Mt. Shuksan via Sulphide Glacier, End of Summer 2025
End of the summer season conditions were reported as “Do-able” but not typical, but we had never done this route before so we had no preconceptions of how the route should look other than what’s written in the somewhat dated trip reports. With a strategy of “keep going until it doesn’t make sense”, Mike and I scrutinized the rainy storm system forecasted to hit sometime that weekend and decided to give it an attempt with this short weather window.
The approach via Shannon Ridge represents the classic summertime Cascade feeling where the Trailhead (with a pit toilet) is in the rainforest at about 2300’ elevation. The well maintained trail slowly ascends to the ridge and above to the sub-alpine where the NPS boundary marker exists and conveniently demarcates the transition to the alpine. Once passing the boundary, the trail fades into a climbers path that ascends a series of broken slabs from 5000’ to 6100’ where the lower glacier is distinctly disconnected from the proper Sulphide Glacer this time of year after a lower snow season and a drier summer.
We found the 6100’ low camp near the end of the slabs opposite the cliffs and the vault toilet surrounded by well-used bivy/tent sites. A guided group had already been there for 2 days so finding the spot became obvious and the guides showed us to an excellent site that fit our bivy nicely with incredible views of the North Cascades
Unsure of the crevasse situation but expecting a late-season, broken glacier, we planned to start our summit push at dawn to leverage the daylight for navigation. We knew another party had ascended/descended the glacier the day before and were hopeful there was a clear path through the crevasse maze. This late in this season, there were pretty clear deep cracks as well as a plethora of suspect snow bridges and large degraded moats at the upper slab and glacier transitions. We were glad to find the faintest boot track from the small party that preceded us the day before and were able to follow solid spines towards the frying pan sections of the glacier plateau.
We marched forward to the summit pyramid to transition to climbing the 3rd to low 5th class scramble. The summit pyramid from afar can be a little intimidating without a climbing background, and the exposure accessing the lower chimneys was definitely apparent with a Mines of Moria deep moat beneath the airy bits. The climbing stays true to the guidebook descriptions and the dry conditions inspired enough confidence in both of us to not rope up for the ascent. We were lucky to have the summit pyramid to ourselves, and can only imagine what a busy time of the season might look like with a mix of guided and unguided parties knocking loose, mango-to-basketball sized rocks down the chimney.
We rapped from the summit as efficiently as we could, and found that the middle sections of the pyramid were probably quicker to downclimb but your mileage may vary with risk of falling rock and other climbers which we did not encounter any while up there.
Back down the glacier and trotting back to the car through the dark made for a full value day with a little bit of everything. Couldn’t have asked for better weather aside from a tiny bit of lingering smoke from the September wildfires.
