June | 2015 | Rachel Takes a Hike

Summit the third-highest mountain Washington at 10,781 ft., the most heavily glaciated peak of the Cascade Range volcanoes after Mt. Rainier.

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Overview: 16 miles roundtrip, 7,600 ft. elevation gain

The Easton Glacier route is one of the mountain’s most popular and likewise, most crowded. Check out Mt. Baker’s Squak Glacier route or Coleman Deming Glacier route for an alternative climb with similar difficulty.

You’ll start out at Schreibers Meadow Trailhead (3,200 ft.). To get there, exit off of I-5 north of Mount Vernon, head east on Highway 20, and turn left on Baker Lake Road. Follow this past Rocky Creek Bridge, taking a left on Forest Road 12 and a right on Forest Road 13. The parking lot is huge – but will still fill up during summer weekends. There’s plenty of roadside parking leading up to the TH. Don’t forget your NW Forest Pass parking permit!

Hiking up Railroad Grade.

Start your hike out on Railroad Grade trail, and after a couple miles, keep right to continue up Railroad Grade itself. (We missed this turnoff and had a fun scramble up a creek bed to meet the trail – might have been more fun without our overnight camping gear.) Railroad Grade itself is a rocky moraine that looks and feels like a ridge. Follow the clearly-defined trail up to a huge area of flat camping spots, around 6,500 ft. In busy season this will look like a tent city, there must have been 50-75 people when we were there in late June.

Superb North Cascade camping views.

Above the campsites you’ll start your glacier travel on Easton Glacier, and at this point the route will vary depending on time of year and snow season. You’ll likely cross a few snow bridges across the larger crevasses; I’ve never heard of ladder crossings being used on this route. Since Mt. Baker is the second most heavily glaciated peak of all the Cascade volcanoes, there are huge crevasse dangers on summit day. Stay roped up to your team and make sure everybody has had training on crevasse rescue techniques.

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Keep northwest towards the Crater Rim at 9,750 ft., where you’ll smell the “rotten egg” sulphur gas coming from the crater. The last 1,000 ft. are the most difficult of the day and take you up a combination of icy rock and snow to the base of The Roman Wall: the crux of your climb – both equally intimidating and thrilling. Ascend carefully up this steep grade, which can be 40-45 degrees and often icy.

Heading up the Roman Wall.

Once you’ve breached the top of the wall, you’ll have a clear view of the Grant’s Peak – the true summit – just across a long plateau. Take your time making it to the top and soak in the views of Glacier Peak and the North Cascades stretching out below you.

Summit plateau towards Grant’s Peak, Mt. Baker’s official summit name.

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As always, begin early (alpine start ~ midnight to 2am) so you have the advantage of hard, frozen snow for your crampons to grip into. On your descent, be aware of crevasse dangers and wary of any snow bridges that might have melted out from the sun.

Surprisingly, there are no permits required to climb Mt. Baker, but I recommend one person in your party to fill out a trail registration at the trailhead.

Packing List:

Northwest Forest Pass Trailhead Parking Permit
Trekking poles
Ice axe
Crampons
Crampon-compatible mountaineering boots
Helmet
Alpine harness, rope, ice tools
Overnight snow camping gear (tent, stove, cookware, sleeping bag, etc.)
Headlamp + extra batteries
Navigational gear
2+ liters of water
Means to boil or treat water with iodine
Plenty of food
Blue bags for human waste
First aid kit, emergency GPS spotter
Emergency bivvy or shelter
Sun protection, storm protection, plenty of layers!

Climb the Crown Jewel of the North Cascades up to 9,131 ft. for stunning mountain views, challenging rock and ice climbing, and vertigo-inducing heights.

Approach hike, above Shannon Ridge.

Overview: 16 miles roundtrip, 6,600 ft. elevation gain

The Sulphide Glacier is the easiest and most popular route to the summit of Mt. Shuksan, and is a great beginner’s glacier + rock climb. More experienced climbers may enjoy the Fisher Chimneys route. The route described here makes for a very long two days because of its gradual, drawn-out approach (you’ll want trekking poles for this).

I joined Mountain Gurus for this climb and can’t recommend their services enough. As part of a 4-day Intro to Mountaineering Course, we spent each day learning the fundamentals of glacier travel, crevasse rescue training, ropes and rock climbing techniques, and general mountain safety guidelines.

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You’ll begin at Shannon Ridge Trailhead, which is pretty easy to find and accessible for any type of vehicle. To get there, exit I-5 at Burlington and head east on Highway 20. Turn onto Baker Lake Road and continue 23 miles until you reach Shannon Creek Campground. Turn left on Forest Road 1152, drive just past a 4 mile marker, and take a sharp right onto Forest Road 1152-014 to the very end of the road. The parking lot is wide and flat, as is the road leading there, no need for a high-clearance vehicle.

To begin your hike, you’ll start out on an old road trail 2.5 miles up to Shannon Ridge, which will give you awe-inspiring views of the valleys and mountains around. Follow the ridge another 2 miles over a pass to your right, and continue on until you are at the southern wing of Mt. Shuksan with the summit pyramid in sight.

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We ended up making a higher camp than we were expecting, a little above 6,000 ft., because it was a low-snow year and couldn’t find access to running water lower down. In any event, plan to camp on the snow and to melt snow for water, though you should be able to find some runoff you can boil or treat. The campsite we chose was truly an amphitheater of the North Cascades National Park, surrounded by jagged peaks from every angle.

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On summit day you’ll slog across the (seemingly) never-ending Sulphide Glacier to the base of the rock pyramid, along the way passing the intersection of Fisher Chimneys on your left. You’ll want to be roped up to your team along the glacier as there are crevasse dangers on either side.

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The summit pinnacle is a 400 ft. tall rock pyramid that is pretty straightforward and decorated with numerous anchors and ropes from older expeditions. The easiest and most direct way up is through a class 3-4 gully that may be covered in snow or ice earlier in the season. Later in the season, this gully may become a “bowling alley” of loose rocks. Use your judgment and forego the summit if conditions seem unstable.

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Once you’ve made it to the top, take a few deep breaths and pat yourself on the back! Like so many places in the North Cascades NP, the higher you go, the more rewarding the views. A sea of peaks looks up at you from below the summit of Shuksan, and hidden from view until the top is Mt. Baker looming to the west.

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As always, begin early (alpine start ~ 3 or 4am) so you have the advantage of hard, frozen snow for your crampons to grip into. This is a particularly popular climb so the later you begin, the more chances you have of running into a bottleneck up the summit gully or crowds at the top of the rock pinnacle.

Astonishingly, there is a pit toilet about 200 ft. downhill of the high camp overnight area. It is very exposed (both for the user and for audiences above), so be prepared to use your blue bags if necessary.

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