Cutthroat Peak is located about two miles west of Washington Pass (north from the road) in Washington's North Cascades. The North Ridge can be approached from Rainy Pass via the Pacific Crest Trail into Porcupine Creek. From this side, you must climb 2-3 short pitches of low fifth class to gain the North Ridge Notch. Alternatively, you can approach as for the South Buttress route, veering right off of that approach below the lower part of the South Buttress to gain the basin Southeast of Cutthroat Peak.

Activity Notes

This is certain to be an exceptional and comparatively unusual climb. It is a beautiful and seldom climbed peak.  We will travel to Chelan, Washington on Thursday, August 13th. On Friday, Aug 14th we will catch the ferry across Lake Chelan to Lucerne. From there, we will take a bus to Holden Village, where our human powered adventure will begin.  We will hike to our camp at Holden Lake.  On Saturday we will get an early start and ascend to Mary Green Glacier, where we will navigate crevasses and a moat, before switching to scrambling and low fifth class climbing on rock to achieve the summit.

After relaxing, refueling and celebrating on the summit, we will retrace our route by downclimbing and rappeling to the glacier, and then head back toward camp. Depending on energy and timing, we may shift our camp downhill toward Holden Village, to allow for a shorter day on Sunday, and our return to Portland.

This route was pioneered by the Mazamas, requiring several attempts before being successfully summited in 1937.

Other Information
Driving Distance from Portland 340 miles
Driving Time from Portland 7 hours
Expected Duration Car to car in one day
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