Washington Bulgers (Hundred Highest Mountains)

The hundred highest mountains in Washington (aka the Bulgers) is a difficult list of peaks, most of which require some

combination of glacier travel, scrambling, technical rock climbing, bushwhacking, and long approaches. Only three of the peaks have trails to the summit (St Helens and Windy Peak have official trails and Remmel has an abandoned trail). As of 2020, 77 people have completed the list.

The name “Bulgers” was the name of the original group of mountaineers to identify and climb all the peaks, and has since been used to refer to the set of hundred highest peaks. Russ Kroeker (aka “Koala”) was the first climber to finish the list, on Sinister Peak on October 4, 1980. For an excellent history of the Bulgers see John Roper’s website. For an up-to-date list of people who’ve climbed all the Bulgers see Klenke’s Summitpost Page.

To define the set of 100 mountains, the Bulgers list uses a 400ft prominence cutoff in most instances, but several peaks are included that have less than

this amount of prominence, and volcanic subpeaks are required to have 800ft of prominence to be included.

According to John Lixvar, the 800ft prominence rule was expressly formulated to not treat Liberty Cap (prominence 472ft) and Columbia Crest (the summit of Rainier) as separate mountains, but to still include Little Tahoma (prominence 818ft).

This had the unintended consequence of eliminating Lincoln, Colfax, and Sherman peaks from the Bulgers list, despite each having at least 400ft of prominence based on the quads.

The 800ft threshold was chosen because it is the only number greater than 472 (Liberty Cap prominence) and less than 818 (the prominence of Little Tahoma) that has 100, 40, and 80 as common denominators. The numbers 40 and 80 need to be common denominators so prominence can be accurately determined from 7.5 minute and 15 minute series maps without interpolation, and 100 needs to be a common denominator because multiples of 100 sound less arbitrary.

The 800ft prominence rule has been jokingly referred to by John Roper as the John Wilkes Booth proviso, because it had the unintended consequence of eliminating Lincoln peak, which is considered one of the most difficult peaks in Washington.

I climbed my first Bulger peak, Rainier, in 2007, before I knew what a Bulger was. In January 2015 I semi-officially moved to Seattle, and climbed a handful of peaks that winter, including Rainier (again), Baker, Shuksan, and a few peaks in the Enchantments. I was travelling the rest of the year, and finally settled in Seattle for good at the start of 2016.

Over 2016 and 2017 I climbed a handful more Bulger peaks, mostly in the off season (spring, fall, winter), since I was travelling during the summer time. By the spring of 2018 it was looking like that might be my last summer living in Seattle, so if I was going to ever finish the Bulgers I’d better do it then. So I decided to stick around for a majority of the summer, and finally finish them off.

I was doing online contract work that summer with a flexible schedule, so to get my work done and squeeze in bulgers I would generally combine what would normally be a 2-day trip into one big day, then take the day after to work. So it made sense to do a bunch of 30-50-mile day trips. I was traveling in and out of Washington all summer, so had to fit Bulgers in between an expedition to Mt Fairweather in Alaska in June, climbing mountains in Uganda and DRC in Africa in August, and climbing and surveying the highest point in Saudi Arabia in August.

That year happened to be particularly bad for forest fires in Washington. By mid summer approximately half of the Bulger peaks were in fire closure zones and legally off limits. This definitely complicated my goal of finishing them that summer. I had to be very flexible with plans. Several times I would check the fire closures, pick an area that was open, then by the time I drove to the trailhead the area had been closed from a new fire. Occasionally a standard route to a peak would be closed, but the summit and a back side were technically open, so I would do a 50+ mile day trip to access the peak a roundabout back way that was completely legal and avoided closure zones.

By the end of August I was back from my international trips and I finished my last Bulger on Mt Buckner. I noticed then that if I just re-climbed a few dozen of them I could get my completion time down to close to one year. The previous speed record was 4 years 3 months by Franklin Bradshaw, but a 1-year completion time sounded like a fun goal. Over the next two weeks I squeezed in as many peaks as possible before the school year started when I would become a normal weekend warrior again.

