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Warning: Glacier crossing on the Ptarmigan Traverse got sketchy fast
We were about 8 miles past Cascade Pass near the Suiattle River side when a snowbridge gave way under my front foot. I went in up to my hip, and my partner had to haul me out with the rope we almost left behind. Checked the map and realized we'd drifted 200 feet off the intended line because the cairns were buried. Anyone else hit a hidden crevasse on a route that was supposed to be 'straightforward'?
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sam5302mo ago
That kind of thing is exactly why I stopped trusting GPS lines on glaciers after a trip on Rainier back in 2018. We followed the track perfectly but still punched through a hidden spot near a crevasse lip that the map showed as flat, so the gear check paid off more than the tech. Now I treat any route labeled "straightforward" as a guess until someone proves otherwise, and we always carry a spare rope for the dumb stuff.
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