Forbidden Peak — East Ridge Direct
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A North Cascades classic — a knife-edge Skagit gneiss arête on a striking glacial horn with sustained, airy, solid 5.7–5.8 climbing past a series of gendarmes. The Direct start adds cleaner lower-ridge pitches to the regular East Ridge, making one of the finest moderate alpine rock routes in Washington.
🥾 Approach · descent · season
Approach: Cascade River Road from Marblemount to the Boston Basin trailhead (~MP 22); climbers' trail up the old mining route into Boston Basin meadows and camp (~4–5 hr from car, ~3,800 ft gain). From camp, cross slabs and a short glacier/snow patch and ascend a loose, scrambly gully (class 3–4, choss and seepage late season) to gain the East Ridge crest near the first gendarme — belayed climbing begins on the ridge. The Direct start takes cleaner rock on the lower ridge.
⬇️ Descent: Two standard options, both route-finding intensive and the main hazard of the day. (1) East Ledges: ~5 rappels off the summit, then a few hundred meters of loose class 3/4 sandy/grassy ledges above the glacier back toward the route start. (2) West Ridge: rappel the Cat Scratch gullies down to the West Ridge couloir and into Boston Basin — NOTE this descends a SEPARATE couloir from the East Ridge approach (it does not reverse the approach gully) and carries party-induced rockfall risk. Single 60m rope suffices for both.
🗓️ Season: Mid-July through September. The East Ridge melts out and is climbable any time in the season regardless of snow conditions; early season means more snow (and less rockfall) in the approach, late season means more loose rock and a possible open bergschrund at the base.
🎒 Gear & food
Rack: Doubles in small-to-mid cams (~0.3–1), singles to ~3 in, a few nuts, 6+ single slings and several double-length slings/alpine draws, 60m rope; helmet, ice axe and crampons for the approach snow/glacier.
✅ Before you leave the trailhead
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⚠️ Hazards · fire · emergency
- Sustained exposure on a knife-edge arête over the crevassed Boston Glacier; the route-finding-intensive rappel descent is the real crux. Loose rock in the approach gully (late season) and a possible bergschrund at the base.
🌤️ Live conditions
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