Mount Thomson
Kendall Katwalk Trailhead ⚲ Alpine Lakes Wilderness, Snoqualmie Pass, Washington
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I fell in love with Mount Thomson in 2018 while thru-hiking the Pacific Crest Trail. Thomson (6,554’) and fellow beauty Huckleberry Mountain (6,230’) tower over the historic trail and command the views when making your way north from Snoqualmie Pass. The idea of climbing it came about this year with pal, Ryan Rodman, when it was the center of attention during our climb up Lundin Peak- just 2 miles away.
Ryan Rodman making his way along the jumbled ridge of Alaska Mountain (5,749’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
“I wonder if we are getting close to the turnoff?” questioned Ryan. Woken from my daydreaming, I pulled out my phone to check our location. “Crap!” We had passed it, but not by far. Closer now to Alaska Mountain rather than our turnoff to Mount Thomson, we decided to go ahead and open the day with Alaska - a peak that we had deemed a possible extra credit option for the end of the day.
The damp ridge line of Alaska Mountain (5,749’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
The map showed a line up the unassuming Alaska Mountain (5,745’) but with the heavy morning fog, the rock and moss were slick and the minor veggie belaying left our clothes drenched. Regardless, we made it to the summit of Alaska and paused for our first water break of the day.
Huckleberry Mountain (6,230’) cuts through the inversion. The Lemahs stand in the background.
While at the top, the clouds we had been surrounded by all morning broke and for the first time we could see all around us - the tallest peaks in the region were poking through the clouds. We enjoyed unmatched views of the northeast interior of the Snoqualmie Pass region; Big Snow Mountain (6,680’), Burnt Boot Peak (6,520’), Huckleberry Mountain (6,230’), Overcoat Peak (7,432'), Lemah Mountain (7,512’), Chikamin Peak (7,000’), Four Brothers (6,485’), Three Queens (6,687’), Hibox Mountain (6,547’), and Alta Mountain (6,151’) It was a beautiful inversion that got us excited for what the rest of the day would bring. We dropped back to the Pacific Crest Trail and zipped back to the turnoff.
Our main objective for the day, Mount Thomson (6,554’), stands above the early morning inversion covering the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
Ryan Rodman takes one last look at Mount Thomson (6,554’) from Bumblebee Pass before descending back into the clouds.
We hiked up and over Bumblebee Pass and down into the cloud-covered basin before heading back up to the notch in the East Ridge. This part of the trip seems tedious on the map, but the basin is actually quite lovely. The water running through it is reliable, and the path for the climber is clear.
Collin Blunk descends into the basin on the way to Mount Thomson (6,554’). 📸 @ryanradman
Early morning light cuts through the thick clouds still occupying the basin below Mount Thomson (6,554’). 📸 @ryanradman
Typical class III scrambling terrain on Mount Thomson (6,554’).
Ryan Rodman makes the final move to get out of the class IV chimney on the East Ridge of Mount Thomson (6,554’).
Once we were on the East Ridge, the scrambling was intermittent on dusty slabs of solid rock and through small tree bands. The route tends to trend left the majority of the time. There are a couple of chimneys to choose from, we found a short 20-ish foot class IV climb that we assumed to be the correct route. All-in-all the ascent proved to be much easier than I had expected and we found ourselves at the summit in a short amount of time.
Ryan Rodman signs the summit register Mount Thomson (6,554’).
Looking down the valley of the Middle Fork Snoqualmie River from the summit of Mount Thomson (6,554’).
Looking at Snoqualmie Mountain (6,280’) and the other surrounding Snoqualmie Pass Peaks from Mount Thomson (6,554’).
Mount Thomson (6,554’) is a classic scramble in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness as well as a Smoot’s List peak.
Ryan Rodman approaches the summit of Mount Thomson (6,554’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Overcoat Peak (7,432‘) and Lemah Mountain (7,512‘) in the background.
The view was astounding and the weather was lovely so we burned some time at the summit before gearing up for the rappels back down.
Ryan Rodman begins the rappel down the 20-foot class IV chimney on Mount Thomson (6,554’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
Ryan Rodman rappels down the East Ridge of Mount Thomson (6,554’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
We did three short rappels back down the mountainside. My 35m glacier rope was sufficient for utilizing the multiple rappel stations already in place. These rappels are not entirely necessary if you are comfortable down-climbing steep terrain, but the practice, added safety, and fun made them worth it for us.
The Lemahs, Chikamin Peak (7,000’), Four Brothers (6,485’), Three Queens (6,687’) with Edds and Joe Lake in the foreground.
Collin Blunk rappels down the East Ridge of Mount Thomson (6,554’). 📸 @ryanradman
Looking back on Mount Thomson (6,554’) from Collar Mountain (5,851’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
I was able to convince Ryan that we should climb Collar Mountain (5,851’) on our way out. At this point, he was eager to get to the beer at DruBru (so was I) and so agreed on the third ascent if we moved fast. We blasted up the talus slope from the aptly named Ridge Lake and powered our way through the thickly treed ridge to the summit. We signed the register and returned to the PCT via the south side of the mountain in a total of 35 minutes! Before we knew it we were cruising back across the Kendall Katwalk and back down into the Commonwealth Basin.
Ryan Rodman signing the summit register on Collar Mountain (5,851’) in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.
Ryan Rodman walking the Kendall Katwalk on the Pacific Crest Trail.
Ryan Rodman walking the Kendall Katwalk on the Pacific Crest Trail.
Red Mountain (5,890’) from the Pacific Crest Trail. Chair Peak (6,238’) background left, Snoqualmie Mountain (6,280’) middle, Lundin Peak (6,057’) right background.
On the way out we opted for the cut-off trail. We left the Pacific Crest Trail to hike the “abandoned” Old Commonwealth Trail which saved us a short 0.4 miles. Lastly, we made our way to DruBru where every adventure ends when we’re at Snoqualmie Pass. 10/10 recommend the Chili Cheese Fries from the Squatch Box Food Truck at the brewery.
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