Looking at Gilhooley Saddle...

Looking at Gilhooley Saddle...

Looking at Gilhooley Saddle and Tower from the Deception-Martin Saddle on Sept. 17, 2005. Note the rockfall scar on the right side. Rocks of all sizes were constantly tumbling down the slope. You do not want to go over there after the snowcover has gone. I went up the extreme left side but still experienced some tumblers (a melon-sized rock went right past my head at one point). The old Olympic Guidebook says to climb "past a bergschrund and up a steep (40-degree) but short snow slope to the summit ridge." Well, there's not really a gully (not the way I went) and maybe when the book was written there was a permanent snow slope there. Global warming has exposed lots of unstable talus. The upper slope is pretty steep and as I was later standing at the saddle sizable rocks would literally spring out of their tenuous perches.
Klenke
on Sep 22, 2005 9:08 pm
Image ID: 127566

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gimpilator

gimpilator - Jan 4, 2012 10:19 am - Voted 10/10

Very Loose

The rock below this saddle is the most crumbly stuff I have ever climbed. Everything you touch comes apart. We found Gilhooley Saddle Bypass to be much preferable on the descent.

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