The last few weeks have brought some highly variable weather to the mountain. A week of high freezing levels was followed by a long weekend of high winds that kept the success rate of climbing parties low. With the higher freezing levels that are forecast, some timing considerations for your climb are worth noting. Starting on the early side ensures that your party has ample time to attempt a summit and be coming down back to camp before the heat of the day. As things continue to warm, serac fall, crevasse bridges, and travel conditions can quickly turn into difficult hazards to mitigate.
Taking a GPS track of your climb up is recommended for route finding on the way down; boot packs can melt out and not be obvious from above. Additionally, with spring and summer conditions, boot packs from old routes may still be present. Avoid following tracks just because they are there; instead, visually confirm that snow bridges are safe to travel over and place protection as necessary. Remember that just because you crossed a snow bridge on the way up does not mean it will be there on the way down. Be prepared to use your own glacier navigation skills on both the ascent and descent.
From Schurman, there is a prominent boot-pack onto the Corridor through sizable penitentes. Sometimes it's easier to travel off the beaten path, especially when descending, but be aware of crevasses that may be hard to discern due to the surface conditions. At the top of the Corridor, around ~11.7k, the glacier becomes more jumbled. Take care to carefully evaluate snowbridges and protect them as necessary. This zone has numerous smaller crevasses - many running parallel to the route - as evidenced by the holes where climbers have punched a leg in.
There is a notable crevasse crossing at 12.2k as the route starts to traverse climbers right. Here there is a very thin snowbridge that will likely collapse as the season progresses. Protect this crossing from a significant pendulum and/or zippering fall, or find another route around. Again, on the way up, consider what your team will do if the snowbridge collapses while you are above it. Should the route 'fall out' at any point, climbers may need to climb back to the summit and descent via the DC route, or navigate another way down the Emmons.
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| 7/6/26 Photo of the crevasse crossing at 12.2k. The track can be seen making a zig zag to go over the snow bridge in the center of the photo. |
Alternative routes up/down the Emmons were explored by NPS Rangers on July 11th, with passage made along the southern (climbers left) side high above The Corridor avoiding the 12,200' crevasse crossing mentioned above. This route is not marked, may not have a discernible boot-pack, and travels through complex glaciated terrain with numerous crevasse crossings that require appropriate route-finding and hazard mitigation skills. It does appear, however, that this route may be more 'stable' and remain passable to experienced teams for some time. This alternative route diverges from the existing route at approximately 11,800' (just below a large switchback right) and continues up the left shoulder of the upper Corridor. After several hundred feet of climbing upward (approximately 12,450' elevation), a long traverse right will eventually rejoin the existing route at approximately 13,000' along the Winthrop Shoulder.
Descend the same route you used to ascend. Keep in mind that warming during the day can change the way things look and what is passable on the way down. Plan for this as you cross terrain on your ascent. Stay alert and protect steeper sections and snow bridges. Don’t be afraid to step out of the boot pack for better footing.
| 7/6/26 Track of the approximate route (above) Alternative found on 7/11/26 in blue (below) |
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