When I arrived on Friday, the weather was perfect! Sunny and warm. I found a hillside that jutted out to the north and allowed me to see Snow Mountain to the east and a great view to the west. I decided to make this my campsite as it offered such great views!
Here is Snow Mountain to the east as seen from camp.
I don’t know for sure why but I decided to put my tent up. I seldom do this anymore in good weather. I just sleep on the ground on a pad and tarp. But it was Fall in the mountains and the weather can greatly change overnight so I decided to be prudent and put up the tent.
Never have I made a better decision! In the late afternoon, a generous wind kicked-up. It was so strong it was necessary to douse the fire I had started and take shelter in the tent. I took my camp stove off of its legs and put it next to the tent to shelter it from the wind and cooked up dinner instead of grilling the steak I had planned.
As the sun went down, I was mesmerized by the ensuing sunset. Seldom have I seen any this good! It was worth braving the wind every few minutes to watch the sun descend.
After night fell, the wind increased more! It was one of those turbulent nights with the tent walls flapping. I had already secured the tent with extra stakes and connected the loops to heavy rocks by bungee cord. I knew I would not blow away in the night and slept pretty soundly actually.
The next morning I skipped breakfast and headed for the trail. The wind had subsided some but was still blowing. I hadn’t had much exercise of late and the hike turned out to be very difficult for me. It is 4 miles to the summit with switchbacks and few flat spots. Just a general uphill climb, some of it quite steep, with few flat areas to rest up. I thought of turning back more than once, but had already gone far and was not going to give up. My feet were plodding along and I had to rest often but only briefly each time.
It is a very remote area, very primitive and “wild-feeling” and while I saw fresh foot prints of other hikers or backpackers, I saw no one the whole day. After what felt like hours, I found a sign that directs you to either the East or West Peak by some of the steepest trail yet. I decided for the West Peak so I could look down towards camp.
As the highest local point, it was very windy up there, but I was glad I had persevered! Here was a view looking east as I made the ascent.
Here is the totem on the West Peak and the view from there looking west.
I made it down rather rapidly passing all the landmarks I had seen coming up the trail almost in a blur. In the end, I made it there and back in 5 hours almost exactly. Not so bad for 8 miles round trip that starts at about 5000 ft and ascends to 7300 or so.
I was disappointed to get back to camp to discover the wind was still blowing strong. The only other people camping in the area left that afternoon, I suspect because they did not want to spend another windy night on the mountain.
I actually felt pretty good after the hike, better than I thought I would. I enjoyed a beer (or two!) and made another dinner on the stove behind the tent. I put on a coat and spent a lot of time in the wind just watching the sun descend again and the changing colors on the landscape and sky. I think this will always be one of my favorite sunset pictures.
By the next morning, the wind had died completely and I awoke to a perfect morning. I made a hot pot of percolated coffee followed by a leisurely breakfast of sausage and eggs. I felt just fine despite the previous day's death march. I would do it again in a heartbeat (OK, make that many VIGOROUS heartbeats!)
Snow Mountain is now, of course, snowed in. I will not be back until things thaw out. But I look forward to hiking to the east peak next time!
-Tutt
