boisedoc - Aug 2, 2012 5:53 pm Date Climbed: Aug 1, 2012
Thorp creek
Pretty area. Good weather. No crowds. Thorp creek trail takes a bit of work to find and is steep but gets the job done
Kyle509 - Apr 24, 2012 5:37 pm Date Climbed: Aug 20, 2011
From hurricane creek
Came up the Thorp Creek trail on a day hike. Around 14 miles and nearly 5000 gain day, very fun.
idpeakgirl - Jul 24, 2011 4:40 pm Date Climbed: Aug 15, 2004
From Thorp Creek
It was worthwhile going in this way and having the secluded campsite, away from Ice Lake.
Snowslogger - Aug 24, 2010 3:51 pm Date Climbed: Aug 20, 2010
ThreeFer(maybe four)
Great solo trip. From Ice Lake to the Matterhorn (my third, counting Disneyland and the Sierra), peak 9775, Sacajawea, and Hurwal Divide. Stayed relatively low on the west on the traverse (about 9,400') and thus missed most of the fun, but was trying to be efficient for a long day.
Troy B - Jul 31, 2010 1:05 pm Date Climbed: Jul 30, 2010
Matterhorn Sacajawea Traverse
Excellent traverse from the Matterhorn. The views from the top are amazing.
alpinedon - Nov 22, 2009 10:14 pm Date Climbed: Sep 2, 2002
Retro-signing
Climbed from The Matterhorn, solo.
Brian Jenkins - Aug 24, 2009 1:58 am Date Climbed: Aug 16, 2009
Traversed
After attempting this traverse in 2002 and failing, I went back and tried again with Flanders and Lunadog. They got about halfway there and decided to stop. I went to the same spot I got stumped years before and then traversed low into the scree on the west side. Gingerly made my way over to a dark vein of rock and then up a bit until I found a way back up onto the ridge. From that point on it was clear sailing to the summit of the highest point in the Wallowas. On the way back, I went the ridge the whole way and it was much easier to see the way I should have gone. There are two exposed class 3 sections on the ridge if you are coming from Matterhorn where when it looks dicey, traverse around the west side of the gendarme and stick higher to the ridge and you should be fine. Much easier coming from Sacajawea to see where the route goes.
Came up Thorpe Creek and through the basin. First time in the Wallowas, this is easily the most rugged terrain in Oregon. Drove up to the trailhead friday night from Bend, drive time is slightly prohibitive, but should be making the trip up here more frequently the next year to knock out more peaks.
Camped at Thorp Creek Basin. Was accompanied by my son Mike, O he of infinite patience and tact. Returned down the talus ridge that lies more south than the south ridge. No significant snow on either ridge, except as scenery. ADDITION: Snow still at the foot of the ridge still deep enough to cover the large runoff stream underneath. Use the slot in the basalt dike to get on the ridge.
The ascending experience was glorious, a new peak or ridge
seeming to pop up every few hundred feet, lots of snow on most, another savagely beautiful (northwest?) ridge visible from the false summit onward, and intriguing varieties of rock underfoot throughout.
The Twin Creek blowdown/avalanche mess on the way in becomes less of an obstacle as time passes. About 150 feet upstream from the old trail crossing one can cross and pass through most of the mess with almost no obstacles.
Mr. Clam - Sep 19, 2007 8:54 pm Date Climbed: Sep 9, 2007
Traverse from Matterhorn
Did the traverse with Infected Mushroom and two other friends, fun scrambling along the way.
When on the summit a small plane spotted us. Buzzing towards us, it slowed way down. Just over our heads, the pilot pulled a large swooping turn and waved. Cool indeed.
Climbed after summiting The Matterhorn from Ice lake. Great scramble on the ridge. Headed over the the Hurwal Divide. Excellent day!
idahomtnhigh - May 16, 2007 12:51 am Date Climbed: Aug 5, 1999
Route Climbed: South Ridge
My brother and I summited Matterhorn early in the morning from Ice Lake and than made our way north along the ridge that connects to Sacajawea. Didn't have any trouble and returned to Ice lake the same way.
Mr. Clam - Apr 2, 2007 11:31 pm Date Climbed: Mar 28, 2007
Winter attempt
Made an attemt on the finger that splits the E and NE faces. I believe the route we took is to the North of the Thorp Creek route.
