Mount Snoqualmie: New York Gully 01/10/2016
My friend Oleg and I climbed New York Gully on Sunday January 10th. We started hiking from grooming parking lot at 5:20 AM. We were not sure about the approach, getting information from this topo We followed tracks for some times on climbers right side of Alpental valley and then headed up through the woods in North direction. The snow was deep and we were slowly breaking trail, taking turns. We did not take snowshoes, because we thought it would be too steep for snowshoeing and it was. We bypassed lower rock band on left. When some clearings occurred in the forest we found some tracks again and hiked faster. Finally we came to the view of the mount Snoqualmie subsidiary summit. The tracks led us straight to the notch.
We descended on North side of the ridge and continued following tracks which led us to a prominent couloir and then stopped near the beginning of left-leaning ramp which was a beginning of our route.
Pitch 1 one was easy, but exposed snow climbing. We belayed, but did not put any pro. Pitch 1 ends at the beginning of a broad right-leaning couloir. This couloir is not “New York Gully” route, probably “La Express”. We belayed on a fixed anchor. Later we found fixed anchors on all stations. Probably they were left by party from this TR
Pitch 2 continued left and up. It was steeper with some pieces of real climbing. Pitch 2 ends at the large dead tree. From here we could see unmistakable right-leaning box gully.
Pitch 3 was mixed climbing. There was very little ice. Climbing was pulling on frozen moss and occasional drytooling. Pitch 3 ends on a snow ledge. Pitch 4 is similar to pitch 4, but easier, shorter and with more hard snow. Pitch 4 ends at the short steep wall – crux of the route.
Pitch 5. Oleg aided the crux, using fixed gear. After the crux was easier climbing on snow slopes. Pitch 6 traverses right and goes to the notch in the ridge between 2 gendarmes.
To bypass the right gendarme, we rappelled on the other side using fixed station on a tree. Then we ascended a snow slope to a summit col. We decided not to scramble to the summit, because it was already 3:45PM and the winter day was short.
We descended through the woods to the Alpental parking lot. In the end we veered too much to the left and found steep cliff drops right before the parking lot. We had to make 2 rappels on trees. We came to the car at 6:15 PM. Another great day!
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