On Day 2, we traversed to the far side of Horseshoe Basin and then angled up to Booker. On the return, Mike and I detoured to Horseshoe, then back to camp.
There were two obstacles on the way to Booker. First was a nose just before the Booker/Buckner col, which we bypased easily at 6500 feet. Second was a hidden wall-sided gully, which required descending and scrambling down some steep junk.
The route from camp to Booker to Horseshoe and back, as viewed from Sahale Arm.
Morning at Horseshoe Basin Camp
Traversing arond the basin -- water, water, eveywhere
Bear in Horseshoe Basin. (Sorry about the focus.)
Camp in Horseshoe Basin (blue tent, lower right, near snowpatch)
Upper Horseshoe Basin, en route to Booker. The tent snowpatch is in the lower center.
Sahale - Boston - Ripsaw. Notice how the color shifts from gray to red to black rock across the peaks, and how the rock correspondingly is steeper on the gray parts and lumpy on the red parts.
Horseshoe Basin from Booker Ridge. Look how steeply the waterfalls drop down into the lower basin at lower left.
Traversing to the Booker Notch. Behind us you can see the hidden wall. Billie and I crossed lower off the left edge of the picture. Mike returned via the red ledge that has a small snowpatch at its righthand edge. You could also go up the snow and bypass the top.
The gully we ascended below the Booker summit notch (shown later as Billie was descending).
Flowers high on Booker
Flowers high on the barren upper slopes of Booker
Paintbrush high on Booker
LIttle flower patches on the high slope
Approaching the Summit
Mike & Billie on Booker Summit
Matton on Booker Summit
Booker Summit Cairn (with Sahale, Boston, Eldorado, Forbidden)
Booker Summit View - Buckner
Booker Summit View - Logan & Park Creek Pass
Booker Summit View - Park Creek Valley, Storm King, & Goode
Trapper Lake
Map view from above the Booker summit looking back to camp and Horseshoe. We all returned to the 6500-foot nose, then Billie returned to camp while Mike and I angled up to Horseshoe.
Heading toward Horseshoe
Ptarmigan on the way to Horseshoe.
Ptarmigan Chick
Mike ascending toward Horseshoe
Mike previously went around the back side. This time we went partly around the back, but then crossed back to follow the ledge route. We descended by using the gully route. All routes end at the notch, with a steep ramp belayed for the final move to the summit.
View north of Horseshoe
Matt on Horseshoe Summit
Mike on Horseshoe
Coming down the gully from Horseshoe, a beautiful sunset began developing over the Cascade crest.
Evening Light below Horseshoe. Note Mike in white helmet on dark rocks at left.
Alpenglow highlights all the crests south of Booker
Glory & Bonanza
Buckner & shadow of Horseshoe
"Lick of Flame" and Buckner
LIck of Flame
Pelton, Trapper, Spider & Formiddable, Glacier
Formidable, Buckindy, Magic
Dome, Glacier, Spider
Glory & Bonanza as the light reddens.
Late alpenglow on Bonanza
Late alpenglow on Buckner
Afterglow above Formiddable, Buckindy, Magic
Shadows fall on Horseshoe Basin. Time to get back to camp.
Ripsaw Ridge silhouette on the way back to camp.
