Trails Used
Carter-Morianh
Trail Conditions
Equipment
Notes
Dry trail for the first 1.5 miles. Patches of ice (flat monorail) for the next .5, easy to work around but a pain. After Mt. Surprise, the trail merited spikes with on again, off again ice patches, but we stubbornly pushed on until half way up the rock slabs. Tough call because too much ice not to wear them but not enough to avoid walking on the rocks at times. Fortunately the ice was just soft enough for some purchase; in most places you could walk right up it. Other places called for cleat grinding, tree slinging and/or bushwhacking. At about 3.5 the ice turned mostly to packed snow, with a few icy patches, which were more manageable than the previous ones. Remained as such all the way to the summit, (about a mile). Snow stayed consistent for the way down, ice soften a bit more or had dissipated in sections, but not much. A bit more slippery mud near the bottom than when we started (9am). It was a challenging day but very doable if you are good with icy conditions. I used microspikes the whole way, no poles. (Needed my hands for the tree hugging!)Overall a great day in the mountains. Not too cold, no wind, rain or snow. Just ice!
Parking
Parking lot empty upon arrival and departure. No snow at all.
Water Crossings
None
Wildlife
None yet