Trip report here: http://www.summitpost.org/trip-report/282357/Winter-Mountaineering-in-the-Wallowas.html
donhaller3 - Feb 26, 2007 8:24 am Date Climbed: Jul 27, 2005
Nope
Had camped at the lower end of the meadows in Thorpe Cr. Basin and started just before daylight. Some frost, very cold fingers first half mile or so. It was a beautiful but frustrating day.
Went up the SE Ridge route. As in the walk in the day before, I seemed to be going much more slowly than I expected. I assumed that the combination of age, sudden altitude change and diabetes were giving me more problems than I had anticipated. Generally a tremendous feeling of weakness, particularly in the legs. I had a sore swollen area on one side of my jaw that I thought was from a trail mix sliver down along the tooth from a couple of days before. It turned out to be a double abcess that was the size of half a tennis ball by the time I got home Saturday the 30th. A few months later I discovered that I am one of the lucky people who has muscle tissue destroyed by Lipitor.
That's the major whine. I also tried an alternate path that swung out to the left, based on a conversation with somebody who had done this a few years before. This led to problems that I tried to resolve by going further to the left, which eventually led me to withdraw downwards to try to swing back to the right. I think these "problems" were not that great, and would have been ignored if I hadn't been alone or had been feeling better. As it was, by the time I got back on track it was 20 minutes short of the 1:30 turnaround I had set. (Supposed front coming that pm per info when I left home and I never got high enough to see if storm cells were indeed marching in from the SW.) So I went back to camp.
Despite the malaise and disappointment, this was a spectacular day.
Was going to try again the next day, but a thunder storm rolled through about sunrise. Went back to bed for 2 hours and still felt like untreated solid waste, but decided to just follow Thorp Creek all the way up. By about noon it was another beautiful day. Walked up eventually to the head of the basin and up the crest of the ridglet that runs almost due south from the summit. Was less than 1200 vertical feet from the summit by a straightforward talus trudge, BUT it was 4:00 and I could see towering cum over the Seven Devils, AND the note in my cookpot had said I would go to where I was and then come back the same way. So I did, taking almost to dusk to get there. The next day I decided to to wander the meadow portion of the basin and take pictures, then walked out to the car. Again taking twice as long as planned and by now having real difficulty chewing solid stuff and definitely feeling feverish.
Despite all, this was one of the best trips I've ever taken.
Clevelander22 - Nov 16, 2006 6:47 am Date Climbed: Jul 3, 2005
Matterhorn thru Ice Lake
first time in the wallowas, such beautiful mountains. trail was a little sketch between the matterhorn and the sac, but a fun climb. where's the green team??
Route Climbed: Matterhorn - Sacajawea Ridge via Ice Lake
Climbed this one with my brother on our way from Boise to Portland. We hiked up late in the afternoon and camped on the east side of Ice Lake, woke up in the am and headed up the east ridge of the Matterhorn to the summit. Since we were soooo close, we just had to hike the ridge to Sacajawea which had some short class 3 sections. Good views from the top, but not as good as the Matterhorn. We returned to camp via the scree fields SE of the ridge only to find another group had set up their camp not 100 feet from our tent (bastards!), so we had to listen to them and their whining dog the rest of the evening. Still, it was a great trip.
Climbed with my wife. Our 11th peak in the Wallowas. The SE ridge seemed a little steep at times. We came down a scree slope on the SW side of the mountain and back Thorp Creek.
Route Climbed: Thorp Creek Date Climbed: September 27, 2003
What can I say that my partners, Dean and Tom (Cornvallis), haven't said already? It was a beautiful trail full of fall colors. The abundant animal tracks in the creek bed were incredible. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky. I took a nap on the summit, afterall, I was there for two and a half hours waiting for my partners to come and go. Overall, a great trip. Thanks, Tom and Dean, for making it memorable.
boisedoc - Aug 2, 2012 5:53 pm Date Climbed: Aug 1, 2012
Thorp creekPretty area. Good weather. No crowds. Thorp creek trail takes a bit of work to find and is steep but gets the job done
Kyle509 - Apr 24, 2012 5:37 pm Date Climbed: Aug 20, 2011
From hurricane creekCame up the Thorp Creek trail on a day hike. Around 14 miles and nearly 5000 gain day, very fun.
idpeakgirl - Jul 24, 2011 4:40 pm Date Climbed: Aug 15, 2004
From Thorp CreekIt was worthwhile going in this way and having the secluded campsite, away from Ice Lake.
