Goat Island Mountain - 7.6.2011
This is not a GPS track, but does show our general route to the summit of Goat Island Mountain... 13.5 miles roundtrip, gaining 4000 feet of elevation.
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A google earth look at the Goat Island Mountain area.
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Use the White River entrance to Mt. Rainier National Park... drive ~3 miles to the parking area just beyond the Fryingpan Creek bridge (3800').
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In less than a mile of hiking you can look up towards the Sarvant Glacier area.
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Continuous snow at ~4100 feet of elevation... after less than one mile of hiking.
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A stubborn snow bridge.
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At 3.2 miles there is a footbridge (not shown in photo) that crosses Fryingpan Creek.
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We chose to stay on the north side of Fryingpan Creek and head upstream.
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At times the terrain pushed us above the creek... this would be a lousy place to be if the snow wasn't covering the brush.
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A pano shot of Meany Crest on the left to Little Tahoma and Mt. Rainier on the right.
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A closeup of Little Tahoma (left) and K Spire as we continue towards the SW end of Goat Island Mountain.
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Looking up at Goat Island Mountain from Fryingpan basin... can't see the summit though.
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recon and larman heading for the low point at the SW end of Goat Island Mountain.
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Looking back towards Summerland, Panhandle Gap (corniced ridge in the center of photo) and Meany Crest on the right.
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Looking back towards Tamanos Mountain (center)... Panhandle Gap on the far right.
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recon and larman continuing towards the 6400 foot col at the SW end of Goat Island Mtn.
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Tamanos Mtn and Panhandle Gap from the 6400 foot col.
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A closeup of Banshee Peak (center) and Panhandle Gap on the right.
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From the 6400 foot col... Little Tahoma, Rainier... with Steamboat Prow and Mt. Ruth on the right.
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Second and Third Burroughs from the 6400 foot col.
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A closeup of Little Tahoma and K Spire from the col.
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recon and ragman at the 6400 foot col.
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recon and larman heading NE along the Goat Island Mountain ridge.
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We can see several bumps along the ridge... but none of them are the summit.
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recon and larman on the ridge (~6800')... pretty good views here.
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larman and recon continue towards an unmarked bump on the ridge.
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larman ascending... will we ever get there?
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Still heading up.
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recon checking his altimeter.
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larman ascending... now we can see Points 7218, 7240+ and 7186 in the distance... can't reach the summit until we get past them.
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recon (little speck on left) heading for Point 7218 and Point 7240+.
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recond heading for Point 7240+.
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A closeup of the Cowlitz Chimneys, Banshee Peak and Sarvant Glacier.
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We can see the summit (left)... recon heading for Point 7186 (center).
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larman at Point 7186.
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Looking across Panhandle Gap to Mt. Adams in the distance on the right... Cowlitz Chimneys and Banshee Peak on the left.
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recon leads the way to the Goat Island Mountain summit.
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The corniced ridge leading from Point 7240+ to Point 7186.
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Almost on the summit.
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larman and recon on the Goat Island Mountain summit (7288').
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Looking over at Sunrise from the summit.
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Group shot on the summit... ragman, recon and larman.
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larman and recon at Point 7186 as we start the long ridge walk back to the 6400 foot col.
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Nearing Point 7240+.
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Nearing Point 7218.
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Hiking underneath Point 7218.
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Only a couple of bumps left to get back to the 6400 foot col.
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recon at the col...
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We decided to return to the footbridge by crossing the snow-covered Fryingpan Creek and then staying on the south side of the creek.
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Almost back to the footbridge.
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The footbridge that crosses Fryingpan Creek.
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recon coming down to the footbridge.
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larman crossing the footbridge.
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recon uses a log to get across the portion of Fryingpan Creek that isn't handled by the footbridge.
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Fryingpan Creek is raging... almost back to the car... and the end of a long day.
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