South Twin Sister - West Ridge
2011-08-06 - 2011-08-07
Nick Valich and Bill Green
This was the standard West Ridge scramble route, done over 2 days.
Day 1: bicycle up to Dailey Prairie, then hike up to basin.
Day 2: scramble up to the summit and back, hike down to Dailey Prairie, then
bicycle down to the car.
The gps track and the photo locations, in Google Earth format,
are here.
Setting off.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Resting on another bridge.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Photo by Nick Valich.
The talus slope.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Looking back from the top of the talus slope.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Looking forward from the same spot.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Filtering water.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Nicks camp site.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Camp site in the basin.
Views of the Twin Sisters from the camp site. This one is of the west flank of North Twin Sister.
South Twin Sister (upper right)
The West Ridge. We went up the snow and the lighter coloured spur beyond, to the skyline.
Sunset over the San Juan and Canadian Gulf Islands.
Sucia Island (left of center).
Photo by Nick Valich.
The next morning. An hour took care of all the easy going there was going to be.
We went up on the rock to the left, and came down on the rock to the right.
Nicks tent is the blue dot in the center. My bivy site is on the v shaped shrub-less exposed area.
Photo by Nick Valich.
On the spur up to the ridge.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Photo by Nick Valich.
An hour and a half later, views from a notch in the West Ridge.
Looking down the north side of the ridge.
North Twin Sister.
Looking south at Hayden Peak.
Photo by Nick Valich.
An hour later, Nick climbing along another notch, before the climb to the 6600' false summit.
Taking a break.
Photo by Nick Valich.
45 minutes later, Nick at another notch (really, he's in the picture). From here, we crossed the snow, then headed up to the right.
See.
We made it to the summit an hour and a half later.
Photo by
dbbrad.
Wasn't it supposed to be clear today?
Views from the summit (other than clouds). This one is northwest along the elongated summit.
This is Mount Baker, and the South Sister Glacier.
And this is looking south down the Twin Sisters range.
Photo by Nick Valich.
We met Brad at the summit. He'd come up from the east.
Crossing the snow finger on the way down.
Photo by Nick Valich.
Photo by Nick Valich.
