The Plan

This was my first climbing-oriented trip into the Pickets, which boasts some of the most rugged and most beautiful terrain in the Lower 48.

My grand plan was to do a complete traverse from north to south, beginning by hiking up Big Beaver Creek and shwacking up Wiley Ridge, then climbing Challenger and Fury, crossing over into the Southern Pickets via Picket Pass, and then climbing Terror and a few other peaks before heading out via the brushy Goodell Creek. I planned on 10 days, although Michael Stanton et al had done a similar traverse in 7 days in August 2004 (he has a great trip report posted at http://www.mountainwerks.org/cma/2004/pickets/index.html). The Pickets are no ordinary backpack trip, and I was fully aware and prepared for the physical and mental challenges involved.

Ed Hobbick responded to my post on Cascade Climbers.com. We made plans to do the trip in late July.

We began the ambitious adventure on July 22. Unfortunately, the trip did not go exactly as planned.

The following page details our adventure, including a description of a successful climb of Mt. Challenger. Of course, there are several photos. At the bottom of the page I have compared some of my photos from this trip with some photos my parents took during their traverse of the Northern Pickets in 1981.

Trip Summary

The trip started off great. We strategically hiked the first two days in the rain, but had a solid forecast of sun for the rest of the trip. The approach to Challenger up Wiley Ridge was straightforward and offered some enticing views of the Northern Pickets. The climb of Challenger was a blast. Our campsite on Challenger Arm overlooking Luna Basin was gorgeous. I gazed upon our planned route through the Northern Pickets, and anticipated a view of the Southern Pickets hiding behind the ridge.

Overlooking the Luna Cirque – with the thundering of calving glaciers and with the rugged peaks towering above – one is treated to a full appreciation of the ruggedness and challenge of the Pickets. I think it was at this point that Ed realized that the planned traverse was a bit too ambitious for his tastes. I was incredibly disappointed at this unexpected turn, but realized that the Pickets are not somewhere you want to be if you are feeling out of your comfort zone. So we pulled out the maps and looked for a line of retreat.

Neither one of us wanted to reverse the route along Wiley Ridge since, although straightforward and familiar, backtracking is, well, not exciting. I suggested following the route over to Luna-McMillan arm and taking Access Creek back to the Big Beaver trail. I liked the idea of getting a view of the Southern Pickets before heading out, and possibly scrambling up Luna and Fury via less technical routes. Ed voted for exiting via Luna Creek, which would bring us back to the Big Beaver Trail in only 3 miles. Looking at the map, I saw that Luna Creek is the shortest and flattest way into the Northern Pickets from the Big Beaver Trail, and briefly mused on why it is not a standard approach route. Perhaps I should have mused upon this point longer.

So down Luna Creek we headed.

I am at a loss for words to describe our experience in Luna Creek. So I will rely on Fred Beckey. Fred and his brother Helmy were perhaps the first to bushwhack down Luna Creek on their 10-day traverse from Nooksack River to Diablo Dam in 1940. In Challenge of the North Cascades, he describes their experience:

After the worst imaginable struggle with flies, devil's club, willows, and alder on the bottom of the valley flood plain, exhausted by a 3-mile struggle against bush, logs, and marsh, we arrived at the Big Beaver trail around 1:30. Our only remaining food was oatmeal and orange concentrate. We ate the oatmeal dry, without sugar.

Ed and I have joined the small handful of climbers who have experienced Luna Creek. It was certainly a character building experience. Ed and I ended up getting separated by the wall of brush. While I made it to the trail that evening, Ed spent the night in the jungle, and ended up ditching his pack and meeting up with me the next morning.

Needless to say, I don’t think I’ll consider Luna Creek as an approach route for the north buttress of Fury.

Overall, I was quite disappointed that the grand Pickets traverse I had planned did not work out as planned. However, Ed and I both came out in one piece with some good stories to tell, I got some good photos and made a successful climb of Mt. Challenger.

Scroll down for some photos and more detailed commentary, as well as a description of my solo climb of Mt. Challenger.