The climb had adventure written all over it. Guye Peak via the West Face/ Improbable Traverse route. Unroped 4th class, low 5th scrambling on notoriously terrible rock. Route finding. Traversing 50 meters with 130 meters of steep cliff above and below. Snow. Pitons, rusty ones.
We made it to the summit in good time, but as any climber knows, the climb is only half over then. We snapped some photos and began our adventure back to the car. We had trouble finding an alleged boot-path, so we committed to descending into an unknown gully. We would see tat slung for rappels, a sign to us that we were on the right path, not our intended path, but a path nonetheless. We used ‘em when we thought necessary and scrambled and down-climbed the rest. After one of our rappels, our ropes got a bit hung up as I pulled them through—so, I gave it my best yank.
I dislodged a microwave sized boulder as I pulled the double rope rappel through a soggy moss-carpeted gully. I stood out of balance on tenuous rock as the boulder rocketed down-gully. It came into view faster than I could get out of the way. It was like an action movie when the frame slows and stops before the action happens—just before the bomb goes off and the car barrels off the cliff—the boulder was suspended mid-air long enough that I could map its depressions, edges, and colorations. They were shallow, sharp, dark. I had time to envision myself on the ground out cold. I pulled in close to the rock, held onto whatever and the boulder ripped past in real time. I was safe by close margin.
I watched the rock continue until it was out of sight. The strangely unique smell of freshly smashed rock is unsettling and intriguing at the same time. We were still within cell range, so, instinctively, I looked at my phone and opened a text from Mom: “be safe!” I let out a sigh of relief, turned to Andy, and got a thumbs up.
We made quick work setting up our final rappel before some bushwhacking into a snowy Commonwealth Basin. We crossed a small stream and then another, ping-ponged everything we were happy about, and found the Pacific Crest Trail towards the road where we had parked.
Despite setbacks and unexpected challenges (the stuff of type-2 fun is made of) the three of us had gotten what we wanted out of the day. On the western face of Guye and the summit, we could see Rainier (always an indicator of a good day in Western Washington/ Greater Seattle area), we pushed through some mental and physical challenges, enjoyed the solitude of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness in good company (really, we saw no one), and learned some good lessons. Be safe out there!
Joseph Lawrence Olbrych 