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- Aug 30, 2012
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Stormy Enjoyment on climb of Mount Shuksan
The reality of alpine weather conditions is that not every summit climb will present you with perfect blue-bird conditions. However, sometimes this is part of the exciting experience of being in the mountains and pushing through the challenges that nature brings to you. We had a such an experience on Mount Shuskan this summer, but with a little perseverence, we were greatly rewarded in the end!
The summer is back in full glory now, meaning an extended season here in the Cascades for alpine climbs for custom or scheduled trips; check out options here. Otherwise, read on for tales on high on Shuksan.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=68702dfd8d2a7a22fa9769b74f9afd9a 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=4e8deee09ab7db821fd348b35b5f00aa 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=ce81c8c11d695244eba4c11d665e3cb3 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=37b512f8324b8e1d479e757895612bea 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=9b1048b9c5dcc21994c650bd9e959118 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=82e58772c95906c04572b5e5c7413846 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=6d71b81e7df2c77a1af422f9beb120e5 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian2-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=97e938efbaba2db97aa16f7a37dbac1d 1024w)
The stunning Mount Shuksan. Ian Nicholson photo
After meeting our group at Second Ascent in the morning, doing introductions and a gear check our team was headed north toward Mt. Shuksan, arguably the most photographed peak in North America.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=7b6862a2a8a1e348dd8be0ee8270ec71 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=179fb3d56c462d36b565b1676d918627 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=f8129bb6430980dcffba1ad209c2a726 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=85f9a454e5980f0ee93bb88afea411d6 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=edd290112901350375248e79e780183d 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=36ab6adc558c7254d0b0a7b8ccbec738 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=752dd5d5524f5e70fc1efb708f80eaa7 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian1-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=e1aca2b90ca16fc30e33f71ae4de064f 1024w)
The group at the trailhead. Ian Nicholson photo
Mt. Shuksan is a classic mountain in North Cascade National Park featuring hanging glaciers and a striking summit rock pyramid that jets out of the Sulphide Glacier. Despite the poor weather forecast, we began hiking under low clouds but rarely felt more than a drop. Thunder showers were forecasted for the following few days so we decided to camp low at the “Col Camp” because it is protected from the wind and hopefully from the forecasted thunder showers. We cooked dinner and went to bed early with the alarms set for 3am. Unfortunately Tino and I awoke around 1 am with the sound of rain and some thunder in the distance. When are alarms finally went off at 3 am it was raining hard, so we told the group to hang tight and try to go back to bed and Tino and I set our alarm to go off every half hour to unzip the tent door and reassess the weather. By around 7am we got out of the tent to make breakfast, the clouds were still quite threatening but it was only lightly spitting rain. At around 7:30am we went on a gut feeling to go for it, and the group was hiking by 8am in the clouds with 5 feet of visibility.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=4eb38b8572a3880d3f041fcf7ba4099b 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=1e021642762d4a12cfa9756004c4da11 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=56a2656df931f79070be139b121b5609 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=88fe738ad865ad6b078abbffc0c12e88 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=cc6538054b1ef165611db7056ff9c6f8 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=ac6f160f14a5765113ef60e4acec94cd 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=d12640de0578634e91c8dabe8cb34f4c 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian4-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=2ba243071d618516c012b50d43536796 1024w)
All in good spirits despite the stormy weather. Ian Nicholson photo
About an hour into the hike, the clouds opened up with heavy rain, hail and thunder but we decided to just hike a little farther hoping that anything that came on that fast would leave just as quick. And quick it was! Not 10 minutes later, it not only stopped raining but the clouds also started to lift. By 11 am we were approaching the summit pyramid and it was down right hot on the glacier, everyone stripped down to base layers, and we couldn’t believe our fortune!
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=918d42fd539d42ad6f34952a427ff29d 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=8a4d146255701c6a1bf000b6d1a4a8e6 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=9de5a3d3a8224e977d86941f82027bb7 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=a0d25c91066bc6174dc5420f6c9de422 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=4e52b45500b6c42fc40ada990695aeb3 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=f857fd902ba8aea580fb510f1de50099 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=93eb57e65b77291d855b3e2eb615f22c 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian6-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=60da0669bc1e796beea5118f573e9952 1024w)
Resting above the marine layer. Ian Nicholson photo
However Tino and I kept reassessing the weather. Never had we been so happy to see a marine layer, we could see the marine layer push out the thunder clouds, which we could see were about 25 miles to our east. We could hear them too.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=6dd8fefccbe8e93ff8854119d47ebbdb 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=1301d0af7f9c0e8758806bf2bf08cff8 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=b5e96d85d961dd7a9069a6af1d7057ed 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=69198181c5f97950b6ea7ca51d877423 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=e9f8d454fb4d9c0a334a606445c36313 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=fea373a6a66ca9d9315cb4da36c7c6fb 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=e42e928e5e4406f63e3266f88f1531cc 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian7-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=1d7f34864499533d41eaf5987b84ca54 1024w)
Taking the last steps to the top. Ian Nicholson photo
The marine layer had fully socked us in, but we couldn’t have been more happy, at least it wasn’t raining and the thunder cloud systems was being kept far away. The group worked our way up the summit climbing steep snow, followed by mixed climbing, ascending steep rock and snow with crampons on. Near the summit though the rock was snow-free enough to remove crampons and the group relished the whole experience.
![](https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=300&s=9889e2532b1e1f96060c84d9557b1a8e 300w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=500&s=ad6584c21ac445670f6219a4b58a718b 500w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=700&s=2551620f67deffa6d471139d3bba0b87 700w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=800&s=1bc876d98434c6bda30c2ceae0762c1c 800w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1000&s=a439d382c7b44f2b0558f7af169a7b70 1000w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1200&s=221bd40963328a7a2dd5285fa78c762c 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1400&s=a3a813c152b5527c5016d4a7a57d2a14 1024w, https://mountain-madness-external.imgix.net/https%3A%2F%2Fkraftwerk-mountain-madness.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fblog%2Fnewswire%2Fshuksanian8-001.jpg?auto=compress%2Cformat&fit=max&q=80&w=1600&s=254108131e1b7c12d456d34c73504282 1024w)
Dan with his daughters Abbie and Hayley on the summit! Ian Nicholson photo
Once on top, the clouds briefly parted and we could even see Mt. Baker. While a fairly late summit of 4pm, we had still made it despite the weather. We worked our way back down the summit pyramid and hustled down the glacier making from the base of the pyramid to camp in only and hour and a half. The group was elated! We never knew if we were going to make it or not, with the poor weather early in the morning and the threat of thunder showers. However this challenge only added to the experience. Once back in camp, we ate some dinner and looked to our south to see lightning on the horizon. What a beautiful sight to behold.
The next morning we celebrated with a breakfast of French toast and descended happily back to the cars to re-enter civilization! Congratulations to our team for pushing through the tough conditions and making it happen!
~ MM Guide Ian Nicholson