Cardinal Peak - FWA led by Eric

Morning Run

Pihea Point

Hanakapiai Falls

This weekend had been reserved for winter Bulgering for a couple months now…so when the weather forecast was less than favorable we were uncertain if this weekend would be a go or not. Fortunately the Entiat was expected to receive less snow than most other areas and Eric (in his vast Bulger wisdom) knew the route had minimal exposure to avalanche terrain. Thus Cardinal Peak became our objective. 
At the last minute I read up on some recent beta so I had some idea of what to expect on the route/climb. Knowing well that the winter conditions would drastically differ. What I did not realize was that this would be Eric’s 5th time on the mountain. Of course he had somewhat recently surveyed Cardinal Peak to find that the (true) southern summit is 7” taller than the more frequently visited northern summit. And in his quest to climb all 100 Bulgers during astronomical winter, Eric would need to return again to gain those 7 inches to rightfully claim the first winter ascent of Cardinal Peak’s true summit. 
The approach and climb was very enjoyable. Mostly mellow skinning in a valley for the approach. Some snow and wind came in just as we were getting to camp but we awoke to cold, clear skies. We skied a bit further to the upper mountain where we transitioned to crampons and began to follow the southern ridge. There were some exposed but moderate mixed moves along the ridge and steep snow which we mostly simulclimbed. A steep snowy traverse led to the final summit block which was about 30’ of moderate mixed climbing which Eric led as our only true pitch. We enjoyed the summit for a moment and I began to rap just as the weather was turning cloudy and snowy. 
Since Cardinal is not in a designated wilderness I had lugged my drone all the way up there only to find that the focusing lens was stuck, frozen in place due to the freezing cold. I processed a wide range of emotions while trying to get that camera lens to work after carrying all that weight all the way up to the summit. I did get some good shots but each and every one is blurry. 😫
We returned mostly the same way we had came. Skiing the powder was enjoyable but I had a slight mechanical issue where my left ski boot’s heel would not stay bound to the ski. That paired with a ~45lb pack on tired legs made for some interesting survival skiing. It was a relief returning to the valley floor skin track. 
As a climber in the PNW I’ve long admired Eric and his climbing whereabouts around the globe. It was cool getting out with him and seeing how he does it. It was equally cool getting my first first…which we referred to as my “FFWA”. But mainly it was just neat getting to ride ‘princess’ on his snow machine 😉.

*~23 miles and ~2k vert of this activity came from the snowmobile.

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Andy Warzecha

Cardinal Peak - FWA led by Eric

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Cardinal Peak - FWA led by Eric

LIG

Morning Run

Pihea Point

Hanakapiai Falls

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