Little Tahoma May 8, 2019

Ascending the to the base of Little Tahoma. The Disappointment Cleaver in the background. 

Although often overlooked by many as they set their sights upon the summit of Mt. Rainier, Little Tahoma offers a different kind of experience for those climbers or skiers willing to put in the effort. Standing 11,138 ft. tall off the SE shoulder of Rainier, “Little T” is a prized summit known for its seclusion, exciting summit scramble and incredible corn skiing. As summer like conditions continue to dominate the PNW for the majority of May, parties have already been taking advantage of the weather to try their luck on this climb.

Early this week, rangers had the opportunity to traverse from Paradise to Camp Schurman with a pit stop on the Whitman Glacier to attempt a climb on Little Tahoma. Although approaching Little T from the Frying Pan Glacier via Summerland is the common route, the roads still aren’t open yet to the east side of the park.

Given the spring diurnal cycle of the snowpack that is typical for this time of year, timing is everything if approaching from Paradise, crossing the lower Cowlitz Glacier and ascending to the Whitman. Steep SE aspects that drop onto the Cowlitz quickly become touchy and reactive by midday given the solar radiation they receive. Likewise, SW aspects across the basin become dangerous while ascending to the Whitman Bench. Climbers should plan their itineraries accordingly and pay attention to changing surface conditions in order to minimize exposure to loose wet avalanches. If the snow your traveling upon becomes slushy, and ski poles easily plunge 15-30cm’s into the surface, that’s a good indicator of unstable snow.

Natural avalanche activity along the approach to the Whitman Glacier. 

Although there are a few different options in order to gain the upper Whitman Glacier, most routes will will require roughly 7 miles of travel and nearly 5,000 ft of elevation gain to reach the base of the SE face of Little Tahoma. Ample camping options abound here and climbers should strive to adhere to LNT practices in order to preserve not only the landscape but the isolated feel of this climb. From roughly 9,000’, it’s a 1,800’ push up the steep snow of the SE face and then another 300 ft scrambling, hiking and or climbing on rock. Depending on snow conditions, the last 300 ft of climbing can vary greatly, but is exposed and easily warrants the employment of a rope and a basic climbing rack.

Climbers ascending the last few hundred feet to the summit

Whether you’ve climbed Little T over hundred times before or are looking for a new adventure, this route is a classic that shouldn’t be missed under these conditions!

Kautz Glacier Conditions

A climber on the upper Nisqually glacier. NPS photo.

 

Rangers climbed the Kautz glacier to the summit on May 5. Snow conditions on the approach ranged from firm in the early morning hours to very soft and slushy as the temperatures rose. The trail-breaking was more than a foot in the early afternoon on the Turtle Snowfield. The campsites at the Castle and the rock step are all still covered with snow. There was a small trickle of water at the Castle but none above that camp.

The rock step was exposed, requiring a 20 foot down climb to the snow below. The traverse to the ice chute on the Kautz glacier was free of ice debris but there was some old avalanche debris that was tricky to cross.

The ice pitches were 100% snow but good ice for screws was easily found on the climbers right side of the chute. The route was easily protected. The snow in the chute had a one inch crust with unconsolidated snow below. With several more days of good weather ahead the snow may consolidate to neve soon.

Above the chute the crusty snow continued to the summit, making trail-breaking difficult. The upper Kautz and Nisqually glaciers are relatively smooth with only a few large crevasses to end run.

We expect the route conditions to come into form nicely in the next few weeks.

More info on this route can be found in our Kautz glacier route description.

A climber nearing the top of the ice chute on the Kautz glacier.

 

Westside Snaps

During a recent aviation training to Glacier Island (6100’ near the Tahoma Glacier) the park helitack crew was able to snap a couple photos looking up at the Tahoma and west over the Success Cleaver.  With the Westside Road open to Fish Creek (3.1 miles from the Paradise Road), climbers are already able to access the routes on the west side of the mountain.  Some strategies to approach these routes include biking the Westside Road from beyond the closure to the trailhead and climbing up and over the mountain, descending the standard route back through Camp Muir and doing a vehicle shuttle.

Inter Glacier and Camp Schurman Update 5/2/2019

With great weather on tap this weekend and into next week, climbers are starting to consider objectives accessed from the east side of Mt. Rainier National Park. Before you head to Mt. Rainier, be sure the road is open first!

The Inter Glacier and Emmons-Winthrop route

The White River entrance to Mt. Rainier remains closed to the public. Crews from both the park and Washington DOT are working hard to clear snow and remove fallen trees from the roadways. Check the park’s Road Status page for updates.

The White River entrance station is currently scheduled to open May 24^th. Keep an eye on the Operating Hours and Seasons page for updates.

