Black Peak, 8970 Feet of Fun

Black Peak. Name sounds ominous, sinister. As you walk over Heather Pass and look up the valley, its black pyramid shape scrapes the sky. Then you notice the talus field below which guards the peak well. It is composed of boulders from the size of basketballs to big blocks requiring that you crawl through, over or around to get to the head of the valley. We tried this peak in October of last year and snow greeted us in the morning at our camp on Wing Lake. The two or three inches of snow made the talus field an interesting exit. Like walking on marbles interspersed with shin bangs and near misses.

This trip started as a spur of the moment plan put together on Wednesday night that got derailed by studies that took a lot longer than anticipated. Woody, Mindy and Will peeled out Friday afternoon, shortly after I called Zach to tell him that I’d need to do the climb in a single day. Luckily he was still interested in going. Zach, probably one of my most dependable scramble buddies, patiently waited for me to get my work done. He arrived promptly at 5 AM, and we jumped into the Jeep and headed for Washington Pass. An amazing mid-August day with blue sky, bright sunshine and our own anticipation greeted us we headed north. Stopping for a quick ‘Bucks and gas on the way over Highway 20 helped remove some of the cobwebs.

View from the south arm on Black Peak toward Heather Pass

Wheeling into the parking lot for the Lake Ann trailhead we parked next to Woody’s Jeep as the morning sun started to heat the lower reaches of the trail. We hoisted our wonderfully light day packs and set a brisk pace toward Heather Pass. A scant walk of a couple of miles gaining 2600 feet that deposited us at the turn-off toward the valley that guards Wing Lake and the base of Black peak, our destination The vista across the arm of Corteo Peak is nothing short of beautiful and it seems that more of a price should be paid for the view. As you face north there is an impressive rock wall to the west that was responsible for creating the talus field. This valley lies inside the corridor that is in the little publicized “unprotected multi-use area” adjunct to the North Cascades National Park. Most people assume that it is in the Park, when in fact it is managed by the National Forest Administration.

Keeping to the edge of the talus as long as possible kept us out of the thick of the big block hop until just about to the edge o Lewis Lake the lower lake. Skirting the lake on the south side we followed the climber’s trail up the arm arriving at Wing Lake. Nestled into the cirque that protects it from the sun, Wing Lake still was gripped by an icy layer with its edge broken out just beginning to thaw. It might not make it this year since it was already August. Woody, Mindy and Will’s camping gear was piled beside a boulder. We rewarded ourselves for the two hour walk with an ice cold drink from the lake and an energy bar, resting just enough to catch our breath.

Wing Lake was not ice free in August

Picking up altitude as we passed on the north side of Wind Lake we gained the saddle on the south arm of Black Peak. Steps in the snow made earlier in the day led steeply upward. We followed them until their directness forced us to kick our own. The climb starts on the south side of the arm at 8,000 feet with a turn toward the north up a short entry ramp. It was a little past noon. We started climbing up the first of the three left trending gullies that cut into the face. When these are loaded with snow in the spring the climb makes for a good ski tour. The scrambling was easy class II & III. Entering the second gully we heard voices as Woody, Mindy and Will appeared, heading down the gulley. “We could tell it was you guys because we knew that Zach would be fast and Grey One would just be the same steady pace, ” Woody remarked. Mindy gave us chocolate chip cookies for energy, made with some secret recipe that produced thick ones stuffed with chips. It was the perfect meeting on the side of a peak. I liked seeing our scramble buddies and it gave us a chance to get info on the route. We were about 2 hours from the summit.

Zach, Woody and Will on Black Peak scramble

Mindy below second gulley on Black Peak after she gave us cookies.

Interesting class II and III climbing led to the right trending ramp. The guide book cautioned about “needing” to find the ramp in order to get to the notch on the Northeast ridge that was the entry to a small slot that leads to the summit. We later discovered that we could have just as easily gone toward the left and up the south trending ridge to gain the summit. A short section was a little steep, but not any more difficult than the standard route. The peak has been skied from the summit. Steep first section followed by some great turns lower down.

Upper gullies on Black Peak. Route goes toward the right.

Top of final gulley looking down taken from near the ramp that leads to the summit

We met a party that had just done the Northeast ridge and were roped up, so Zach and I got the rope out and tied in before heading to the summit. The rope wasn’t necessary, but made the summit shot a little more comfortable since the summit block was a flat rock about the size of a small dining room table. The view from on top was like a photo album of the peaks I want to climb. Logan, Goode, Silver Star, Tower and Golden Horn framed our summit vista. We hung out and enjoyed the sun for about a half an hour, cutting our stay short when we the view reminded us that we still needed to walk out the long valley before dark. It was well after 3 PM and we would need the rest of the day to get back to the car.

Grey One on Black Peak's summit

Zach on Black Peak summit with Logan and Goode in background

Reversing our morning route found us on back on the arm at the eight mile mark as our energy began to fade. The steep decent forced my toes into the fronts of my boots hurting them. The next two miles over talus and on to the pass lasted longer than they should have with our arrival at Heather Pass coming none too soon. We walked the final two miles as dusk started to close out the light. A round trip time of twelve hours was a respectable on an objective of 8975 feet, gaining over 4100 feet (and loosing) of altitude.

We dumped our packs in the back of the Jeep for the drive home that was interrupted by a stop at Tacos Guaymas for a super burrito and beer. Black Peak was my favorite climb of the summer and is a standout on Washington’s 100 Highest Summits.

View towards Tower and Golden Horn

Cascade granite. Looking toward Silverstar and the Wine Spires