Snowslogger - Aug 24, 2010 3:51 pm Date Climbed: Aug 20, 2010
ThreeFer(maybe four)Great solo trip. From Ice Lake to the Matterhorn (my third, counting Disneyland and the Sierra), peak 9775, Sacajawea, and Hurwal Divide. Stayed relatively low on the west on the traverse (about 9,400') and thus missed most of the fun, but was trying to be efficient for a long day.
Troy B - Jul 31, 2010 1:05 pm Date Climbed: Jul 30, 2010
Matterhorn Sacajawea TraverseExcellent traverse from the Matterhorn. The views from the top are amazing.
alpinedon - Nov 22, 2009 10:14 pm Date Climbed: Sep 2, 2002
Retro-signingClimbed from The Matterhorn, solo.
Brian Jenkins - Aug 24, 2009 1:58 am Date Climbed: Aug 16, 2009
TraversedAfter attempting this traverse in 2002 and failing, I went back and tried again with Flanders and Lunadog. They got about halfway there and decided to stop. I went to the same spot I got stumped years before and then traversed low into the scree on the west side. Gingerly made my way over to a dark vein of rock and then up a bit until I found a way back up onto the ridge. From that point on it was clear sailing to the summit of the highest point in the Wallowas. On the way back, I went the ridge the whole way and it was much easier to see the way I should have gone. There are two exposed class 3 sections on the ridge if you are coming from Matterhorn where when it looks dicey, traverse around the west side of the gendarme and stick higher to the ridge and you should be fine. Much easier coming from Sacajawea to see where the route goes.
calebEOC - Sep 14, 2008 7:24 pm Date Climbed: Sep 13, 2008
Thorpe CreekCame up Thorpe Creek and through the basin. First time in the Wallowas, this is easily the most rugged terrain in Oregon. Drove up to the trailhead friday night from Bend, drive time is slightly prohibitive, but should be making the trip up here more frequently the next year to knock out more peaks.
donhaller3 - Jul 20, 2008 12:50 pm Date Climbed: Jul 17, 2008
South RidgeCamped at Thorp Creek Basin. Was accompanied by my son Mike, O he of infinite patience and tact. Returned down the talus ridge that lies more south than the south ridge. No significant snow on either ridge, except as scenery. ADDITION: Snow still at the foot of the ridge still deep enough to cover the large runoff stream underneath. Use the slot in the basalt dike to get on the ridge.
The ascending experience was glorious, a new peak or ridge
seeming to pop up every few hundred feet, lots of snow on most, another savagely beautiful (northwest?) ridge visible from the false summit onward, and intriguing varieties of rock underfoot throughout.
The Twin Creek blowdown/avalanche mess on the way in becomes less of an obstacle as time passes. About 150 feet upstream from the old trail crossing one can cross and pass through most of the mess with almost no obstacles.
Mr. Clam - Sep 19, 2007 8:54 pm Date Climbed: Sep 9, 2007
Traverse from MatterhornDid the traverse with Infected Mushroom and two other friends, fun scrambling along the way.
Infected Mushroom - Sep 19, 2007 8:17 pm Date Climbed: Sep 9, 2007
Matterhorn/Sacajawea RidgeWhen on the summit a small plane spotted us. Buzzing towards us, it slowed way down. Just over our heads, the pilot pulled a large swooping turn and waved. Cool indeed.
nickkarl - Jul 23, 2007 7:07 pm Date Climbed: Jul 21, 2007
South RidgeClimbed after summiting The Matterhorn from Ice lake. Great scramble on the ridge. Headed over the the Hurwal Divide. Excellent day!
idahomtnhigh - May 16, 2007 12:51 am Date Climbed: Aug 5, 1999
Route Climbed: South RidgeMy brother and I summited Matterhorn early in the morning from Ice Lake and than made our way north along the ridge that connects to Sacajawea. Didn't have any trouble and returned to Ice lake the same way.
Mr. Clam - Apr 2, 2007 11:31 pm Date Climbed: Mar 28, 2007
Winter attemptMade an attemt on the finger that splits the E and NE faces. I believe the route we took is to the North of the Thorp Creek route.
