Liberty Ridge
Posted on Tuesday, December 2nd, 2008
My friend Chris has been trying to talk me into climbing the Liberty Ridge on Mount Rainier for several years now. To be honest, I was always a bit intimidated. At the end of June we had solid fitness and a good weather window. Scratching together enough motivation and cash, we took a long weekend to Seattle in order to attempt this famed route. Our goal was to climb the Liberty Ridge, covered most notably in 50 Classic Climbs of North America (Roper/Steck), in pure alpine style. The route itself covers 9,400 feet from the White River Campground to the top of the Liberty Cap at approximately 14,000 feet. The ridge proper is 5500 feet tall, is rated a Grade III or IV, and usually requires two to four days to complete.
We arrived in Seattle on Friday, got some last minute food and fuel at Feathered Friends (props!), and headed to the hill. I had never seen Mount Rainier and as its hulking mass loomed in the distance some 80 miles off, I must admit that I had a bit of cottonmouth. In the White River parking lot we slimmed our packs down even more, chased off the Dorito-fattened chipmunks, and got on our way.
We hiked our bivy gear in to St. Elmo Pass and set up camp at around 7,400 feet. We enjoyed a nice dinner, some amazing alpenglow on the Curtis Ridge, Seattle, and Pugeot Sound, and got to bed for an alpine start. We rose at 2:30 a.m., shoveled some oatmeal and candy bars down the hatch, and were on the move by 3 a.m. We spent three hours slogging across the Winthrop Glacier, ascended the Curtis Ridge, and finally obtained the toe of the route via the Carbon Glacier.
By 6 a.m. we were on the ridge-proper and headed towards Thumb Rock. The temperatures were a little warmer than ideal, but we deemed the conditions doable. Getting to Thumb Rock was a bit hairy, with enough rock fall for a medium soil factor. Thumb Rock, at 10,800 feet, provides beautiful views of the Willis and Liberty Walls, both of which shed an amazing amount or rock and snow throughout the day. These rock/ice falls were by far the largest movements of earth I had ever seen.
After a quick rest at the Thumb, we were on the move again towards the Black Pyramid. At 12,400 feet the Black Pyramid is an impressive formation of loose, chaotic volcanic choss. Herein lay the steepest climbing of the route and highly aerated ice, which was annoying to deal with but provided adequate screw protection. This section, leading to the Liberty Cap Glacier at 13,000 feet, was an absolute joy to climb.
After obtaining the Liberty Cap Glacier the route angle mellowed significantly. Plodding upwards for a few thousand feet, we navigated the upper bergschrund and reached the top of the Libety Cap around 4pm. We descended the Emmons Glacier and got back to our St. Elmo camp around 830pm. All told, approximately 19 miles and 7,400 feet of vertical gain and loss. An amazing experience with a great friend, the Liberty Ridge will always be one of the finer experiences of my life.
I climbed the entirety of the Liberty Ridge in Cloudveil’s Switchback Jacket, made of Schoeller softshell fabric. An amazing piece that covers every possible aerobic endeavor, the Switchback is the jacket of choice for mountaineering, backcountry skiing, or rock climbing. Immensely breathable, it also yields adequate protection against the elements before you need to throw the Koven Plus over top of it. I recommend everyone try it, it’s pretty sweet and allows you to move light and fast.
I am the hardgoods buyer for Alpenglow Sports in Tahoe City, California where we advocate playing as hard as we work. I enjoy deep powder, long trail runs, and my malamute Poppy.
