Mount Gibbs (Ba Peak) by Rennie Peak ranks #2 after Reynolds Peak in North Methow Mountains. Likewise, Louis Peak ranks #9 after Crescent Mountain. The closeness of the two peaks over a shared ridgeline makes it doable in a day.
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Mount Gibbs (Ba Peak) and Louis Peak at a Glance
Mount Gibbs, aka “Ba Peak,” “Bugger Mountain,” “Grandfather.”
Access: South Creek Trail
Round Trip: 15.5 miles
Elevation Range: 3160′-8142′
Gear: helmet, snowshoes, ice ax
GPS Track: available
Dog-Friendly: on the trail
The Preface
Since it’s Memorial Day weekend, campsites along Twisp River Road were open to the public. So after yesterday’s outing, we stayed at the empty South Creek Campground. But it’s strange not to see people here.
Perhaps it’s because of the exhausting trip that we both had a good night’s rest. Then the following day, we set off on the pleasant South Creek Trail. The day’s goal was Mount Gibbs at the top of Louis Creek Basin.
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South Lake Trailhead to Louis Lake Trail
Louis Lake was only one basin north of Reynolds Creek, about a mile east of Louis Peak. So my thought was to visit Louis Peak if time allowed. Shortly after crossing the South Creek bridge, we saw the first snow patch.
I later put on snowshoes at 4500′ and used them for the rest of the trip. Then my first wow moment came at the 5200′ trail bend. There the impressive view of Rennie Peak towered above the lake basin.
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Louis Lake Basin
We re-entered the forest, and the trail soon gave way to the snow. A brief scramble later took us up to the snowy Louis Lake. Then we crossed the outlet and snowshoed along the west shore.
We had aimed for the southwest end of the water. Then from there, we climbed up Louis Peak’s steep east slopes. After going through a few sketchy spots, the terrain became more manageable.
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Louis Peak Summit Views
I had considered skipping Louis Peak and going straight to Mount Gibbs. But by the time we could bypass the peak safely, we were only about 100′ from the top. So it would’ve been a pity not to make a brief cameo.
We settled and took a short break on top to savor views of the nearby places. But Mount Gibbs looked pretty far still. Soon, we went down the west ridge, aiming for the saddle.
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En Route to Mount Gibbs (Ba Peak)
It took much effort to drop off the west ridge while I slowly guided the pup. The lack of snow here had spiced things up quite a bit. Shortly from the saddle, we started moving up again.
I had noticed the corniced ridgeline earlier. So we steered clear from the crest by traversing the south slopes. Then past Point 7640, the crampons on my left snowshoe broke. Time to break out the duct tape!
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The Final Stretch
Later at 7800′, I stashed the snowshoes and scrambled up the rocks to the ridgeline. A massive stack of wobbly boulders made up the narrow, exposed crest. But the summit was only 30 feet away.
I saw that the snow had started to peel off the north edge, and it looked rather unsafe. So it wasn’t suitable for traversing, especially for the pup. Then I looked for a bypass and noticed the receding snow ramp on the south.
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Mount Gibbs (Ba Peak) Summit Views
A notch 50′ down the crest allowed us to move to the south side without a hitch. Shortly, we squeezed through the shallow moat by the ramp. Then by using the dry rock steps, we were able to climb to the top.
The top was slightly airy, but the views were gorgeous. Reynolds Peak and other neighboring peaks had been waiting for their photo-ops. After a quick visit, we scrambled down to the snow.
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Outro
Instead of returning through Louise Peak, we beelined into the basin. But the broken snowshoe had slowed us down considerably. So I made several stops to secure the crampons with more duct tape.
At last, we went back to Louis Lake right before dark. By them, snow by the lakeshore had hardened from the cooler temperatures. So I could finally walk in boots for us to leave the area faster.
See more trip photos here.