Trip Report
Alpine Scramble - Silver Peak
A lovely day practicing snow and rock skills and finding a lost ice axe.
Mary Lou Biggs
- Thu, Jun 19, 2025
- Alpine Scramble - Silver Peak
- Silver, Tinkham & Abiel Peaks
- Scrambling
- Successful
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- Road recommended for high clearance only
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The road is rough with a lot of potholes, especially in the beginning; high-clearance vehicles are recommended. We parked about 1/10 of a mile before Windy Pass where the road starts to get really rocky and there is a pull-out large enough for 3 cars. After walking up the road we realized that we could have easily driven a bit further, although we probably would not have braved the road all the way to the end. A Land Cruiser had driven all the way to the "trailhead".
The route is in good shape. A defined bootpath is present in the snow-free areas. There was still a good amount of well-consolidated snow in the basin, although it is getting thin in spots and we punched through occasionally. The snow was firm but we were able to kick good-enough steps that we never felt the need to put on crampons or microspikes. On the descent, there were patches of snow all the way to about 4,800', but none that required ice axes.
The mosquitoes are out - bring repellant!
6 scrambling students and 3 leaders met at Travelers Rest at Snoqualmie Pass. Travelers Rest makes a good meeting location (nice bathrooms and coffee nearby), but there isn't a suitable place to park if meeting before 8am. We drove east and parked at the large parking lot at Summit Central to consolidate into 2 high-clearance vehicles.
After reaching our trailhead parking location and gearing up, Kurt provided a very thorough refresher on navigation skills which included a primer on UTM coordinates. Students took turns leading over the course of the trip and did a great job with navigation and route-finding.
This route provides a nice mix of snow and rock scrambling so we got to practice all the skills. We were graced with pleasant temperatures, great views, and a team that worked well together.
One of the highlights of the trip was finding a lost ice axe. Prior to the trip, I had been contacted by a fellow Mountaineer who had lost their ice axe the previous weekend on this route. I thought the chances were slim that we would come across it, but you never know. I mentioned the lost ice axe in our pre-trip briefing. Lo and behold, a sharp-eyed student found the ice axe in the brush just after we gained the ridge. The ice axe was brought safely down and we are in the process of reuniting it with its person.
All in all this was a very successful trip. One student completed their snow scramble and 3 others completed their third graduation scrambles. We all learned something, enjoyed a fun day in the mountains and returned an ice axe to its Mountaineer.