecast. Weather predictions in the realm of over 10 inches of precipitation over the next several days were affecting the thoughts in the back of our minds. Nonetheless our strong group set off at a rapid pace through the temperate forests of the Cascades. The lush forests, reminiscent of the Olympic’s Hoh Rainforest, sheltered us from light precipitation as we covered the “easy ground,” the first five miles paralleling the North Fork of the Sauk River. Soon we took rest at the Mackinaw Shelter, eating our first lunch and admiring the unique beauty of the old growth forest around us.

After our lunch, we covered the first large elevation gain of the trip, about 2500 feet, rising through the forest up switchbacks to the top of ridgeline, briefly intersecting with the Pacific Crest Trail. We could see the valley below us, but the mountains and ridges above were obscured by clouds. We marched just below the ridgeline, weaving over spurs and draws filled with snow patches. Not long after breaking out of the treeline we arrived at White Pass and met our friends who had came the night prior. We did not wait long however, as we were concerned about the setting sun and shortening our distance towards the summit. Although we were already over 10 miles into our day, we needed to get as close as possible to ensure maximum chances of summiting the following day. We continued contouring along the side of the ridge until it changed directions. At this point we crossed over, moving along steep snow slopes and scree. We dropped into the basin and found several rock outcroppings that were suitable for camp. We immediately starting establishing camp and melting snow for replenishment and dinner. Jonah and Chris began melting snow while I established our shelter. It was approximately 5:30 pm and we had covered 12 miles at this point. It was not too late, but our departure time was planned before 5 am and wake-up and preparation was even earlier than that. After everyone had their water filled and their dinner’s consumed we all vanished into our shelters. The weather was a constant drizzle as we settled into sleeping bags. However, at about 9 pm the precipitation greatly intensified. We dozed off with thoughts of just how miserable the following day had the potential to be as the rain battered our tents.

Photo Credit: Randa Morgan

Just before noon we set foot on the elusive summit. We ate and rejoiced, devouring our lunches, which varied from bars to restaurant quality pastrami sandwiches. We did not linger long however, and soon began our descent. We only kept our crampons on for the final snow slope as they were already balling up with snow. We removed them on the rocky ridgeline and continued forward. Miraculously the weather’s onslaught seemed to waiver. We experienced cloudbreaks that lasted for minutes instead of seconds, and random bursts of temperatures on the glacier up to 70 degrees for a few moments. It was a pleasant change as we descended, finally seeing some of the beautiful terrain around us. The group’s fitness continued to impress, with no one showing signs that they had already covered over 8000 feet of elevation and over 20 miles. Sporadic layering pauses were the only thing that interrupted our momentum back to camp. The variable conditions made it quite difficult to layer effectively.

Photo Credit: journeying_jennifer

Not long thereafter we were entirely off of glaciated terrain. We dropped beneath the upper clouds and saw the entirety of the basin, which was obscured previously. Traversing the basin was pleasant without the whipping wind and rain. Spirits were high as we covered the last 2 miles to camp. Once at camp we marveled at the massive rock walls around us,seeming to have appeared out of nowhere. The weight of uncertainty left our shoulders, joining the weight of our packs now on the ground. Now all we had was a half marathon back to the cars, which would wait until the following day. We had arrived at camp at about 4 pm. Everyone began taking care of themselves in various ways, eating, immediately sleeping, and generally enjoying the knowledge that we were now safe and had completed our primary objective.

Upon entering our pyramid shelter we found that our rodent concerns were justified. Half eaten trail runners, glove liners and my now deflated thermarest greeted us. After briefly whining about my lack of a sleeping pad I accepted my less than cozy fate. Jonahprovided me with some super glue and I attempted to repair it. When I attempted to inflate it the glue had not fully dried, but Jonah’s pack’s foam insert provided enough cushion for me to sleep comfortably. I found out later that the repair worked perfectly, it just needed more drying time. Note to fellow explorers, always carry super glue or a small repair kit! The sun emerged for the first time this trip, allowing us to dry our equipment. The brazen marmot was undeterred by our presence, he attempted to eat Jonah’s wraps within 5 feet from us. We rallied to keep him at bay and then packed up all of our things to join the upper camp for dinner.

We laughed and enjoyed ourselves with hot drinks and our last dinner in the backcountry. Talk of the weather and food was occasionally drowned out by snores from exhausted team members. We all worked ourselves into a good food coma after sampling each other’s tasty snacks. We retired to bed fairly early with a plan to rise around 6 am and depart by 8. We knew entering our shelters that based on the forecast that the coming night and morning would be by far the most interesting time of our trip. The weather report before we left said to expect at least 6 inches of precipitation on the upper mountain. In the basin, we could only guess what that meant, or if in the calm of the evening that the weather system was even coming. I can report that the weather system did indeed come. Around midnight we experienced torrential downpours and lightning. Wind gusts up to 30 mph shook our tent and threatened to rip our pyramid off the ground. Fortunately before departing camp the day prior I had doubled our guylines. Our shelter would have collapsed without them, undoubtedly leaving us drenched and shivering. After several bouts of intense wind, lightning and downpours the weather finally settled to a casual drizzle. We had no issues sleeping after it passed.