Desperation, West Face

Desperation Peak

Desperation Peak, West Face, 7150
Book Reference: Olympic Climbing Guide
Start Location: Ten Mile Shelter, on Big Quilcene River
Elevation Gain: 10,000 feet
Map Ascent: USGS Deception
Map Approach: USGS Mt. Townsend
Permits Required: FS TH pass
Length in Miles RT: 25
Grade: II
Class: Intermediate Mountaineering


Desperation Peak, West Face:
Desperation Peak has been climbed many times from the east via the scrambles route from Crystal Pass. Nowhere however, is there any previous record of anyone having ever climbed it from the west side. We felt however, that it was possible, and so we set out to do just that.

Trip Report:
We gained the basin west of the Warrior-Desperation ridge (as per the approach to route-1 of Warrior in the Olympic Climber's Guide) and then climbed south on the snowfield that parallels the ridge to an elevation of about 6,600 feet. At this elevation there are two large cracks, or shallow couloirs, in the wall that are about 200 feet apart; they are prominent features and easy to see as you are climbing the snowfield. We crossed the moat and climbed the left, or northern most, of the two. It leads directly to the summit (photo-1).
Rockfall is unavoidable. Keep your party small and either close together or hidden under the larger chockstones to avoid being hit by falling debris. Much of the route is third (photos-2,6) or fourth class (photo-4), but there are three short pitches that are mid fifth class. The crux move is around a large chockstone about midway to the summit, estimated to be 5.7. (photo-3)
We used one 60m twin rope that was doubled back on itself to do the three 30m pitches and scrambled the rest. A rack of about a dozen small pieces (mostly under one-half inch) was essential. For the most part we used spring loaded cams and wished we had a few small tri-cams. Stoppers can be used, but are not very effective on the pillow basalt. A few long pieces of webbing or cordellettes are necessary.
We found three patches of hard snow in the couloir, but were able to work our way around or under them. This trick might not be possible earlier in the season unless the climb is attempted very early in the season, in which case the entire route might be done with pickets and a running belay.
To descend, it would be possible to rappel the climbing route, but rockfall and the associated danger to the rope and climbers would be significant. It would also require leaving some gear behind. Instead, we chose to descend the scrambles route to Crystal Pass. From there we dropped down into the upper end of Avalanche Canyon (east side of the ridge), traversed around the bottom of Desperation, and then climbed to the pass between Desperation and Inner Constance; an ice ax, and maybe crampons, are required here. From the pass we were able to descend the snowfield on the west side of Desperation and return to the basin from whence we had started.
This was a most enjoyable climb and is highly recommended to any party that is looking for a challenging day of mixed climbing (12 hours, round trip, from Boulder Shelter).
First Ascent: August 14, 2010, by Steve Townsend, James Hamaker, and Tyr Olafssen. Photos by Tyr Olafssen.

Images

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