Despite the name, Easy Mox (8,397’, 48.948747, -121.262656) is considered one of the most difficult of the Bulgers (Washington’s 100 highest peaks) to climb in winter. It is located in the Chilliwack group of the Skagit Range, near the Canada border. I’d previously climbed four Bulgers in this area in winter (Hard Mox, Spickard, Custer, and Rahm), over four separate trips. By 2025, just Easy Mox and Mt. Redoubt (8,963’, 48.95782, -121.300744) remained.

On January 17, Nick Roy and I double-carried my Zodiac boat, outboard motor, and four days of supplies one mile to Ross Lake (which has no road access) and cruised 18 miles to the outlet of Silver Creek the next day. It was cold enough for spray from the lake to freeze into verglas on our dry suits.

We hiked up an abandoned mining trail to the remnants of a cabin, then bushwhacked up past Silver Lake to base camp on the north side of Solitude Peak. On day three, we climbed Mt. Redoubt via the standard south face, making the second winter ascent of the peak (after R. Barley and P. Rowat, in February 1977, via the northeast face) and the first winter ascent of this route (M1 and steep snow, with two roped pitches). We rapped the route.

The next morning, we climbed steep, unconsolidated snow and rock to the Easy Mox–Solitude Col, then simul-climbed the northeast ridge of Easy Mox. Nick led the crux M3 pitch to the summit. Rather than downclimb the long, low-angle ridge—which would have required setting up many rappel anchors on vertical rock steps—we made sunset rappels down the established south face descent to Col of the Wild. We then hiked around the west and north sides of Easy Mox back to camp.

On January 21, we hiked back to Ross Lake, found some unfrozen water to launch the Zodiac, motored back, and triple-carried the gear back to the trailhead. By the end of winter 2025, I’d climbed 83 Bulgers in winter.

—Eric Gilbertson