On October 6, 2018, I completed my last re-climb of a Bulger peak on Reynolds Peak (a 57-mile, 21hr day hike to avoid fire closure zones), making my completion time 1 year 1 month 15 days 20 hours 29 minutes. This is a new fastest known time for list completion according to fastestsknowntime.com. Note that I define this time as the smallest time window to summit all Bulger peaks.

Some main difficulties I observed with climbing lots of Bulgers in a year:

-Fire closures tend to start in mid July, mainly east of the crest, and last to November, meaning many Bulger peaks are potentially legally off limits for much of the prime climbing season. I honored all fire closures, which often required a 50+ mile trip to access a peak legally (like Reynolds, Oval, and many of the sawtooth peaks).
-Many peaks are in North Cascades National Park and legally require a permit if spending the night. This can be logistically time consuming, because permits can generally only be obtained a day before entering the area, and must be picked up in person during business hours. I got permits for all areas requiring them, including the Chiliwack Peaks (which anecdotally most climbers do not obtain permits for).
-Mt St Helens requires a permit April 1 – Nov 1, and this generally means entering a lottery in February to obtain one of these popular permits. I skied St Helens in January when a permit was not required.
-Rainier and Mt Adams also require permits, which I obtained.

Some interesting stats for my Bulgers project:

Stats during FKT completion:
Completion time: 1 year 1 month 15 days 20 hours 29 minutes (Aug 20, 2017 – Oct 6, 2018)
Best year: 2018 (80)
Best 1-year period: Oct 7 2017 – Oct 6 2018 (85)
Best month: July 2018 (29)
Best day: July 1, 2018 (6 – Blackcap, Osceola, Carru, Lago, Ptarmigan, Lost, 18.5 hrs camp to camp)
50+ mile days: 6
40-49 mile days: 5
30-39 mile days: 5
Solos: 68

Since I reclimbed a lot of peaks during 2018, this means I’ve summitted many Bulgers multiple times now. I’ll probably finish a second lap at some point. Additionally, I’m now trying to climb all the Bulgers in winter (link to Winter Bulgers page), and have climbed over 60 so far in winter. Of these, over 30 have been probable first winter ascents and over 10 have been probable second winter ascents.

Overall stats, including ascents before and after the FKT completion:
Cumulative Bulger ascents: 223 ( 72 repeats, 38 3-peats, 9 4-peat, 3 5-peat 1 6-peat)
Bulgers summitted in winter: 73 (Link to Winter Bulgers page)
First winter ascents: 40
Packraft-assisted ascents: 12
Mountain-bike assisted ascents: 20
Ski-assisted ascents: 58
Snowmobile-assisted ascents: 35

A second list, the Washington Top 100 (T100xP400) uses a strict 400ft prominence rule and

is another generally accepted way to climb the hundred highest peaks in Washington.

This list was originally based on the USGS quads, and remained unchanged for decades. However, starting in 2022 I worked on a project to update the list to make it more accurate, which I am continuing to work on in 2023. I have been using Lidar point cloud data, a theodolite, sight levels, and a survey-grade differential GPS unit to take ground measurements of peaks. After over a dozen ground surveys so far and analysis of all relevant Lidar data I have determined an updated Washington Top 100 list, which I am continuing to update as I take more measurements. So far four peaks have been removed from the old list (Sherman, Luna, Switchback, and Flora) and five new peaks were added (Big Kangaroo, East Fury, Solitude, Chalangin, and Blackcap). Currently Mt St Helens and Castle are tied for number 100, so I’ll need to go survey those more accurately to see which is 100 and which is 101. This new list is now the official and most accurate list of Washington Top 100 peaks. Link to updated list in google doc form. See a detailed report of the survey project. 

Because I conducted these surveys recently and am still conducting more surveys, it may take some time for online sources to update their versions of the Washington Top 100 list. I’m working with peakbagger.com to get the accurate list updated there, which is now partially complete. The maintainer of the list on summitpost has decided not to update to the more accurate list. So the list there is the old, inaccurate version.