In the spirit of preparing for the climbing season, rangers conducted a patrol to Camp Schurman earlier this week. The trail from the white river campground was mostly snow covered to Glacier Basin. Rangers found the Inter glacier to be well covered with snow and without any open crevasses. Expect crevasses to begin opening up near convexites and steep roll-overs in the coming weeks if warm and sunny weather continues.

The Winthrop glacier has a few pockets of open crevasses between St. Elmo pass and lower Curtis ridge. During this warming period, it is always good practice to give open crevasses a wide berth. Since the winter snowpack is well below average, snow bridges spanning crevasses may be much thinner and less supportive than usual.

St. Elmo pass (center left) and lower Wintrop Glacier

Wintrop Glacier and lower Curtis Ridge

A glimpse of Liberty Ridge

Once at Camp Schurman, rangers spent time getting the camp ready for the season by repairing damage incurred by the sustained winter winds, setting up the webcam, and digging out the toilets. Check out the Camp Schurman webcam. The camera is a little foggy at the moment, but it should improve as temperatures rise over the weekend.

Winter still holds a firm grasp on the upper mountain, with high winds and 5-10 inches of new snow observed earlier this week.  Evaluate avalanche hazard as you travel, as the upper mountain still has a winter-like snowpack above 10,000’ elevation. High winds transported much of the new snow, and there may be lingering pockets of instability / avalanche hazard despite the forecast of warm, sunny days this weekend.  As temperatures rise, be conscious of wet-loose slides that may travel much farther downslope than you expect. Best practice for traveling in avalanche terrain this time of year includes bringing a parter, carrying avalanche rescue gear, and knowing how to use it.

Climbing season is right around the corner, and now is the time to pay the climbing fee.

Fees and Permits:

For a climbing permit, climbing fee, and reservation information, please visit the park climbing page. Climbers need to both pay the cost-recovery fee (Pay.gov) as well as register to climb (get a permit).

More info can be found at: http://mountrainierclimbing.blogspot.com/p/climbing-fee-and-registration.html

Little Tahoma From Paradise - April 24, 2019

This is a fantastic early season objective from Paradise before the White River entrance opens.  The route ascends the Muir snowfield, turning east just below Anvil Rock, and traverses the Cowlitz and then Ingraham Glaciers before ascending the Whitman Glacier to the summit of Little Tahoma, which involves some exposed 3rd to 4th class rock climbing.  There is quite a bit of glacier navigation and route finding involved.

The view from the summit of Little Tahoma - 4/24/2019

Don't forget to pay the climbing fee and get a climbing permit.  Accessing any terrain on a glacier or above 10,000 feet requires a climbing permit and payment of the Climbing Cost Recovery Fee.  The Paradise Wilderness Information Center opens Friday, May 3rd, for weekends.  You should pay your fee online before obtaining your permit at the PWIC.  Click on this link for more information:

https://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/climbing.htm

Climbing rangers are currently at Camp Muir and Camp Schurman getting the high camps set up for the coming climbing season.  Look for more frequent blog posts about the Disappointment Cleaver and Emmons Glacier routes in the near future!

Nearing the Cowlitz Glacier, below Anvil Rock, en route to Little Tahoma - 4/24/2019

Looking back across the Cowlitz Glacier, around 8700' - 4/24/2019

Looking SSE from near the summit of Little Tahoma - 4/24/2019

The upper Whitman Glacier and summit of Little Tahoma - 4/24/2019

A good view of the Disappointment Cleaver route and the upper Ingraham and Emmons Glaciers    4/24/2019

See you on the mountain!

Ingraham Direct Conditions May 1, 2019

The view up-mountain from Ingraham Flats. NPS photo

Winter-like conditions persisted through the last week of April 2019. The upper mountain received more than a foot of snow on the 28th and again on the 29th.

The new snow came in as low-density powder with very little wind. That made for tough trail breaking and, for a short period, ideal powder snow conditions. Wind quickly moved in however and consolidated the new snow. This also resulted in an elevated avalanche danger that kept the guides and rangers from attempting the summit.

On May 1 an intrepid group of three independent climbers broke trail, found a route up the ID and made it to the summit in cold and windy conditions. Congratulations to those hearty climbers.

The guides are just starting their seasonal operations and so there is no established route as of yet, but they will start pushing one up the ID in the next several days.

The weather looks fairly good through the forecast period so we are expecting a busy weekend on the mountain. Keep in mind that avalanche and snow surface conditions will be changing rapidly as the upper mountain transitions from winter to spring. Please use caution when climbing and be prepared to assess the avalanche danger and climbing conditions for your team.



Climbing Rangers descend from Ingraham Flats. NPS photo