pigeon spire

For pigeon spire, how much glacial travel do you need?

I am fully confident and competent in the technical climbing and multi-pitch aspect of it, however have had little-to-none experience in regards to crevasse travel/rescue. So with that said, how much crevasse and ice navigation is there to get to the pigeon spire?

There are two ways to approach, both require glacier travel.
1. up bugaboo-snowpatch col is "standard" although the ascent is steep, involves loose rock and a burgshrund. in good conditions is fine, otherwise stay away (IMO)
2. my suggestions is around snowapatch and pigeon. it involves picking your some some supa-fun crevassed terrain and is overall much safer, scenic and less busy.

Bugaboo-Snowpatch col was terribly out of condition last season, most parties travelled around Snowpatch. A much safer option in any case.

Might be worth spending a few days on a glacier before heading to the Bugs, and maybe asking to share a rope on the approach with another more experienced party. You'll find plenty there.

The condition of the col erodes as the season goes on, so early season you will find steep well kicked snow with a fairly straight forward glacier crossing to Pigeon that many people don't rope for. Later in the season it can be a death trap and you will want to avoid it.....this will all be apparent to you when you get there.

The Col at its worst

If you have to take the route around the Snow Patch, be prepared for a technical glacier crossing as the crevasses are more numerous and larger this way, so you need to understand rope travel and god forbid extraction.

Don't let all this dissuade you! All the climbs at the Bugs are satisfying and Pigeon's standard route will be something you will remember for a long time to come. Read, watch a video, practice on land and at the crag, take a class, recruit a team member with these skills. It is not rocket science, it just takes the same level of effort you would put into learning rock anchors or good rope craft.