Trip Date: January 19, 2003
Arrowhead Mountain Snowshoe Climb
North Arrowhead Basin
Arrowhead Mountain (6030 ft)
Trip Report Summary
Region: Central Washington Cascades
Sub-Region: Upper Icicle Mountains
Area: Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest
Starting & Ending Point: WSDOT Maintenance Facility driveway entrance on Highway 2 (Elev. 2950 feet)
Way Points: Nason Creek Bridge (road walk); BNSF Railroad crossing & North Arrowhead Basin (snow hike & snowshoe hike)
Summit: Arrowhead Mountain (snowshoe climb via North Slope—North Ridge)
Approximate Stats: 4 miles traveled; 3400 feet gained & lost; 4.7 hours up; 2.1 hours down.
Related Post
>>> Arrowhead Mtn Snowshoe Climb via Northeast Ridge – January 22, 2022
Full Trip Report
Laura and I joined Suzanne, Ron, Kiehan, Scott, Karen, and John on a snowshoe climb of Arrowhead Mountain. Starting at the WSDOT Maintenance Facility, we walked up Highway 2 to the Nason Creek Bridge, booted uphill to the BNSF railroad, and walked down the tracks about ¼ mile. Amidst stern admonishments from Ron, everyone then donned snowshoes, turned southward, and headed straight uphill. Ron declared that we had turned up too early and would not be able to summit from this point. He might have been correct, but Laura and I were just along for the ride, so we followed the pack.
After gaining about 2000 feet, we entered North Arrowhead Basin directly below the summit. There was a large cliff straight ahead, so we turned sharply right (west) and climbed up to the crest of Arrowhead’s north ridge. The crest was craggy and corniced, but we managed to weave around all obstacles and before long were on the summit (4.7 hours + 3400 feet from cars).
Our morning had started out cold and overcast, but it was now mild and sunny, giving us good views of all the surrounding peaks. After a relaxing summit lunch, we retraced our steps back to the cars (2.1 hours from summit). Although we had inadvertently chosen a more difficult route to the summit, it worked out quite nicely!
Equipment Comments
For more information regarding the various equipment that I used for this particular trip and that I typically use for this type of trip, see my gear reviews on the following pages:
>>> Trail & Mountain Snowshoes
>>> Backcountry Ski & Snowshoe Packs
>>> Wintertime Comfort Accessories
Route Map
Photo Gallery
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