Broken Top, OR | August 2022

Broken Top has been on my list for a few years. Trip reports vary in difficulty, so I finally had the chance to check it out solo. 

From Green Lakes TH I hike / jogged (hogged?) to Green Lakes in about an hour. From there the trail cuts between the lakes and then steepens. The trail up the Northwest Ridge saddle is sandy and steep. I took a break in the saddle to refuel for the steep ridge climb. 

The ridge is a combination of choss and scree with gendarmes blocking the way. In my experience, going over gendarmes can require some downclimbing, so I tried to stay a little low as I skirted around them. There are a variety of trails and bootpaths to try. 

Eventually I made it to the basalt band that guards the summit block. There are a variety of reports on the difficulty of the crux and here's my two cents. The climb up is a single 5.0 crux move on good rock to get off the ground. After that move, the climb eases to class 4 and is a breeze. Anyone attempting this climb without protection as I did (other than my helmet) should be comfortable & familiar with outdoor rock climbing and exposure. 

After the climb, I moved up the bench. There's some narrowish ledges to hike across, but they aren't too bad. Maybe don't look down. There's some loose rock on the scramble to the summit, but the summit itself is good rock. 

I was the only person on the summit, so I set up my station and got on 2m FM. I quickly had 4+ chasers. I set up my KX2 with the AX1 and got on 20m cw. The bands were a little weird. Some QSB, but I ended up working 9 stations in about 10 minutes. I got on 40m SSB hoping to have some fun there, but the weird band conditions seemed even worse. I managed a rough 3 contacts including a station in Canada. I jumped on 40m CW and got better results, managing 5 contacts with three Summit to Summits. 

At this point another climber joined me on the summit. We chatted for a bit as I worked the last few stations. There were a few other climbers on their way up, so I decided it was a good time to pack up before the tiny summit got too crowded. I scrambled down from the summit block and retraced my steps over the cat walk. 

In my opinion the climb down the crux was easier than the climb up. The hike down the ridge went fairly quickly, but still required navigating around the gendarmes. I took a longer break at Green Lakes and then hit the trail. By this point the day was hot and I was grateful for the shade of the forest and the nearby river. 

I'm very stoked to have completed this climb & activation. Strava: https://www.strava.com/activities/7689022064

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