Emmons Update 6/18

 

The Emmons Winthrop route is still in good shape and has seen many successful ascents and descents in the past week. 

The trail to glacier basin is mostly snow free with a few patches of stubborn snow the final mile before. Above glacier basin there are various boot packs up the inter glacier to Camp Curtis. The Inter Glacier still has decent snow coverage from the winter with on fern ice on 6/18. There are a few open moats around the various nunataks, but no open crevasses were observed.

Looking up at the Inter Glacier from the moraine above glacier basin

A route to the Summit on 6/14/25

Although there is a well-established boot pack on a majority of the route climbers are encouraged to evaluate changing conditions and deteriorating snow bridges and make their own decisions on the best/safest path when necessary. There are a few points on the route where the well-trodden "path" crosses a marginal snow bridge. Safer crossings can be found by looking around to a less traveled area where a more robust bridge can be utilized or a crevasse can be end run. 

Crevasses at 11,400' - 6/14/2025

This last weekend we saw many descents by skiers and split boarders. When we talked with these parties on the route and back at Schurman many skiers used terms such as "bad skiing", "rugged", and "highly variable" when describing their descent. Many also reported carrying their equipment back down the mountain a distance before reaching a point they wanted to ski/board from. Further, rangers repeatedly observed riders get off their intended descent route at ~12,000ft landing them well above the corridor in broken and crevassed terrain. 

Boot pack at 13,400 - 6/14/2025

Overview of the Emmons route from Camp Schurman - 6/14/2025

If you are planning for a ski/board descent of the Emmons come prepared for variable surface conditions consisting of, sun cups, Penitentes, ice, and Sastrugi. If you are expecting planer surfaces and good corn skiing on the upper mountain you may be disappointed and find yourself in more challenging conditions. Carful route-finding is even more paramount when descending on skis due to the faster speed at which riders encounter terrain and a lack or rope to arrest a fall. 

If your team is planning on un-roping and riding down the mountain be thinking about your rope strategy... If you only have one rope for the team and the person who is carrying the rope falls into a crevasse, what is your plan??