Glacier Peak - The Patriarch

Named after Alex Lowe by Kris Erickson and Hans Saari, this remote, complicated and intimidating line has only seen a handful of descents. Glacier Peak has many great ski mountaineering lines and The Patriarch is the grand daddy, it’s got a little bit of everything. The upper entry isn’t that steep, but it’s got crazy exposure. It doesn’t last long, you cross over a small rocky rib to the right and out onto the upper hanging face. This is the crux in that it’s steep at over 50 degrees and it’s rocky and also exposed. Luckily it’s also not that long though and if you survive through here you’re golden. The rest of the chute is steep and wide and walled in, just like a good couloir should be. Don’t ski too far down or you’ll go right off a massive cliff, the line exits uphill through some rocks onto the ride that divides the Beckey Couloir. Complete the line by skiing down the final half or so of the fun Beckey route.

This is a long one! It’s best to use a snowmobile or pay to get a bump out there, some of the local guide services offer this up. From the town of Cooke City head west on 212 for a few miles then hang a left on the well used sawmill road out to Goose Lake where the wilderness boundary begins and it’s time to ditch the machines and strap on the skins. Cross Goose Lake and head for the pass north of Iceberg Peak. From here you’ll get a great view of the west face of Glacier Peak, trend towards it and down canyon, you’re aiming for the valley to the north. Wrap around and up into this cool drainage, this is a great spot to camp and get to work on your steep skiing. The Patriarch shares the same lower portion as the Beckey Couloir, but halfway up or so you’ll cut off to the right across the ridge and down into the hanging face at the base of the Patriarch. This might require a short rappel or hand line. Then just boot up the chute!

This line doesn’t fill in that well up high in the average season, it can be very thin and rocky.