Enchantments > Dragontail Peak > Climber's LogDragontail Peak Climber's Log
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[ Sign the Climber's Log ]
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| Sharon | Route Climbed: Serpentine Arete IV, 5.8 Date Climbed: August 13, 1989  | |
| Partners: John Middleton & Allan Thousteinson. Joe Hahler & Ruth Martin were on a separate rope team. Stay left on final pitches to hit the big exit ledge...critical...it looks like you should go to the right, but that traps you under the big roofs of the summit towers & moves must be reversed. I still fondly remember a wonderful pitch of chickenheads warmed by the sun. Minimal pro: #1 & #2 Camalots, 2-3 Friends, 2 Tech Friends, several stoppers. Plus helmet! This was my first multi-pitch alpine rock climb & I'll never, ever forget it...as well as the 1st time I had ever been exposed to serious rockfall (no one was hit). From talking later to another party, who had experienced the same thing in what we agreed upon was the "Death Gully", we all may have been slightly off-route. Beckey terms this route "distinctly sporting." Roped up at 7:45 am...summitted 7:30 pm...& that was with all 5 of us. Descent via Aasgard Pass. | |
| Posted Jul 23, 2003 12:05 am | ||
| wallspeck | Route Climbed: Backbone Ridge Date Climbed: July 1995 | |
| Climbed with Phil Dyment who was living in Ellensburg then. We went light; car to car in 16 hours. The 80 foot long 5.9 offwidth in the middle may have a couple of 5.9 moves but it's reputation far exceeds it's bite. Don't be afraid, it's easy. The wet rock down low was harder. The finishing pitches on the fin were wild. Very beautiful area. | |
| Posted May 8, 2003 3:59 pm | ||
| Honkeydong | Route Climbed: south ridge trail Date Climbed: August 1984 | |
| Pete and I did this walk-up in howling wind and blue skies. I thought we'd get blown off, but by the time we got near the top the winds died down some. Awesome scenery from the top. Dark clouds to the west moving east chased us back to the truck the next day. | |
| Posted Mar 4, 2003 7:55 am | ||
| MikeB | Route Climbed: Triple Couloirs Date Climbed: April 4, 2002 | |
| Got lost in the dark on the approach - lots of bushwacking; missed the last bridge that led to some dicey creek crossings via icy logs. Good climb with several pitchs of veneer ice plastered over granite, plus several pitches of neve; sustained climbing of 50-70 degrees for entire route; outstanding exposure that really made the climb worthwhile. Great glissade down Asgard pass to Colchuck Lake - beats walking. Horrendous hike out in soft snow - numerous plunges to chest height while crossing the boulder field below Colchuck Lake. Simul soloed entire route with partner - car to car in 12 hours. | |
| Posted Dec 26, 2002 11:18 am | ||
| geoffcasey | Route Climbed: Colchuck Glacier Date Climbed: June 25 2002 | |
| Great Weather, Great Company, Great mountains, Though a tiring one day trip. | |
| Posted Sep 25, 2002 1:26 pm | ||
| Joe Hanssen | Route Climbed: East Face from Asgard Pass Date Climbed: Summer '97 | |
| Views from the summit to Stuart, down to Colchuck Lake and up north are impressive. The East Face is very easy, this is a great day climb. | |
| Posted Jul 29, 2002 9:58 am | ||
| scot'teryx | Route Climbed: Aasgard Pass/Snow Creek Glacier Date Climbed: 07/27/02 | |
| Dragontail Peak via Colchuck Lake and Aasgard Pass Since my traverse off the Enchantments last October, I have been drawn to Dragontail Peak. There is an incredible image of it in my family room that was taken by RF Bolton (A great mountain photographer). With the extension of the road closure till Aug 1, I grabbed my friend John and we headed out to Leavenworth on Friday night. We left the Stuart Lake TH at 9am and made it to Colchuck Lake by 1030. We traversed around the lake and ate food and rested for half an hour at the base of Aasgard Pass (the only way to the Enchantments IMO). We started the ascent in hot weather and heavy packs (we had planned to do Witches Tower as well (2 pitches 5.6)but after about 300 vertical feet we were dying and knew that time would not be on our side to do both so we opted to only do Dragontail. We left our rock gear behind and with lighter packs we made it to the top of Aasgard Pass by 130pm. The view was incredible as always, and we started up towards the Snow Creek Glacier and rested at the base to eat more and rest. We spoke to a party that had just ascended the Serpentine Arete (5.8) and bid them a good trip down the pass. We started our ascent of the glacier and traversed back and forth in the soft styrafoam snow that had a nice ice layer underneath and made it to the col in 30 minutes or less. Once there I was looking for the class 2-3 scramble that I have always heard about, but it's nothing more than an unusually well traveled trail that was 10 times better than Aasgard pass, and much easier. The summit was awesome, and views were 360 degrees. It was 4pm and we decided to turn around and head for the car. I can't say anything more than I suffered on the way down, after doing Rainier on Tuesday I felt the pain and agony - but was happy to have been perched on the summit of Dragontail (11 hours car to car)::: Next Route : Serpentine Arete | |
| Posted Jul 28, 2002 6:04 pm | ||
| Fred Spicker | Route Climbed: West Route via Colchuck Glacier Date Climbed: 13 June 1976 & 16 June 1985 | |
| 1976 with Monica Spicker. 1985 with Jim Spearman and a Spokane Mountaineers group. Approach via Colchuck Glacier and descent via Aasgurard Pass - both trips. | |
| Posted Jul 25, 2002 5:11 pm | ||
| D Smith | Route Climbed: Aasgard Pass/Snow Creek Glacier Date Climbed: 9/30/01 | |
| After camping at Colchuck Lake Saturday night, hiked up Aasgard Pass and ran into pretty steep, solid snow on permanent snowfield that is the Snow Creek Glacier. We were able to chop steps to the top (about 100' from the bottom)--Pretty slow going. Summitted at 1:30. A beautiful, clear sunny day with views South to Adams, North to Baker, West to the Olympics, and East to the Columbia Plateau. We decided decent via the ascent route would be too dangerous given the snow conditions, so we traversed the S ridge of peaks, decended into the Upper Enchantments Basin, and hiked back over Aasgard and out. | |
| Posted Oct 1, 2001 10:54 am | ||
| Bob Bolton | Route Climbed: South ridge Date Climbed: September 5, 1987 | |
| Once again it was a perfect day for high wandering on the rim of the Enchantment basin. We ascended the slopes south of Brynhild Lake and upon achieving the ridge traversed west and north to the south ridge of Dragontail. We stayed on the summit for a rather long time enjoying the early September sunshine and the magnificent views of Colchuck Peak, Mt. Stuart, Mt. Rainier, the western peaks of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness, and north to Glacier Peak and Mt. Baker. | |
| Posted Jun 2, 2001 1:16 am | ||
| Bob Bolton | Route Climbed: South ridge Date Climbed: September 2, 1984 | |
| After being snowed on two nights before, the weather was gorgeous on this day and we set out to climb Dragontail up the Snow Creek Glacier above Aasgard Pass. The snow was perfect for climbing and for the eventual glissade back toward our camp near Freya Lake. The summit views were spectacular on a perfectly clear day as we could easily see Mt. Adams to the south, almost in Oregon, and Mt. Baker to the north, almost in British Columbia. | |
| Posted Jun 2, 2001 12:52 am | ||
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