Fortress Mountain and Chiwawa Mountain tower over Chiwawa River Valley in Entiat Mountains. Meanwhile, the latter looms above Lyman Glacier and Lyman Lake to the north. Because the peaks are close together, climbers can often explore both places in one trip.
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Fortress Mountain and Chiwawa Mountain at a Glance
Fortress Slam = Fortress Mountain + Chiwawa Mountain
堡壘滿貫=堡壘山+吉娃娃山
Access: Trinity Trailhead
Round Trip: TBD
Elevation Range: 2800′-8760′
Gear: helmet
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: on the trail
The Preface
Fortress Mountain and Chiwawa Mountain have been on my mind all summer. I’ve had many climbing commitments this season. So even until last week, I wasn’t sure if I could still make the trip happen soon.
But as it turned out, I was able to climb both mountains with Ingalls Peak over one weekend. That meant spending hours driving from one place to the other, with not enough sleep in between the climbs.
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Chiwawa River Trail
It was going to be a long day. So I slept in the car by the trailhead on Thursday night for an early start. Some people were up at the crack of dawn and went about their business. So after everyone left, I then started my trip up Chiwawa River Valley.
Views expanded when I went into the head of the basin. Then route finding became a bit more challenging. There were also many down trees in the lower elevation to add to the fun. I looked for the reported creek crossing. But I never found it. Soon, Fortress Slam was in plain sight.
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Fortress Mountain of Fortress Slam
It seemed to take forever to go up to the base of Fortress Slam. But glad I didn’t encounter significant issues along the way. So the only crux was the steep snow below Fortress Mountain. It was between 7800’ and 8000’ below the notch. But I bypassed it by staying on the rocks
The short class 4 move (high class 3) in the final stretch wasn’t too bad. Then I weaved around the summit rocks to reach the top. Entiat high points were all visible from here. I could also see all of the western peaks, including the dominating Glacier Peak.
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Chiwawa Mountain of Fortress Slam
On the way down, I went below the permanent snowfield to go to the base of Chiwawa Mountain. The snow here was also steep and icy. But the route was straightforward. There was more talus here than on Fortress Mountain. Then from the saddle, I walked up the southwest ridge on rocks.
Later, I came across a faint trail and followed it. But I also made my own to keep from sliding. The views from Chiwawa Mountain were similar to Fortress Mountain. But now there were vibrant evening colors across the horizon. I spent 30 minutes on top and then made my way back down.
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Outro
At 10 minutes to sunset, I was still up at 7000′. Then I realized that my headlamp was missing. It most likely had fallen out of my pack at some point. “F***ck!” I screamed. But with the help of moonlight and my GPS device, I slowly made it back to the main trail. But not before scrambling two miles through the forest and down trees.
My saving grace for the rest five miles back to the trailhead? The tiny flashlight buried at the bottom of my ten essentials pack. It has been there for the past five years. Glad I didn’t need to find my way back to the car in total darkness!
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It was yet another beautiful day out in the wilderness!