Putrid Pete’s Peak Foils Group Photo
FWB2 photo used with permission, please respect all copyrights
Yukon430sw photo used with permission, please respect all copyrights
Trip report, comments & additional pictures on NWHikers.net ~ special thanks to Zeusdaddy for this week’s write-up
Putrid Pete’s Peak Information:
Distance & Elevation: approx. 6 miles round trip and 3100 ft gain
NOAA Weather Forecast for Putrid Pete’s Peak: click here
Special Notice: This week’s hike will include substantial bushwhacking and climbing on talus field boulders. With the Ira Spring TH inaccessible due to the flood damage at the access roads, we’ll need to do an extra bushwhack up from Exit 42 Tinkham. Much of this hike will be off trail and require some navigation skills. Hikers are encouraged to stay together and wait for the group at trail junctions.The last 1000′ elevation up the open ridge line will be an area with loose surface rock that can tumble down so everyone needs to be cautious. We will aim for a 530pm meet at the Exit with leaving time at 540pm sharp due to the extra 600′ elevation bushwhack up to the road.
Generalized description of intended route: get to the Mason Lake TH, follow it for couple hundred yards until it makes the big bend back to the right. Go straight through the corner on a boot path. Continue heading west for awhile, maybe 1 mile? Get near stream flow and the boot path turns back up to the right/east away from it. Come to a large talus field – go across/below it to the right of it, not up to the left of it. You want to get east of it, then the trail kind of disappears as you need to go STRAIGHT UP the ridge line to the summit.
Google Driving Directions to parking at Exit 42:
With the Ira Spring TH inaccessible due to the flood damage at the access roads, we’ll need to do an extra bushwhack up from Exit 42 Tinkham.
38.3 mi– about 36 mins
2008 Putrid Pete’s Peak TR
Some pictures of “trail head” :
One thing you might consider is actually trying to drive the trail, someone on nwhikers.net noted they could drive within 10 minutes of the Ira Spring trail head and that is still faster than going up the bushwhack from exit 42 (hour). Sounds like you’d need a 4Wheel drive.
That access road is CLOSED which means you risk a $5,000 fine and/or imprisonment for up to six months if you drive past the Road Closed sign. The 9030 Talapus road is closed at 0.4 mile marker which I believe is before the 9031 Ira Spring road intersection.
The other thing to consider is not all TNAB’ers arrive in 4WD vehicles.
And by the time you drive another 3 miles past Exit 42 to Exit 45, then slowly drive up thru the damaged road section and then hike to the official trailhead, it will probably be slower than climbing from down below. It normally takes me almost 15 minutes driving that forest road to the TH when it was in good condition. So if you take 3 minutes drive, plus 15 to where it is impossible and then another 10 minute road walking to the TH, I don’t see any net benefit.
Here’s hiking directions from exit 42. I hiked this in June 07. It’s not a bushwack – there’s a pleasant little trail that doesn’t see a lot of feet.
Park at exit 42 north of the freeway. Walk north past the road gate. A bit farther the road forks: right to a shooting gallery. Go left here and reach Mason creek. There’s a small path that follows the east side of the creek. Soon it crosses the creek on a big log and eventually finds its way across the creek braids to the west side which it follows pretty much straight up 550 feet till you reach the road. Turn left on the road and walk about 100 feet to the Ira Spring parking lot. From here follow the directions posted above.
I also did it in October of 2007 (if I remember correctly) and there was an obvious boot path with abundant flagging – no bushwhacking necessary. I want to say that it took no more than 15-20 minutes from exit 42 to the forest road (it’s about 3/4 of mile, more or less along the Mason Creek).
It should be a good one
but I suspect there will be more snow than rocks towards the top. Judging by the hills seen from my house the snow level last night was probably less than 3,000 (trees are nicely covered) and the weather forecast calls for more of that tonight and tomorrow night. I’m taking my micro-spikes just in case…
Don’t forget your helmets!
We ended up with an ice axe after Teneriffe, poss. belonging to adrewski? Scott should have it with him at Putrid Pete’s for you to grab back.