Staff Adventure: Maura | A Decade with the Olympic 6500's
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- By Maura Treaccar
- Posted in Staff Adventures
Last month I completed the Olympic Mountain 6500-foot List - 52 Olympic peaks over 6,500 feet with at least 400 feet of prominence.
A Decade with the Olympic 6500s
Last month I completed the Olympic Mountain 6500-foot List - 52 Olympic peaks over 6,500 feet with at least 400 feet of prominence.
More than a decade ago, fellow climber JJ Smith introduced me to the list. I'd already climbed several of the peaks and was hopelessly in love with the Olympic Mountains. JJ simply recognized that this project fit the way I already wanted to explore them.
She was right.
The list became an excuse to spend time in the heart of the Olympics - to wander glaciers, alpine ridges, hidden valleys, and remote basins that few people ever see. The greatest gift wasn't the summits. It was discovering how I want to move through wild places and sharing those experiences with incredible people.
My husband, Troy, joined me on 25 of the peaks. Erica Varner shared 17, JJ Smith 7, Aaron Richards of Mountain Craft Guiding 6, and many other dear friends. Our Karelian Bear Dog, Veikko, climbed 8 of the summits with me, and those adventures will always be among my favorite memories.
Thank you, Troy, for believing this journey was worth finishing- even on the days I wasn’t so sure.
My Top 5 Aesthetic Climbs (condition dependent):
1. Mount Olympus – 4th of July Route
2. Mercury – Ice River Glacier
3. Mount Tom – Ridge of the Gods
4. Mount Anderson – South Side Ledges from Upper Honeymoon Meadows
5. Mount Mystery – Deception Glacier.
In Memory of Sean Allen – I miss you.