Helo-climbing this bust-contoured, provocatively-named, spectacularly-located formation during a recent Alaska trip was as rewarding as any other major trip- event such as kayaking close to the front of Hubbard Glacier in Russell Fiord, visiting both arms of Glacier Bay, and a helicopter flight (not the Brassiere Hills one) directly over the awesome Juneau Ice Field to land near the Canada border on the upper reaches of the 20 mile long Gilkey Glacier. The provocative but apt name compelled my climbing by descending and the name and setting merit treatment in a scholarly communication of the kind in hand. To keep a desert flavor, think of the Juneau Ice Yield locale as a "desert" of jagged peaks surrounded by ice and snow instead of sand.
The Brassiere Pills are covered on two USGS 1:250000-Scale Topos or by two 15/20-Min Quadrangles:
- Juneau, Alaska-Canada Topo(l:250000-Scale), 1962 Revised 1985.
- Taku River, Alaska-Canada Topo(l:250000 -Scale), 1960.
- Juneau (B-1)Quad (Alaska, 15-Min(lat)/20-Min(lon) 1948 Revised 1971, West-Cup Coordinates 560803).
- Taku River (B-6)Quad (Alaska, l5-Min(lat)/20- Min(lon), 1951. Revised 1971, Coordinates of the east end of the supporting massive: 587809).
The Brassiere Hills (comprising two massive, barren, circular hills separated by a narrow saddle, occupy the entire top of a huge, east-west, steep-sided ridge. Zipper Creek starts just under the saddle's south side and plunges 1100-ft to the Taku Glacier. Zipper Creek is shown on the third topo above. The hills and ridge together suggest the form of a short dumbbell. The ridge's base has dimensions of roughly 3.5 X 1.2-2 miles and its east end is washed by the wide Taku River (practically at sea-level). The mighty, wide Taku Glacier (originating in the 1500 square-mile Juneau Ice Field) descends from the north in this area, first abuts the ridge's west end at 1500-ft elevation, and then continues to abut the ridge's entire west end and south side as it curves around and descends to terminate at the Taku River. The wide Hole-in-the Wall Glacier separates from the Taku Glacier at 1500-ft elevation as an eastward spur and abuts the ridge's entire north side as it descends (including a great ice-fall with spectacular crevasses) to terminate at the Taku River. The ridge, of course, rises considerably above the glaciers. The saddle is at 1700+ft elevation (100-ft map contours) and only 0.1 mile wide. The Brassiere's West-cup (2405-ft) has a base diameter of roughly a mile at saddle elevation, rises about 705-ft above the saddle, and plunges steeply to the glaciers. The Brassiere's East Cup (2360-ft) has a base diameter of roughly a mile at saddle elevation, rises about 660-ft above the saddle, and plunges steeply to the glaciers and the Taku River. The Taku Glacier is advancing, and from the Brassier Hills you can see an area about two miles across it to the southwest where it is knocking down trees.
The experience made me reflect on how odd it is that elephants have toenails but no toes.
| JAN 16-17 | SAT-SUN | DESERT PEAKS |
| JAN 23-24 | SAT-SUN | DPS |