Forbidden Peak West Ridge Climb

GALLERY

DETAILS

Join Us on a 3 Day Climb of West Ridge of Forbidden Peak

Often touted as the best alpine rock route in the North Cascades, the West Ridge of Forbidden Peak features high quality rock climbing on a beautifully positioned ridge overlooking steep alpine faces, enormous glaciers, and aqua-blue lakes. It’s no wonder this climb was included in the book “Fifty Classic Climbs of North America” by Steve Roper and Allen Steck.

During this three-day Forbidden Peak West Ridge climb, we approach the impressive triangular summit on low angle snow and ice before climbing rock up to 5.6 in difficulty. This is a perfect climb for those with previous outdoor climbing experience who are interested in having a first alpine rock climbing experience, and those who are interested in exploring the world of alpinism.

Previous outdoor rock climbing experience is required. Previous mountaineering experience strongly recommended. If you would like to join this climb of Forbidden Peak West Ridge but do not yet have the appropriate experience, consider joining our one-day Intro to Rock Climbing Course.

Skills Covered During the Forbidden Peak West Ridge Climb:

Packing for an alpine rock climb
Campsite selection and set-up
Introduction to anchoring using alpine rock anchors
Belay station management
Stacking and flaking a rope
Belaying a lead climber
Rock Climbing Technique
Instruction in lowering or rappelling

Duration

3 Days 2 Nights Camping

GEAR CHECK

Required

Passport

Not Required for Americans

Minimum Age

16 years old

Activity

Backpacking, Alpine Rock Climbing

Accommodation

Tents

Please note: Gear checks are required and available the day before your trip start date. They are available weekly at Ascent Outdoors in Ballard from 6:30pm-8pm on Thursdays. If your trip does not start on a Friday we will schedule a custom gear check at Ascent Outdoors the day before your trip start date.

PRICE BASIS

PRICE INCLUDES

Wilderness permit fees
Group climbing equipment
Guide services
Pre-trip planning information
Backpacking, mountaineering, and general outdoor safety skills
Discounted gear purchases and rentals

PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE

Food
Transportation
Personal climbing equipment and clothing
Travel and evacuation insurance
Gratuities for guides

ITINERARY

Day 1:

Meet at a convenient Park and Ride in the Seattle Area around 7am or at a location along the route to the trailhead. Drive 2 hrs. to Marblemount to pick-up our camping permits. Drive another 1 to 1.5 hrs. to the trailhead. Hike three to four hours to camp in Boston Basin surrounded by magnificent alpine scenery. Set-up camp and enjoy some rest. Practice rope management, connecting to an alpine rock anchor, and belaying a lead climber. Head to bed early.

Day 2:

Wake-up just before sunrise and begin hiking steeply up slabs of rock, snow, and glacier toward the face below the West Ridge. Our exact route of ascent to the ridge will depend on how much snow is in Cat Scratch Gully and an adjacent couloir. Once at the notch we multi-pitch climb eight pitches of beautiful rock to the summit, using various rope techniques for efficiency. To descend we down climb and rappel the ridge we have just climbed to return to the notch, then rappel back to the glacier and walk back to camp. This will be a long and challenging day, often requiring more than twelve hours of climbing and descending.

Day 3:

Today we enjoy a well-deserved sleep-in before leisurely packing-up camp. We head back down the trail to the cars, and drive to a restaurant for a celebratory late lunch. We then continue back to Seattle and dream of our next alpine climb.

FAQs

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Testimonials

Sandeep is possibly the best person (Miyar and guides) in the business to take you on the mountains. Anyone who has trained with him to summit Rainier over the years can tell you how much he cares about his peeps. Talk to him and he can always find a way to make it happen. I have been trying to climb Rainier for few years with personal constraints (need to be always available, can return anytime, 24*7 sat phone access etc) and many times I had to return mid climb from big ones like Baker and Rainier. It was really easy to talk to the guides about this situation. I never once felt unsafe on the mountains. This is a big deal given how much we learnt when it comes to snow skills and glacier training. Be safe and go with Miyar!
Vivek Garg
What an awesome experience to go on climbing Mt. Rainier with Miyar Adventures. Sandeep and his team of guides ( Kirk, Alexis, Joe, Ben, Chris, Jasmin ) did an awesome job to lead the multiple rope teams trough snow skill preparations and guiding through safely on glacier journey. The amount of efforts put into multi-month preparation, pre-trip meetings, accessibility to gears for rent and attention to details with food/weight/personal gears were all instrumental in almost all of us (in a group of 24) able to summit Mt. Rainier and have wonderful memories. We knew we were in best company and safe hands with prior experience with Miyar Adventures led climb to Mt. Baker and few other preparation trips. And guides calibrated their approach from novice climbers to experienced climbers to push enough to have an enjoyable experience. I highly recommend to go with Miyar Adventures on amazing trips they have lined up around the Puget Sound Area and internationally.
Harshit Shah
If you are interested in doing any climbing or hiking but need a guide , I highly recommend Miyar Adventures...Sandeep is a wonderful person and you will actually learn (and practice ) climbing and crevasse rescue techniques in addition to the trip/climb ...it is definitely beyond a just a "get you to the summit" experience. He genuinely cares and brings in other excellent guides for bigger groups. My husband and I recently successfully made it to the summit of Mount Baker with Sandeep, two other guides and a group of friends and we had a fantastic experience. He and the guides he works with are very knowledgeable so I had confidence in their abilities to lead us but they are also very friendly and fun so that overall trip was enjoyable. I will definitely climb with Miyar Adventures again!
Monica Henry