Note that the Washington Top 100 list is different than the Bulgers list. The Washington Top 100 list can change as more accurate surveys are conducted, but the Bulgers list stays unchanged for historical reasons. The Washington Top 100 list does not include the eight Bulger peaks Seven Fingered Jack, Sahale, Dark, Rahm, Horseshoe, Little Annapurna, Flora, and Switchback because they have less than 400ft of prominence or are too short. The Washington Top 100 list instead contains the nine non-Bulger peaks Solitude, Liberty Cap, Colfax, Lincoln, Big Kangaroo, East Fury, Chalangin, Castle, and Ballard.

Below are the peaks listed in chronological order that I climbed them for the Bulgers speed record, along with trip report links for each ascent of each peak (including reports from earlier and later ascents in parentheses):

The list starts with the 100 Bulger Peaks in order I climbed them, then lists the extra eight peaks on the Washington Top 100 list in order I’ve climbed them so far. I’m the 70th person to finish the Bulgers and the 17th person to finish the old Washington top 100. I haven’t yet finished the true Washington Top 100 list. I’m still missing East Fury and Chalangin.

1. Sherpa Peak – 2017-8-20
2. Storm King – 2017-8-24
3. Goode Mountain – 2017-8-25
4. Saska Peak – 2017-9-4, (2020-2-22)
5. Spectacle Buttes – 2017-9-11
6. Seven Fingered Jack – 2017-9-12
7. Mount Maude – 2017-9-12
8. Mount Fernow – 2017-9-13
9. Dumbell Mountain – 2017-9-14
10. Greenwood Mountain – 2017-9-14
11. Chiwawa Mountain – 2017-9-15
12. Cardinal Peak – 2017-9-17, (2020-2-22)
13. Star Peak – 2017-9-18,( 2019-2-18)
14. Courtney Peak – 2017-9-18,( 2019-2-17, 2019-10-26)
15. Mount Formidable – 2017-9-23
16. Cannon Mountain – 2017-10-7  (2015-9-2, 2020-202)
17. Enchantment Peak – 2017-10-7 (2015-9-2, 2019-2-2)
18. Little Annapurna – 2017-10-7 (2015-3-3, 2015-9-2, 2019-2-2)
19. McClellan Peak –  2017-10-7 (2015-9-3, 2020-2-2)
20. Remmel Mountain – 2017-10-15
21. Clark Mountain – 2017-10-28 (2021-1-23)
22. Luahna Peak – 2017-10-29 (2021-1-23)
23. Mount Saint Helens – 2018-1-14 (2015-1-11, 2017-4-21, 2018-5-1, 2019-1-13, 2021-3-23)
24. Robinson Mountain – 2018-3-4
25. Mount Baker – 2018-4-24 (2015-2-22, 2018-11-12)
26. Mount Shuksan 2018-5-5 (2015-2-21)
27. Dorado Needle 2018-5-8
28. Klawatti Peak 2018-5-8
29. Dome Peak 2018-5-19
30. Sinister Peak 2018-5-19
31. Little Tahoma 2018-5-22 (2016-4-10)
32. Mount Rainier 2018-5-28 (2007-8-21, 2015-2-16, 2019-5-5)
33. Jack Mountain 2018-6-2
34. Cathedral Peak 2018-6-16
35. Amphitheater Mountain 2018-6-16 (2021-11-06)
36. Big Snagtooth 2018-6-27 (2021-2-20)
37. Big Craggy Peak 2018-6-27 (2015-10-11, 2020-2-9)
38. West Craggy 2018-6-27 (2015-10-11, 2020-2-9)
39. Monument Peak 2018-6-30
40. Lake Mountain 2018-6-30 (2016-10-30)
