A pinwheel of snow from a slope we disturbed on the approach
Elain had been wanting to climb Ruth Mountain for a while; we were long overdue for a return to the North Cascades. Over the weekend we were recruited by a family friend to take part in a climb of a different sort - the Big Climb for Leukemia and Lymphoma - so we turned our sights on Monday/Tuesday as a possible window for a trip to Ruth Mountain. The forecast looked decent for Monday, and not too bad for Tuesday, with poor weather expected for the rest of the week. We got a leisurely start; stopped by Sedro-Wooley to pick up a camping permit; arrived at the start of the unpaved Nooksack River Road at 11 am; and were walking by 11:30. Elain used snowshoes from the start, while I waited to put mine on until the the turnoff to the Hannegan Pass Road at 1.4 miles. We arrived at the Hannegan Pass trailhead around 2:30 pm, tired from the stair race on Sunday and from carrying our overnight packs. We had packed some additional gear for a possible attempt on Icy Peak, but given the forecast for inclement weather moving in on Tuesday and our slow speed, we weren't feeling optimistic about our chances for reaching Icy Peak. We stashed the rope and rack in a tree well along the trail and continued on with our lightened loads. The well-worn snowshoe track petered out after a mile, and then we continued to follow Ruth Creek for another 3 miles to the head of the valley. It was already 5:30 pm so we found a nice spot to set up the tent. After melting water and some dinner, we were asleep by 8 pm. The overnight temperatures were considerably milder than the previous weekend so we both slept quite well. We awoke to heavy cloud cover and were moving by 6:30 am. We made our way up to the ridge between Point 5910 and Ruth and then took a short rest break. The clouds started to part a bit and we could see patches of blue and even some sun. As we made our way along the ridge towards Ruth, it began to snow intermittently and the wind picked up a bit. The summit ridge of Ruth is so low-angle and convex that the summit is not visible for much of the ascent. We finally summited Ruth around 10 am. Elain had been hoping to get some photos of the north face of Mount Shuksan, but we couldn't see very much with the cloud level near 7000 ft. We snapped a few summit photos and then started down. The snow was good for plunge stepping and we were back in camp by 11:30 am. We packed up quickly, hoping to beat the rain out. With 5 miles of road left, we did get some steady rain for about 20 minutes. However, our luck held, the rain stopped and we made it to the car by 5:30 pm. It was a nice way to spend the first two days of spring.
Gear we used: snowshoes, ice axe, crampons
A pinwheel of snow from a slope we disturbed on the approach
Alpenglow on Ruth Mountain
Elain tending the stove, at dusk
Steve resting at the saddle between Ruth Mountain and
Point 5910.
Point 5910, and Hannegan Peak in the background
Steve on the summit of Ruth Mountain
Elain descending Ruth Mountain