Mt. Bancroft Loch Lemond Stewart Road?

[atalarico]

Hey all! Hoping to climb the East Ridge of Mt. Bancroft tomorrow, but I have a few conditions questions if anyone has been up there lately.

Anyone know what the conditions of Stewart Road are right now? Snow drifts still, or can my lifted 4runner get all the way up to the Lake Lemond parking area with no issues?

Is camping allowed up along the road or up near the parking lot? Thinking of heading up tonight to get out of the city and get a nice easy and early start tomorrow.

Any snow left on the route?

Thanks!

[GregMiller]

Climbed it two Sundays ago, there was plenty of snow past the second gate (which is closed until July 15th anyway). Road is dry to second gate, you'll have no problems getting to it.

[atalarico]

Thanks for the info! How many miles does getting to the second gate shave off the approach? Is there camping along the road or is it all private property? Was there a lot of snow on the route still? I usually bring my axe just in case, but it would be nice to leave the 'pons at home.

[taylorzs]

I was up there last week doing some snow climbing in the drainage. I did not go up Bancroft. There is lots of snow down in the valley, even below treeline. The actual east ridge of Bancroft looked mostly snow free. If I was going I would probably bring my axe and leave my crampons at home. Snow is mature enough at this point that snow travel gear like snowshoes/skins is not needed.

[GregMiller]

Getting to the second gate (rather than just the initial turnoff) is probably a couple miles - definitely worth it. Just make sure you're not parked somewhere that you'll be parked in to. We saw people camping along the road, but I don't know that any of the spots looked that great - they were all right along the road and not terryibly flat. If you hike up just past the gate and then off the road you should be able to find a pretty nice spot, though.

There was snow in the couloirs and the notch, but we were able to cross safely without traction (we had mountaineering boots, though, so that helped - maybe bring microspikes if you're at all concerned). The ridge was totally dry. There was also snow up high after you get off the ridge, but pretty much flat, and might be gone by now. Axe was handy for a nice glissade (make sure to scope out a good line directly off the SE ridge on your way in). Snowshoes or skis/skins definitely not needed. Have fun!

[atalarico]

Thanks for the beta, all! It sounds like it's a go then!

Last question, how long do you think the rap down to the notch is? I'm thinking of just bringing a shorter 60-70ft rope with a tagline and doing a single rope rap. I hear the 5.2 pitch is pretty short, so I'd rather not bring more rope than I have to.

I also found a helpful link about Steuart Road (not Stewart, as printed in Dave Cooper's Scrambles book) on Traildamage! http://www.traildamage.com/trails/index.php?id=71" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

There's a helpful map on that page that shows where the second gate is, and it looks to be just about a mile to the foot of the east ridge. Not too shabby at all. They also mention the plethora of beautiful campsites as you near tree line, so I'm guessing that's not too far off from the second gate.

[GregMiller]

Last question, how long do you think the rap down to the notch is?

We brought twin 30's, and had enough to stretch from the rap station to the bottom of the rap, and then reach across the notch with some to spare. I'd guess a 70 ft would do you with a tagline to pull it. 70 ft should then be overkill for the 5.2 pitch.

There's a helpful map on that page that shows where the second gate is, and it looks to be just about a mile to the foot of the east ridge. Not too shabby at all. They also mention the plethora of beautiful campsites as you near tree line, so I'm guessing that's not too far off from the second gate.

I guess that might be a mile. We hiked in starting at ~4:30, so it was dark enough we weren't really paying attention, but it went by really fast. Plan on camping on snow if you're going to be below treeline anywhere beyond the second gate.

[atalarico]

So we drove up to a very nice surprise last night! The road is open early! You can get to all of the good campsites without having to get through a lot of snow. Regardless, it's not like I'm letting a secret out because there was already a big mass of people camped out after the second gate by the time we were on our way back down after the climb. We lucked out and had the place to ourselves last night, which I get the feeling was very unique. It was such a beautiful place, and no one else was up on the mountain. You can only drive to within about a half mile of the lake, as there are quite a few massive snowdrifts in the trees that need another week or two to fully melt out.

Anyway, we had lovely weather up there today, and it was an amazing climb. We rapped into the notch by slinging a chockstone about 15 or 20 feet lower down from the big boulder up higher. It worked out very well, and we had just enough rope (about an 80' rope, so about 40' down) to get us within comfortable down climbing range. We ended up soloing the "business" pitch, but it was quite nice! I think the biggest surprise of the day was the amount of climbing still left to do after all of that, and then the really disheartening false summit! What a tease!

What peak and what a route! Highly recommended!