Between Bad Snow And Fussy Bears

Since Pam was off with her girlfriends this weekend I was left to my own devices which is generally not a good thing. Athena and I got in a fast 6.79 miles Saturday morning and then we got some shopping done. The big plan was to hike up Eagle and Chutla Peaks Sunday.

In the summer Eagle Peak Saddle is a quick bit of hard exercise for us. From where we park to the saddle and back is 7.9 miles roundtrip with 2800 feet of elevation gain. In the rest of the year you are guaranteed to run into snow somewhere along the way. The last section to the saddle is a steep face that is prone to avalanche danger so success is not guaranteed.

Garry and I hit the trail at 7:30 and made good time to the bridge that crosses the creek which is about 2.5 miles up the trail. The creek was running fast and full and we were getting ready to hike into the cloud cover above.

The next 1 1/2 miles went a little slower as the snow was mainly covering any trail. We didn't need any traction aids because the snow was "good walking" snow. We arrived at the base of the last stretch to the saddle in the mist with very little visibility. We checked the snow and found that there was 6-8 inches of heavy snow on top of very hard ice below.

I know I was waiting for one of two things. First, that it would clear and we might see a safer route without the bad snow/ice combination that looks like an avalanche waiting to happen. Second, that Garry would say "Hey, let's try going up a little and see how it feels." Well, it didn't clear, but Garry did say the magic words.

We maybe went 40-50 feet before we decided that living to try again was a better idea than risking our lives to reach the saddle. We turned back and met Sherrie and Spence who were almost 2 miles up the trail as we headed down.

We gave them a full report including the fact that we had not seen any wildlife or signs of wildlife along the way. Usually, there are deer and elk to be seen and the occasional marmot. We took their snowshoes from them since they wouldn't need them. I was sporting my new pack which is larger than my old one so I had room for more stuff including my bear spray which I showed Sherrie and Spence. We let them head up and we headed down.

A little farther down we ran into 2 gals who were asking about the trail and after a couple of minutes I realized that one of them was a girl who grew up 3 houses down from us and whose sister is married to my little brother. Small world.

Garry and I reached the car at 11:45 and logged 7.8 miles or so.

Sherrie and Spence also were turned around at nearly the same place, but by a black bear with a bad attitude. She was likely a mother with cubs nearby, but they only saw her and she was letting them know in no uncertain terms that she did not require or desire their company so they hightailed it out of there and likewise lived to climb another day.

Such is the way of mountains. There is always something that can keep you from your goal for that day, but there can always be another day if you make the right decisions.

Be very well and more soon....