Return to the Big and West Craggy

So we planned on leaving on Friday evening as early as he could get north. On Friday afternoon, Thad gave me a call and asked if we had room. Yeah, no problem. Gear all loaded into the Jeep ready to go, jumped in and turned the key – nothing. Tried it a few more time and nothing. Wouldn’t turn over. Pete volunteered to drive and we reloaded and were on our way, pulling out of our driveway well after 5 PM. The North Cascades are beautiful in August and the evening light brushed them as we drove across Highway 20. It was actually a relief not to drive.

Arriving at the trailhead a little after 8, we piled out of the car, got our boots on and hoisted the packs. It seemed like it had been months since I hiked the last time but, it had only been ten days since we climbed Black Peak. I worried about the pace and if I could keep up. My companions were a full twenty years younger than me and ready to rip uphill. I keep wondering why more guys my age don’t do this type of stuff.

The trailhead is a bit informal, starting at a gated road that leads to several mining claims. I remembered the steepness of it from my previous visit to the area. The trail gains about 1500 feet in a little over a mile and half to an upper meadow with views down Eightmile Creek and across the Methow Valley. It took about an hour to get there. We arrived just as the sun was starting to color Isabella Ridge. Donning our headlamps and feeling the cool of evening we continued to head up toward Copper Glance Lake as the trail followed the creek. A little over an hour later, I recognized the place where we needed to turn off to reach a pair of tarns and skirt along a talus slope that would direct us into the basin below Big Craggy. We decided to camp near the trail and get an early start in the morning. The bugs found us and attacked any exposed or un-treated flesh, Hovering and buzzing around us. I was probably going to be in for a long night under the stars if I slept out unprotected. Thad graciously offered the shelter of his bug screened tent which I humbly accepted.

Camp near talus slope on the way to West and Big Craggy

First light came early, so we decided to leave at second light which is about 8 o’clock. Leaving camp, I noted we had about 12 hours of daylight, plenty of time for a short easy scramble of two peaks. We followed the creek keeping between the edge of the talus field and the creek. Heading north and slightly west we walked through the open forest to gain the south trending arm that comes down from the pass that separates Big Craggy and West Craggy.

Climbing the lower talus slope toward the notch between Big and West Craggy

Both of the guide books describe the climb as going up the face or prominent rounded South East Ridge, but it is loose and seems to be a longer way to gain the summit. Gaining the notch between the two peaks is more practical and seems shorter. Once we were at the notch, it was straight forward scramble punctuated by short stretches of trail to the summit of Big Craggy. We were leery of the weather since the report called for afternoon thunderstorms, but the sky was clear blue with vistas for miles. The rounded summit offered great views down the north ridge toward No Dice Lake and across to the northwest of the jagged peaks of the Pasayten Wilderness. From the summit, the East face of West Craggy looked intimidating.

Looking toward the summit of Big Craggy from the notch

Summit of Big Craggy with Oscalla and Lagos in the background

Dropping back to the notch we could see across the ridge guarded by gendarmes toward West Craggy. It looked steep, but as with most climbs, when we arrived at the base of the gulley it was easier than it had appeared from a distance. Moving into the gulley we climbed upward on class II and III rock toward the prominent notch and exited toward the left which put us on the “backside” of the slope that leads to the summit.

Sktirting toward the gulley and notch on West Craggy arm

 It was hot. The ridge had the perfect slope and I wished that it was snowing and we were on skis. It was an easy walk to the summit from the notch. West Craggy has a summit register and we read past entries. We filled out the appropriate paperwork to document our history. Someone boasted of reaching the summit in 2.5 hours from the car… we thought that we had made good time. A few photos, some lunch, a nap and it was time to head down.

The face of West Craggy from the summit of Big Craggy

Summit lunch on West Craggy with Thad

It appeared obvious that we should follow the ridge to a lower notch that put us to the north of the notch between the two peaks. We skirted south along the rock benches heading for the talus field at the head of Copper Glance Creek. Lots of talus. Too much talus. Sore ankles. Everything I stepped on moved. We should have reversed our earlier route more to the south and retraced the short section through the woods. I think that the talus added an extra hour to the afternoon and really took a toll on my feet, knees and ankles.

Looking down toward the lower notch on West Craggy

Endless talus from the notch to Copper Glance Basin

Back under the first talus slope on the way to Copper Glance Lake where we made our camp, we tossed the gear into our packs. I stuffed down a Snickers Bar, hoisted the stone and started a slow walk out. I looked down and saw that the talus had torn the side of my Gortex hiking boots. The trail down is beautiful until you reach the abandoned road. Then the trip becomes a non-descript trudge on the road. Steep, hot and dusty. The road out always seems longer than the road in for some reason and we were back at the car by 5 pm.

Thad and Craig hiking across the upper meadow on the way out

The Craggys are close to the road, but very remote feeling and worth the hike. The cirque to the North just after you cross the Copper Glance Creek holds a pair of beautiful ponds with crystal clear cold water and would make a worthy place to backpack to for the weekend or as a better camp for a leisurely climb of West and Big Craggy. They are a nice introduction to scrambling in the Pasayten Wilderness.

The ridge on Big Craggy is punctuated by gendarmes