Trip Date: July 2-6, 2010

Riddle Peak & Flora Mountain Climbing Trip

Tenmile Falls
Tenmile Pass
Main Riddle Peak (8232′)
Riddle Creek Basin
Castle Creek Basin
Flora Mountain (8320′)
Tenmile Basin
Hilgard Pass
Black Tower (7880′) attempt 

Trip Report Summary

Region: North-Central Washington Cascades

Sub-Region: Stehekin Mountains

Area: Glacier Peak Wilderness

Starting & Ending Point: Tenmile Falls Trailhead at Holden Village on Railroad Creek Road (Elev. 3200 feet)

Way Points: Lower Tenmile Falls & Tenmile Creek Camp & North Tenmile Basin & Tenmile Pass (trail hike & off-trail hike & bushwhack & snow hike)

Campsites: Tenmile Creek Camp & Tenmile Pass & Tenmile Creek Camp

Summit: Main Riddle Peak (snow hike & snow climb & rock scramble via Southwest Slope—South Ridge)

Sidetrip: Upper Fourth of July Basin & North Riddle Couloir & North Riddle Col & Upper Riddle Creek Basin & Castle Creek Saddle & Upper Castle Creek Basin (trail hike & off-trail hike & rock scramble & snow climb)

Summit: Flora Mountain (snow climb & rock scramble via West Flank—Southwest Slope)

Sidetrip: Tenmile Basin & Hilgard Pass & South Black Tower Couloir & South Black Tower Col (trail hike & snow climb & rock scramble)

Summit Attempt: Black Tower (rock scramble & rock climb to West Ledge via Southwest Face)

Approximate Stats: 25 miles traveled; 15,000 feet gained & lost.

Full Trip Report

This was the second year in a row that Beth, Fay, Eileen, and I spent five days over Independence Day Weekend hiking and climbing in the Stehekin Mountains.  We were joined by the father-daughter duo of Steve D. and Lisa D. for the first half of our trip.

Heading into the weekend, things looked a bit shaky due to unseasonably cold and damp weather. Then, because of an “automotive snafu” in the early morning of Day 1, it appeared that Eileen and I wouldn’t even get our part of the trip off the ground. But after much panic and logistical scrambling, we did finally get off the ground (quite literally) with help from Chelan Airways.

Day 1: Chelan to Holden Village to Tenmile Creek Camp

Fay, Beth, Lisa, and Steve met at Fields Point on Friday morning and rode the Lady of the Lake to Lucerne Landing, then took the shuttle bus up to Holden Village. Eileen and I flew into Stehekin a few hours behind them (it would be too embarrassing to explain why), then we traveled to Holden Village via the Lady and the shuttle bus.

Lisa and Steve waited in Holden so that they could join Eileen and me for a shorter hike up to an interim camp alongside Tenmile Creek at 4600 feet (1.9 hours +1500 feet from TH).  Meanwhile, Fay and Beth made good use of their head start and clear weather by hiking up to Tenmile Pass at 6500 feet.  They established a group base camp at the pass that evening.

Day 2 (AM): Tenmile Creek Camp to Tenmile Pass

Working on information from other hikers, Eileen, Lisa, Steve, and I hiked upstream approximately ¼ mile until able to cross Tenmile Creek on a large log at 4750 feet, then we thrashed our way up forest and brush to intersect the hillside trail connecting Tenmile Pass with Hilgard Pass.  We reached Tenmile Pass shortly after noon (4.3 hours from interim camp) and quickly found our group base camp. Beth and Fay showed up an hour later, having climbed Johnson’s Jonah that morning.

Day 2 (PM): Riddle Peak Summit Climb

After pitching tents and eating lunch, we all headed off for Main Riddle Peak (8232’) west of Tenmile Pass. This proved to be a delightful ascent via the west face (easy snow slope) and south ridge (Class 2-3 rock).

The sunny summit (3.2 hours from base camp) provided grand views of the Chelan, Entiat, and Stehekin Mountains, whereas the western Cascades were blanketed by a low cloud bank that spilled impressively over Suiattle Pass.

Steve, who had been away from climbing for several decades, enjoyed the scenery so much that he almost refused to leave.  We eventually returned to camp in early evening (1.9 hours from summit).

Day 3: Flora Mountain Summit Climb

Following a gusty night, we awoke to dark gray skies and cold air—quite a change from the previous day.  While Eileen, Lisa, and Steve slept in, Beth and Fay and I headed down the snowy north side of Tenmile Pass.  At Elev. 5700 feet, we began a long traverse through alternating bands of forest and brush to reach a couloir north of Riddle Peaks.