41. Blackcap Mountain 2018-7-1
42. Osceola Peak 2018-7-1
43. Mount Carru 2018-7-1
44. Mount Lago 2018-7-1
45. Ptarmigan Peak 2018-7-1 (2021-2-27)
46. Lost Peak 2018-7-1 (2020-9-20, 2021-3-6)
47. Easy Mox 2018-7-8
48. Mount Redoubt 2018-7-8
49. Hard Mox 2018-7-9
50. Mount Spickard 2018-7-10
51. Mount Rahm 2018-7-10
52. Mount Custer 2018-7-11
53. Tower Mountain 2018-7-13
54. Golden Horn 2018-7-13, 2019-3-3
55. Azurite Peak 2018-7-14
56. Dark Peak 2018-7-18
57. Bonanza Peak 2018-7-18
58. Martin Peak 2018-7-18
59. Copper Peak 2018-7-19
60. Flora Mountain 2018-7-21
61. Tupshin Peak 2018-7-22
62. Devore Peak 2018-7-23
63. Buck Mountain 2018-7-26 (2021-6-6)
64. Fortress Mountain 2018-7-26
65. Mesahchie Peak 2018-7-29
66. Katsuk Peak 2018-7-29
67. Kimtah Peak 2018-7-29
68. Cosho Peak 2018-7-29
69. Mount Logan 2018-7-30 (2021-3-13)
70. Mount Stuart 2018-8-22
71. Black Peak 2018-8-24 (2016-9-24)
72. Sahale Peak 2018-8-25 (2015-8-26, 2016-9-16)
73. Boston Peak 2018-8-25 (2016-9-16)
74. Windy Peak 2018-8-26 (2016-10-16, 2020-1-25, 2021-6-12)
75. Forbidden Peak 2018-8-28
76. Silver Star Mountain 2018-8-30 (2016-4-16, 2021-2-14)
77. Horseshoe Peak 2018-8-31
78. Mount Buckner 2018-8-31, 2022-9-3
79. Pinnacle Mountain 2018-9-1 (2016-9-21, 2020-12-23)
80. Emerald Peak 2018-9-1 (2016-9-22, 2020-2-22)
81. Argonaut Peak 2018-9-2 (2017-5-6)
82. Mount Adams 2018-9-3 (2007-8-24, 2016-10-22, 2019-12-7, 2021-4-25)
83. Glacier Peak 2018-9-5 (2016-4-2)
84. Snowfield Peak 2018-9-7 (2017-4-29)
85. Cashmere Mountain 2018-9-8 (2016-3-19)
86. Switchback Mountain 2018-9-15 (2016-3-28, 2018-11-4, 2020-1-19)
87. Martin Peak 2018-9-15 (2016-3-28, 2020-1-19)
88. Mount Bigelow 2018-9-15 (2016-3-28, 2020-1-20)
89. Hoodoo Peak 2018-9-15 (2016-2-20)
90. Raven Ridge 2018-9-15 (2016-11-6, 2019-1-26)
91. Colchuck Peak 2018-9-18 (2016-2-7, 2020-12-13)
92. Dragontail Peak 2018-9-18 (2015-3-3, 2015-9-1, 2017-10-7)
93. Eldorado Peak 2018-9-23 (2015-6-20, 2017-5-20)
94. Primus Peak 2018-9-24 (2017-5-21)
95. Austera Peak 2018-9-24 (2017-5-21)
96. Abernathy Peak 2018-9-29 (2016-10-9, 2021-1-9)
97. Gardner Mountain 2018-9-29 (2017-6-11, 2021-1-10)
98. North Gardner Mountain 2018-9-29 (2017-6-11, 2021-1-10)
99. Oval Peak 2018-9-30 (2017-2-12)
100. Reynolds Peak 2018-10-6 (2017-6-9, 2021-1-30)

Extra nine peaks on the true Washington Top 100 list: (peaks listed in order I climbed them)

1. Liberty Cap (2018-5-28)
2. Mount Ballard (2018-10-14)
3. Castle Peak (2018-10-27, 2023-10-07)
4. Colfax Peak (2018-11-17)
5. Lincoln Peak (2019-4-28)
6. Big Kangaroo (2023-6-17)
7. Solitude Peak (2023-6-30)
8. Chalangin (not yet climbed)
9. East Fury (not yet climbed)

Two peaks from the old Washington Top 100 list that are not on the true Washington Top 100 list or Bulger list:

Luna Peak (2018-10-20, 2022-10-22)
Sherman Peak (2018-11-12)