Episode 04: My First Volcano
My First and Certainly Not my Last Washington Volcano
Mount Baker from Sandy Camp (5,900 ft)
Mission:
Me and my Dad planned to go on a 3 day trip to Mount Baker, with the intent of summiting. We would approach Sandy Camp before hiking up the Easton Glacier, and navigate crevasses. This would be my first summit of any of the Washington Volcanos, and certainly not my last.
Day 1:
Me and my Dad drove to the trailhead at 9:00 am on Sunday morning, planning to hike to Sandy camp. In the parking lot we met up with our guide who would help us safely navigate the glaciers later on. We started our trek on the Park Butte trail at (3,400 ft), but couldn’t see anything because of the rainy weather. Fortunately this made mosquitos and other bugs go away, so no bug spray was needed. Coincidentally an hour into our hike I got stung by a group of Western Yellow Jackets, and my leg was throbbing in pain. Astonishingly it didn’t take long to recover and I was quickly emerging from the treeline up to the Railroad Grade.
The Railroad Grade is an infamously steep ridgeline formed by the massive Easton Glacier. To ascend it I would need to navigate big steps, huge exposure and the occasional rock scramble. After about an hour of this nerveracking ridgeline we made it to Sandy Camp. For the rest of the day we practiced walking in crampons, simple glacier rescue and talked about our route. Finally we got into our sleeping bags with dreams of the mountain and our summit goals.
Day 2:
I woke up in my sleeping bag to the ambition of my nearing summit attempt, and could practically feel the approaching adventure. After getting ready and eating, we started our long awaited push for the summit. We started with hiking on loose dirt, with fun rock scrambles approaching the glacier. It took us about 30 minutes to hike to the Easton Glacier, but finally we started putting on crampons and got ready for glacial travel.
While walking up the start of the glacier we navigated crevasses and trekked up huge faces that seemed like they would never end. We saw peaks like the Twin Sisters, the Black Buttes, and my favorite Colfax Peak. Which had a legendary line I wanted to ski called the South Couloir. Unfortunately it was August so there was minimal snow, so I couldn’t ski. While internally appreciating these views I continued slogging up the glacier knowing that this next pitch would be exhilarating.
After taking a quick snack break we started one of the most beautiful alpine pitches I have ever seen. In the background you could see Glacier Peak, the top of Rainier, and the local valley. This wasn’t the end of its beauty as I got to walk up an open face and look into deep blue crevasses while stepping over.
Finally we made it up to the Crater Rim where sulfur and steam was shooting out from the volcano. From here we would only have to ascend the Roman Wall and then the summit plateau. The Roman Wall is the crux of the route holding a steep pitch for about 1000 feet. It took us over 30 minutes to ascend, but at the top I felt the urge of the summit only a few hundred feet away.
After months of training my dedication had led to this moment, as I pushed through the final stretch of the summit plateau. I climbed the last hill up to the top before seeing a 360 view of Washington and Canada. Everything from the South Cascades all the way to the Canadian Rockies was showing its glory. I was stunned seeing the most iconic places in my life all at once. We all took pictures at the top before looking down the glacier, impressed by our progress. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end, so we were forced to go down because of the intense winds.
After putting on warmer clothes we started heading back down the mountain, towards the Roman Wall. To our guide's surprise this was one of the most pleasurable parts of the descent for me, as I did a reasonable amount of boot skiing. After descending the Roman Wall we got back on to the Eason Glacier, where we had to do a decent amount of crevasse crossings. Unfortunately clouds had swallowed some of the alpine views, so we continued slogging down to the lower glacier. Finally after hours of walking we made it off the Glacier and back on the loose rock and dirt. To end the day it only took a few rock scrambles, narrow ridges, and walking on cliffs, before making it back to Sandy Camp. For the rest of the evening we sat relaxed, excited about our successful climb.
Day 3:
That morning there was silence at Sandy Camp, as we were all exhausted from the previous day. Eventually we realized we would need to start moving, so we cooked up some oatmeal and talked about some crevasse rescue. After demonstrating some setups on the snow our guide told us to start packing up, so we could hike out. When we were done putting away the tent and all of our gear, we took one last look at the mountain from Sandy Camp before walking towards the Railroad grade.
On the Railroad grade we practically jogged down because of the downhill angle and sticky dirt. Fortunately because of this it only took us about 30 minutes to get back down to the treeline, and closer to the car. Throughout the next couple miles we kept a fast pace, and were careful not to get attacked by any bugs. Finally after two hours of walking with dreams of the car, we made it back to the trailhead.
Final Thoughts:
In the end it took us 5 hours to summit Mount Baker from Sandy Camp, which is 2 hours faster than the average adult group. While climbing the mountain we saw no other kids summiting, and got funny looks from the adult teams. Despite the lack of skiing, I thought this climb was full of adventure and life long memories.