Along the way, we became separated in the woods, and Beth happened to encounter a solo traveler heading in the opposite direction.  This turned out to be the indefatigable Stefan Feller, whom we had heard was making a multi-peak sweep through the southeastern Stehekin Mountains this same weekend.  We could only imagine Beth’s reaction:  “Dr. Feller, I presume?”

After her unlikely meeting in the woods, Beth rejoined Fay and me as we completed our traverse to the snow couloir. A long but straightforward climb of this couloir ended at windswept 7100-foot North Riddle Col (3.0 hours from base camp) between Enigma Peak and North Riddle Peak.

We dropped 300 feet towards a small basin, then traversed eastward into a larger basin before ascending to a broad saddle overlooking Castle Creek Basin. Flora Mountain still looked far away.

From the saddle, Fay headed north to climb Puzzle Peak (7660’) while Beth and I headed northeast to climb Flora Mountain (8320’) via the west cirque and southwest slope.

We reached the frigid summit at 2:20pm (7.0 hours from base camp) and stayed for 45 minutes.

Flora is a technically easy ascent, but the mountain’s remote location in a wonderfully alpine setting certainly gives one an expectation of solitude.  For that reason, we were surprised to see that two solo climbers (Stefan and another man) had signed in the day before, and we were even more surprised to spot two climbers coming up behind us!  We chatted with them briefly before retracing our route back to Castle Creek Saddle.  By good fortune, Fay had arrived at the saddle only a few minutes ahead of us, thereby allowing us to join forces (and GPS units) for our long return to Tenmile Pass.

After 8 miles, 6700 vertical feet, and 14 hours of trekking in cold, windy weather, I was relieved to finally reach camp (6.1 hours from Flora Mountain) before dark. Eileen was waiting there with smiles and hot water;  Lisa and Steve had already headed back toward Holden.

Day 4: Tenmile Pass to Tenmile Creek + Black Tower Attempt

The night was moderately windy again, but we awoke to sunny skies.  Our goal today was Black Tower, a 7880-foot meta-igneous sugarloaf perched on the ridge above Fourth of July Basin.  Because we were approaching from Hilgard Pass, Beth and Eileen and I packed up camp so that we could later descend directly to Tenmile Creek that evening.  Fay, on the other hand, elected to maintain her camp at Tenmile Pass.

In mid morning, the four of us hiked down-trail to 5200 feet, stashed packs, and then headed up to Hilgard Pass.  Along the way, we had the pleasure of wandering through Tenmile Basin, which was ablaze with yellow glacier lilies. It was so enchanting, we all made a vow to return next year.

Farther up-trail, we hit snowcover before reaching 6600-foot Hilgard Pass.  A debate ensued as to a suitable route up Black Tower.  We eventually decided to climb the southwest chute, which served as a snowy elevator to a 7400-foot col at the southern base of the tower.  Incidentally, this chute and col would make an elegant route into Fourth of July Basin.

From the col, we scrambled up to the left until stopped by a blocky face.  One roped pitch of Class 4-5 rock got us up this face to a higher ledge. More unroped but exposed scrambling up a shallow cleft finally ended with a decision to turn around, due to a combination of route uncertainty and waning daylight.

Although somewhat disappointed, we called it a good reconnaissance for next year. Better yet, we were treated with a stunning view of Mt. Fernow across the Railroad Creek valley.  Wow! The “King of the Entiat Mountains” had never looked so good to me.

We made one double-rope rappel down the face, then raced the setting sun back to our pack stash.  Darkness caught us at the stash point, from where Fay started her ascent back up to Tenmile Pass.

By headlamp, Eileen and Beth and I began our plunge down jackstraw forest slopes to Tenmile Creek.  We crossed the creek by shinnying across a log, then stumbled the remaining 200 yards downstream to our campsite (12.3 hours from base camp).  It was 1:00am by the time we finished dinner and crawled into our bags.

Day 5: Tenmile Creek to Holden Village to Chelan

Spring officially ended sometime during the night.  We arose to clear skies and warm air and the smell of summer.  After a leisurely breakfast, Eileen and I packed up, hugged Beth farewell, and hiked down to Holden (1.2 hours from camp).  Fay and Beth wandered down later in the day, as each had separate plans for other peaks around Holden.  The rugged but inviting Stehekin Mountains will undoubtedly keep us all coming back again and again.

Route Map

Photo Gallery

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