Climbed Neptuak July 25 and attempted Deltaform, from a bivy just above
Wenkchemna Pass.
Good hard freeze overnight. But crust breaking down by noonish even at 10,500+
ft. A fair bit of verglas on the rocks.
The snow ramp bypass to Neptuak's steep start is in, but may have icy patches
in a few days. Other than that Neptuak is pretty dry except for just below the
summit, where crampons were needed and will be needed for awhile yet if the
snow is hard.
Neptuak onward is pretty snowy (10,500 ft and above). It actually may help with
travel on Deltaform but a lower than hoped for bivy, a long route, warming
temps and a reluctance to epic caused us to stick with our turnaround time of
11 am about 200 technical meters short of the summit.
I recommend attempting this route from a good bivy site just below the upper
steep pitches on Neptuak, above all the scrambling. Room for a Bibler.
Travel restriction on at Moraine Lake but easy enough to hook up with hiking
parties to make the group size.
Mark
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