North Cascades Traverse

[jdk610]

I'm hijacking Jessica's post in order to summarize the FKTs on this amazing-looking route. Jessica gives great info and links. Doug McKeever reports his experiences below. PB

Doug McKeever completed the Traverse in 9h18m on September 13, 1987.
Luke Distelhorst completed the Traverse plus Copper Ridge (which adds about 10 miles) in "just over 16 hours", August 2014.
Jessica Kelley has the women's FKT for the Traverse (only) at 17h30m59s, July 11, 2015.

Here is Jessica's original post:


Hi all, I'm new to this, so please be gentle with me. 

Early tomorrow morning I'll begin a traverse of North Cascades National Park, crossing the north unit from Ross Dam to the Hannegan Pass trailhead, covering approx 50 miles and 12,000 feet of elev gain. The park service describes the area as "mostly a vast unbroken wilderness surrounding the remote Picket Range. This route crosses three mountain passes (Hannegan Pass, Whatcom Pass, and Beaver Pass), follows several wild, free-flowing creeks and rivers, and winds through the largest stand of massive old-growth western red cedars in the park."
This route is also described in the guide book Hiking the North Cascades by Eric Molvar. He dubs it the "Whatcom Pass Expedition" and estimates it should take backpackers 6-9 days to complete the journey. 

This route has been on my mind for a few months... Ever since I got back from doing the Zion Traverse (in nowhere close to record time), I've wanted to do a similar North Cascades traverse. I love the idea of crossing one of my favorite national parks on foot! The route also excites me because as far as I know, I'll be the first woman to do it in one push.
To the best of my knowledge, Luke Distelhorst is the only other person to have done this traverse in one day. He completed it in just over 16 hours in Aug 2014, including ~10 bonus miles on Copper Ridge. He blogged about it in his usual understated fashion, and definitely didn't bother to make any fancy announcements.  

You can follow me here (link won’t be live until Saturday morning): share.delorme.com/jessicakelley


Photo credit: Jessica Kelley

[jdk610]

I did it! And it was fun. evergreenendurance.com/2015/07/14/trip-report-north-cascades-traverse/ As I mention in my write-up, I would love to see others get out there and smash this "FKT." It's a beautiful route and a fantastic way to traverse one of the best national parks in the U.S. (IMHO).

[jdk610]

PB, thanks for the recognition. Also, I see you revised the text in your "Read this First" post and I can now announce my intentions like a true gentlewoman. Thanks!

[brushbuffalo]

Hi Peter: This is sort of late, but while reading about recent FKT I saw the link to the North Cascades traverse. As my first long run in the mountains, I ran the route described but easterly from Hannegan trailhead to Ross Dam trailhead on September 13, 1987, unsupported and solo ( well, Audrey drove me to the starting point and picked me up at the end?). My total time was 9 hours 18 minutes. My splits: 52 minutes to Hannegan Pass, 3:29 to Whatcom Pass (where I had to detour around a large black bear who wasn't about to step aside from gorging on huckleberries along the trail),5:14 to Beaver Pass,9:18 to Ross Dam trailhead on Highway 20.
I note that Luke D. did the route with the bonus of Copper Ridge. Although I didn't include the Copper Ridge section on the run on Sept. 13, 1987, but on October 24, 1987, I ran just the 34 mile loop from Hannegan trailhead to Hannegan Pass, down Chilliwack River, up to Copper Ridge and back to Hannegan Pass and Hannegan trailhead in 7 hrs. 30 minutes. I have done that loop 4 other times but I think the first time was probably the quickest.

Doug McKeever