The Hypodermic Needle of the Wasatch (Photo Trip Report)

Click here for the Full Trip Report on my photography website.

Stream Crossings and Bushwhacking

There is no trail ascending Hogum Fork, so the first crux of the route is simply crossing the canyon stream and finding the mouth of the fork. We planned to begin our attempt at 5am, in the dark, so I did a short recon of the stream crossing two days before and found the famed logs that provide the only crossing over the roaring stream. After the crossing, we followed a dry creek bed up the granite slabs guarding the entrance to Hogum Fork. Our original plan was to follow the flowing stream up Hogum, but our eager anticipation to climb got the best of us and we ended up on a wild bushwhack through steep, treacherous terrain. We received a bit more adventure than we bargained for this early in the day, but made it out alive while unintentionally dislodging large rocks and boulders during our bushwhack / scramble.

Hogum Fork and Route Finding

Entering Hogum Fork was a feast for the eyes. Dustin and I were giddy at the opportunity to travel through such stunning terrain. It was a fun sense of exploration as this was the first time for both of us in this corner of the Wastach. We gradually approached the apron of The Needle, but it was difficult to recognize the correct couloir from our perspective. We ended up hiking too far south toward the base of another couloir named "The Sliver". With thunderstorms forecasted for the afternoon, we were concerned we had wasted too much time hunting for The Needle, and that we should just climb The Sliver. Darker clouds were beginning to surface in the north, yet we had no ability to look west and view what was coming our direction. Dustin texted his girlfriend who advised us the sky was clear for our section of the mountains. With that news our decision was simple: back track to The Needle!

The Needle and The Summit

The meat of the couloir and the subsequent scramble to the summit of North Thunder Mountain were phenomenal. The snow was great (maybe a little soft), the weather was perfect, and the scenery was stunning. This was fun!

Going Home

Words can't describe the satisfaction of enjoying the summit of North Thunder Mountain. It was simply too good! For the descent, our initial plan was to take a fast glissade down Coalpit Gulch. Unfortunately, from my prior recon it was evident that the lower waterfall of Coalpit Gulch was going to be a major obstacle. Not only would a roped rappel be mandatory with the raging water, but we would have to rappel down through the waterfall and downclimb some steep, wet rock. The safer option would be a glissade and hike down Bells Canyon. Although a Bells Canyon descent is much longer, we both felt more comfortable with that route.

Conclusion

We reached our car at 5pm, exactly 12 hours after our start. Just as we removed our packs, light rain began to fall. Could the timing be any better? Life can be awfully sweet when things go your way. This was a perfect day in the mountains.