Lane Pass and Birch Lake to Brainerd Lake

[RollingTree]

Does anyone have any info and/or photos of Lane Pass, (the West side in particular), and/or the ridge crossing between Birch Lake/Brainerd Lake?
Looking at using these crossings this summer and can't find much.
For future searchers on the topic here's the one bit I could find ...a quick shot of Lane Pass West from the bottom on a video at 4:10.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7aUoWfhohY
Bruce

[grampy]

The HST Cross Country Passes subforum has a brief description of Lane Pass - mostly just its location, no real description other than that it’s Class 2. The HST Map shows its location.

Are you actually planning on a loop through Birch Lake AND Brainerd Lake (i.e. utilizing Lane Pass and Southfork Pass) , OR merely using Lane as an alternate access to the JMT ? If answer is the former, then Southfork sounds like the more challenging of the two. I have zero knowledge of either, btw … just happened upon your question and was curious.

[thegib]

Echoing Grampy above, southfork pass isn't trivial. I've found it very dependent on snow conditions. Late in a drought year both chutes were straight ice - I hit the ground a couple times before I backed off.

[RollingTree]

Thanks for the input guys. This is part of a longer point to point, not a loop. I'm taking this specifically to avoid SouthFork, take new routes, and avoid the SHR or trails as much as possible. And yep, I'm aware of Secor's description and his description on the HST map.
Bruce

[Wandering Daisy]

I day-hiked to the lakes below Lane Pass in 2013. I do not recall anything very difficult (but I was not carrying a pack) to get to the upper lakes from the PCT. Lots of talus but I recall some grassy stringers too. Really stark. I think it only took about 2 hours for this side trip. Here are two photos I took of the west side of what I think is Lane Pass. The pass description says you go up on the east side to the saddle of Birch Peak and then traverse west on a plateau. The photos are west of the pass and where you would descend. I am not 100% sure that the photos are of Lane Pass, but it seems to match the topo map.

7040_Lane Pass west 2.jpg

7039_Lane Pass west maybe_edited-1.jpg

It looks a bit miserable.

The map and Google Earth show an extensive moraine on the east side. Recent moraines can be quite unstable and it seems to extend from rock wall to rock wall, so you could not avoid it. Again, miserable travel. It would probably be easier when snow covered.

[RollingTree]

Thanks Wandering Daisy. Your photos actually show Birch Creek Pass, which I am also considering, and there's a teeny bit more info out there regarding. The official route is up through one of the far right (S) notches along the ridge, (presumably that obvious long angled one), and some hikers coming from the Thumb, (which you can just barely see the tip of at far photo left, and is just 400 yrds or so on the other side of the Crest/pinnacles up left (N) across a plateau), have crossed over West down into the pictured basin by following the ridge past Birch Creek Pass and then traversing down and South across the slope. As you note, the Birch Lake basin does indeed look like long moraine/talus slogs whether via Birch Creek Pass or Lane Pass. Your photos are very helpful and better than anything I have for evaluating Birch Creek Pass, the traverse alternative to it's South, and to get a better feel for the appeal (or not) of a campsite in this basin. Much appreciated!

[bulaklakan]

I've been contemplating a similar route. My thought was Brainerd Lake, over the ridge to Birch Lake, up to Birch Creek or Lane Pass, traverse west and a little north to the Glacier Creek lake, over Scimitar Pass and back to the Glacier Lodge trailhead.
My goal is to see all this country, but as per others' reports I'm not that interested in Southfork Pass.
There is good info & photos of the Birch Lake basin and climbing Birch Lake Pass in Burd's trip reports - specifically when he was headed up to the Thumb - https://www.snwburd.com/bob/trip_report ... _n1_2.html . But that's only of the east side of the crest.
The biggest question for me in my proposed route is whether I can ascend the slope directly east of Brainerd Lake. Contours suggest it's steep but not an actual cliff...? By routing my loop to look at this slope first thing, I can choose to do something else (Scimitar to Jigsaw?) if that's not a reasonable thing to do.

[RollingTree]

Re: "The biggest question for me in my proposed route is whether I can ascend the slope directly east of Brainerd Lake. Contours suggest it's steep but not an actual cliff...? By routing my loop to look at this slope first thing, I can choose to do something else (Scimitar to Jigsaw?) if that's not a reasonable thing to do." :
Yep, that will be an unkown for me coming the other direction. Looking at contours/sattelite/GoogleEarth/trip photos it looks likely a fairly reasonably sloped loose sand slope w/a few scattered/intermittant bushes suggestive of character, but those sources are not definitive enough to insure it's not problematic there (or at other points between there and Birch Lake). It's going to be a very long miserable backtrack/circumvention for me if so, but the odds look good.

I've settled on Birch Creek Pass or perhaps just an upwards traverse below Ed Lane Peak SE to NW to the ridge between Ed Lane and Birch Creek Pass. My suspicion is that Lane Pass West side might be a miserable 2 steps up 1 step sliding back type slog if traveling up/ W to E w/ full pack (no good beta). The East side of Lane pass is fairly well documented by Birch Mtn hikers, and the reports vary from horrible to no problem, which can indicate varying experience/skill levels and possibly different chutes.

Re: Your tentative thought to "..traverse west and a little north to the Glacier Creek lake, over Scimitar Pass..." :
Doubtless you're well aware, or will be once you analyze, but that traverse has much hairier and/or potentially miserable looking stretches than any of the Brainerd lake to Birch Lake route. The JMT (and then SHR/Cirque Pass - which may be your thought anyway) is only barely lower than a traverse at some points. Though that bench under Norman Clyde does look neat to see, the time/effort tradeoff, at the least, is prob very big.
Have a great trip!

[RollingTree]

Just an update on Lane Pass and the Birch lake to Brainerd Lake crossing per my summer hike.

I did end up taking Lane Pass west to east. The west side is indeed a very steep/long sand slope that looks like a nightmare slog going up, (and a relatively reasonable ski going down), but I stayed mostly on rock 50 yards or so north and it was mostly reasonable class 3 climbing. Not easy by any means, but not a nightmare. The east side, (3rd chute from the west at lowest point appears to be best and is at least in some cases the reccomended), is an extremely loose scree chute where even the walls are crumbly/loose. It's quite sketchy and more than one person in the chute at a time would seem very unwise. I suppose it's possible a chute or face line farther west up the Birch mtn ridge is better. The mile and a half or so from the base of the chute to Birch Lake outlet is a very long/tedious talus hop, though fairly stable and mostly good sized, and I had some snow in the right condition for easier travel for a bit of it.
Birch Creek Pass or the ridge south might be better, (I don't know), but was more out of my way given how that day's timing/camp spots worked out.

The crossing over the ridge between Birch Lake and Brainerd Lake was reasonable, but very long and tiring. Lot's of tedious scree and mixed talus. Not much level ground or consistent scree for skiing. The steep slope down into the Brainerd Lake basin is doable with more consistent skiable sand/small skree. Going up that slope is prob okay/doable as long as you're mentally prepared for 2 step forward/one back type steep sand slog. Not sure of that. Getting onto the most obvious slope midway up from a slight bench on it's south side prob best to cut down on the vert sand slog as much as possible.

[cgundersen]

RT,

That sounds like an audacious route and in addition to the great descriptions you supplied, it would be wonderful if you could add a few photos for those of us with poor visualization capabilities......assuming you paused to shoot photos! Thanks, Cameron