Trip report here: http://www.summitpost.org/trip-report/282357/Winter-Mountaineering-in-the-Wallowas.html
donhaller3 - Feb 26, 2007 8:24 am Date Climbed: Jul 27, 2005
NopeHad camped at the lower end of the meadows in Thorpe Cr. Basin and started just before daylight. Some frost, very cold fingers first half mile or so. It was a beautiful but frustrating day.
Went up the SE Ridge route. As in the walk in the day before, I seemed to be going much more slowly than I expected. I assumed that the combination of age, sudden altitude change and diabetes were giving me more problems than I had anticipated. Generally a tremendous feeling of weakness, particularly in the legs. I had a sore swollen area on one side of my jaw that I thought was from a trail mix sliver down along the tooth from a couple of days before. It turned out to be a double abcess that was the size of half a tennis ball by the time I got home Saturday the 30th. A few months later I discovered that I am one of the lucky people who has muscle tissue destroyed by Lipitor.
That's the major whine. I also tried an alternate path that swung out to the left, based on a conversation with somebody who had done this a few years before. This led to problems that I tried to resolve by going further to the left, which eventually led me to withdraw downwards to try to swing back to the right. I think these "problems" were not that great, and would have been ignored if I hadn't been alone or had been feeling better. As it was, by the time I got back on track it was 20 minutes short of the 1:30 turnaround I had set. (Supposed front coming that pm per info when I left home and I never got high enough to see if storm cells were indeed marching in from the SW.) So I went back to camp.
Despite the malaise and disappointment, this was a spectacular day.
Was going to try again the next day, but a thunder storm rolled through about sunrise. Went back to bed for 2 hours and still felt like untreated solid waste, but decided to just follow Thorp Creek all the way up. By about noon it was another beautiful day. Walked up eventually to the head of the basin and up the crest of the ridglet that runs almost due south from the summit. Was less than 1200 vertical feet from the summit by a straightforward talus trudge, BUT it was 4:00 and I could see towering cum over the Seven Devils, AND the note in my cookpot had said I would go to where I was and then come back the same way. So I did, taking almost to dusk to get there. The next day I decided to to wander the meadow portion of the basin and take pictures, then walked out to the car. Again taking twice as long as planned and by now having real difficulty chewing solid stuff and definitely feeling feverish.
Despite all, this was one of the best trips I've ever taken.
Clevelander22 - Nov 16, 2006 6:47 am Date Climbed: Jul 3, 2005
Matterhorn thru Ice Lakefirst time in the wallowas, such beautiful mountains. trail was a little sketch between the matterhorn and the sac, but a fun climb. where's the green team??
awilsondc - Jul 17, 2006 10:19 pm Date Climbed: Jul 11, 2006
Route Climbed: Matterhorn - Sacajawea Ridge via Ice LakeClimbed this one with my brother on our way from Boise to Portland. We hiked up late in the afternoon and camped on the east side of Ice Lake, woke up in the am and headed up the east ridge of the Matterhorn to the summit. Since we were soooo close, we just had to hike the ridge to Sacajawea which had some short class 3 sections. Good views from the top, but not as good as the Matterhorn. We returned to camp via the scree fields SE of the ridge only to find another group had set up their camp not 100 feet from our tent (bastards!), so we had to listen to them and their whining dog the rest of the evening. Still, it was a great trip.
SawtoothSean - Jan 4, 2006 8:45 pm
Route Climbed: Thorp creek Date Climbed: August 20,1999Backpacking with my wife- this was a quick excursion- great ridgeline in a nice generally uncrowded range
woodyoforegon - Sep 22, 2004 3:01 pm
Route Climbed: Thorp Creek Date Climbed: 8/16/02Climbed with my wife. Our 11th peak in the Wallowas. The SE ridge seemed a little steep at times. We came down a scree slope on the SW side of the mountain and back Thorp Creek.
annaleiserabinek - Oct 3, 2003 12:42 am
Route Climbed: Thorp Creek Date Climbed: September 27, 2003What can I say that my partners, Dean and Tom (Cornvallis), haven't said already? It was a beautiful trail full of fall colors. The abundant animal tracks in the creek bed were incredible. The weather was perfect, not a cloud in the sky. I took a nap on the summit, afterall, I was there for two and a half hours waiting for my partners to come and go. Overall, a great trip. Thanks, Tom and Dean, for making it memorable.