Ruth Mountain

10 miles of hiking • 4500' elevation gain • 1 night

New Summit - 6 of 20 for the Year 2013

Ruth Mountain has been on my to do list for a number of years. A few years ago Mayumi, Jason and I went to Hannegan Pass with a plan of climbing Ruth and traversing over to Icy Peak. This was not meant to be, we ended up spending 4th of July in a tent for over 48 hours while waiting for the rain to stop. Then on the morning we broke camp the clouds finally parted and we got a peek-a-boo view of Ruth. I knew that someday I would return and it would have to be the perfect forecast.

Early in the week I started looking at forecast models for the Mount Baker area. Things were looking a little iffy, but as the week progressed Saturday seemed to be shaping up nicely. Friday morning I packed up all of my gear before heading to work. Not knowing what my final plans were going to be, I packed just about everything so that I could leave all of my options open. I knew that two things were a must... 1.) an overnighter and 2.) a new summit. So after lunch I checked the forecast again and Saturday looked great with Sunday having a chance of afternoon showers. The stage was finally set for my return to Ruth Mountain, now the only question was do I overnight up at Hannegan Pass again or try and pack light for a 1 day push. I drove up to the trail head Friday night and didn't get in until after midnight. I quickly pitched my tent and settled in at the campground near the trail head. The decision had been made. I would close my eyes for a few hours and get up early to do a day climb. I left my tent set up in the morning so that I could stay an extra night if needed. Turned out this wasn't needed, because when I got back down all I wanted to do is get the heck outta dodge and grab a brew / warm meal.

The approach was nice and brisk. I made good time up to Hannegan pass. There were a number of blow downs and hairy creek crossings along the way. Although the snow bridges were nice and firm in the morning, I knew they were going to be problematic in the afternoon.... (which they were !!) Once I was at the pass there was a great view of Ruth and the ridge route that laid ahead of me. So I geared up and slogged on. There was always a nice cool breeze along the way up. (not the case on the descent) The higher I climbed... the better the views got. It was hard not to stop and take a picture every couple hundred feet, but I knew that the Summit was going to reveal the stellar views of the Nooksack Cirque that had not quite shown itself yet. Turns out... it wasn't until I hit the summit that this view came into sight. It was amazing and pictures just don't do it justice. By far the best viewpoint that I have ever had the privilege of taking in. There is even 3 bivy sites on the Summit. I look forward to making a return and camping up top. Then you can make a traverse over to Icy Peak.

I could have spent hours up on that summit. No wind and views that would take your breath away. But I had to get down and out if I was going to break camp and drive home tonight. The glissade from the summit was nice. I actually made it down faster than the skiers. Then it was a long hot hike out through the valley. Luckily I remember to stash some beers in a snow bank by my camp site. This kept me motivated and moving !!! What a great trip out... the crux of the climb ended up being the drive home. I had to pull over at a rest stop near Everett and close my eyes for an hour before hitting the road again. I got home around 1:00 a.m. and was glad to be sleeping in my own bed !!!