Hungry Bear
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| | Raps:7-9, max ↨90ft
Red Tape:No permit required Shuttle:None Vehicle:Passenger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Condition Reports: | 18 Aug 2024
"The 180-foot multipitch with mid-station rain room is special. Also a couple good crack rappels. Half dozen downclimbs are a nice bonus. No jumps or s |
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| Best season: | Summer-Fall
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47.9651, -121.5988
47.9683, -121.6196
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Introduction[edit]
Hungry Bear is the name given to the canyon formed by Bear Creek, a drainage found on the northern slopes of Greider Peak and flows into Spada Lake.
Its name derives from the amount of equipment the canyon ate during the first descent; drill bits, shoes & ropes were all consumed by the bear.
The highlight of the canyon is a 200' two-tier waterfall. The mid-way anchor station gets drenched by the rooster tail landing beside it. On a sunny day this station becomes a Rainbow Room - the water-filled air bursting to life with rings of chromatic light.
It is best run early in the season, or late after rain has replenished flows. By mid-summer it'll likely be running low and lack some character.
Access is mostly straightforward, making use of old forest roads.
Lower Hungry Bear, the section below the approach road, has yet to be descended.
Approach[edit]
Drive
- From Sultan, take the Sultan Basin Rd 13 miles north to Olney Pass.
- Register at the gated entrance to the Spada Lake area.
- Take South Shore Rd 4.5 miles to small turn out on the right hand side. An old forest road is blocked by cement road blocks. There is better, flat parking on the opposite side of the road about 30 yards further.
Hike
- The first 30 yards and the last 30 yards of this old logging road are thick with vegetation. This dense bushwacking can be avoided. Walk 30 yards past the old logging road to a culvert. Walk up the clean ditch from the culvert 50 feet up to the old logging road and proceed left.
- Follow the gently rising, overgrown road, east for 1.2 miles, crossing multiple wash-outs.
- Before the road bends Southeast, leave the road and head South and directly uphill through clear forest.
- Gain 600' until you reach the 2,585 feet elevation and a broad flat band. This is upper old logging road.
- Follow this upper road Southeast for 700' until it brings you to a dismantled bridge crossing at Bear Creek. BE CAREFUL OF LARGE SPIKES STICKING UP FROM THE BRIDGE DEBRIS. From here, the fastest and cleanest way to the creek is to head left down a gently curving slope to the creek. You will be below the first rappel. To access the first rappel requires a thick bushwack from the bridge debris right and up 30 yards.
There is very limited space to gear-up spot at the drop-in. There is a better open spot just on the creek side of the bridge debris pile.
Descent[edit]
NOTE: Teams may prefer to back up single bolt anchors with meat anchors, or contribute to the canyon by installing second bolts where appropriate.
- R1 – 25' from single bolt DCR.
- R2 – An easy, low-angle downclimb is recommended. Or rappel 30' from bolts DCR.
There is an exit just prior to the next drop, which is the headline two-stage rappel. The commitment zone begins with R3.
- R3 – 90' from bolts DCL. Extending the rappel rope 100' in order to do a J-Tie is recommended. Visibility and sound are limited. There is an optional redirect bolt 10' down DCR to rappel in the flow. Rappel to the next anchor (R4) at the base of the rooster tail, which can be seen from the top, once the rappeller reaches the bottom of this pitch.
- R4 – 90' from bolts DCL, set back & high up from the lip (needs slight climb up to them). A 200' rope is required for a better rope pull angle. In low-to-moderate flow the rebelay is out of the flow. In high flow this station will be in the forceful spray of the rooster tail, so plan on moving your party through quickly. Note, it may be possible to rappel from R3 the full 200' in one pitch, but the rope pull is unlikely.
- R5 - easy downclimb DCR is recommended. Or 20' nuisance rappel from single bolt DCL with awkward start onto a slippery log. This is followed by an easy 6' downclimb which can be done either in the flow or dry DCR.
- R6 - 40' from single bolt DCR, crack rappel. Keep foot out of the middle of the crack. This is followed by two small down-climbs. The first very straightforward, the second may be protected using a webbing handline around a log.
- R7 70' from single bolt DCR. The whole flow is channeled through a staircase slot then down a series of ramps, forming rooster tails in places. Stemming on rappel is a good technique here.
It is possible to exit the canyon after R7 by scrambling up hill DCR, then descending on the ridge above the creek until intersecting with the old road. This is the only reasonable exit point (before the old road) after committing to R3.
- R8 - 30' from single bolt DCR, nearly vertical. This is followed by a short downclimb, either in the flow DCL or easier DCR dry.
- R9 - 25' from boulder wrap, in the flow. Can be downclimbed DCR in low flow.
Exit[edit]
At the bottom of R9 the creek disappears under a boulder field, making an excellent, dry, changing area. Exit the creek left and follow the old logging road back down to the parking location. Takes about 30-45 minutes.
Red tape[edit]
Parking is located in the Spada Lake Recreation Area. Make sure to stop by the kiosk on the way in for a self-register permit for all vehicles. Discover Pass is required at the trailheads.
Beta sites[edit]
Aaron's Waterfall World - the inspiration to explore an otherwise dull looking drainage.
Trip reports and media[edit]
First descent photos:
Second descent photos:
Background[edit]
This canyon was first descended on 5th October 2021 by Hereward Cooper, Yana Radenska, Beth Voss, & Alec Wagner. During the first descent the canyon ate an incredible amount of equipment earning it the name "Hungry Bear."
The bear was left unfed for three years, until a group returned on 5th July 2024. Hereward Cooper, Adam Bercaw, Cole Anderson, Korey Peterson, Simon O'Gorman, & Kevin Clark finished bolting the remaining anchors and discovered an incredible "Rainbow Room" when rapping R3 & R4.