Twin Sisters, part I

Part one--epic approach through huge trees, thick healthy under story and raging streams.

South Sister, North Cascades, dbSumit

Often unnoticed, the Twin Sisters sit East and slightly South of Mount Baker.  There are two peaks, the north and the South sisters separated by a jagged knife edged ridge.

Crossing Green Creek

There are several approaches to the area surronding the Sisters, but few routs to the top.  Steep Ice and Steeper rock make for a fairly techical summit.

Rugged off trail, steep, slippery and heavily vegetated.

Our route was from Mount Baker Highway to Misquito Lake road to Forest Service road 28 via an unmaintained trail heading up Green Creek.

Freeways of the Forest, large logs are often the easiest way to move through the forest--if you can get on them!

After crossing the Nooksack and hiking through some amazing old/first growth forest, we crossed Green Creek and headed up the hill.

dbBrad, Joe and Jeff next to an old growth cedar.

Steep, lots of vegitation, huge trees and giant falled trees some of which may have been a thousand years old and laying on the forest floor for several hundred years.

Out of the forest, onto the snow fields.

Some of the last truly healty land.  Beautiful and just Hell to move through!  And interesting, but even with all the snow and rain this year, very little erosion, and very few slides.

Knocking off the vertical, one step at a time.

One we got high enough, ,the forest thinned out and we moved out onto the snow fields.  Still steep and slippery, the travel went much faster without all the vegetation lashing our shins and whipping our ears and tripping up our feet!

dbBrad on slippery slopes again!

Traversing a particularly steep snow field.

North tower, Twin Sisters, North Cascades WA

Lunch Break, on the rocks!