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I'll start with the conditions, because I know that is what you all want to know about.
I expected the worst and was rather surprised. Anywhere from an inch to ten inches of new snow greeted me on the Weld Trail for my ascent of Gothics, Armstrong, and Sawteeth. Someone sadly barebooted it within the last couples days and left a few post holes, but I digress...
The ledges are really icy, and I mean hard ice. But in my snowshoes (with the exception of my descent of the Sawteeth Ledge, which I spiked) they were not a problem. Any glissading will be incredibly fast, so be careful that you are in control or not heading toward a tree. Slides are icy too, hidden underneath a little bit of fresh snow. I fell on one coming down from Pyramid and my arm is a bit banged up, but nothing dire.
So, last night, this morning, and quite frankly for the last week, I couldn't decide what to do. I knew the GR was a good choice given the possible conditions. I'm waiting on skiiable conditions for other trips. I've been putting the GR off out of fear, but realized that I couldn't hide from it forever. I wanted to get at least two if not three peaks today and really wanted to avoid the ladders from Armstrong to UWJ as well as the Armstrong trail itself from Beaver Meadow Falls. Stick with the devil you know, I say. I decided to take the Weld and if conditions permitted, traverse Gothics to Armstrong and then head back over for Sawteeth and exit via the Weld.
The conditions on the Weld were, in the end, pretty damn good. The steep sections from the Pyramid junction were fine and the descent to the col between Pyramid/Gothics was uneventful. The ledge heading up to the summit of Gothics was a bit of a scramble, but not terrible. For some strange reason, I am scared to death of Gothics. Maybe it's the size, the openness, the name, I'm not sure, but then again, I am scared of every mountain when I am alone. My borrowed motto: Feel the fear and do it anyway.
I made the decision to traverse to Armstrong and found myself on a snow spine, and not in the trees I remember from my trip to Gothics this summer. It is amazing how five feet of snow will change a mountain. Had it been a clear day anyone could have seen me up there. I left the Sawteeth junction at 10:45 and arrived at the Gothics/Armstrong col at noon. Another uneventful, though sometimes icy trip up Armstrong and back up Gothics and I decided to take a shot at Sawteeth, rather reluctant about the idea of having to go back in to the AMR for it on another day.
All told, it was a spectacular day, despite the lack of any real view. I simply enjoyed the hike and embraced the challenge of pushing myself. I guess people may not realize that I am truly scared every time I leave my car on my own. I try to have a healthy respect (albeit too healthy I think at times) for the mountains and consider it a priviledge when they allow me to complete my goals.
My goal is 24 peaks for this winter. As of today, I am at 15. I consider myself very lucky. Oh, I saw my shadow today, very briefly, on my way up Pyramid. You'll all be happy to know, we have six more weeks of winter.
Pictures...
I expected the worst and was rather surprised. Anywhere from an inch to ten inches of new snow greeted me on the Weld Trail for my ascent of Gothics, Armstrong, and Sawteeth. Someone sadly barebooted it within the last couples days and left a few post holes, but I digress...
The ledges are really icy, and I mean hard ice. But in my snowshoes (with the exception of my descent of the Sawteeth Ledge, which I spiked) they were not a problem. Any glissading will be incredibly fast, so be careful that you are in control or not heading toward a tree. Slides are icy too, hidden underneath a little bit of fresh snow. I fell on one coming down from Pyramid and my arm is a bit banged up, but nothing dire.
So, last night, this morning, and quite frankly for the last week, I couldn't decide what to do. I knew the GR was a good choice given the possible conditions. I'm waiting on skiiable conditions for other trips. I've been putting the GR off out of fear, but realized that I couldn't hide from it forever. I wanted to get at least two if not three peaks today and really wanted to avoid the ladders from Armstrong to UWJ as well as the Armstrong trail itself from Beaver Meadow Falls. Stick with the devil you know, I say. I decided to take the Weld and if conditions permitted, traverse Gothics to Armstrong and then head back over for Sawteeth and exit via the Weld.
The conditions on the Weld were, in the end, pretty damn good. The steep sections from the Pyramid junction were fine and the descent to the col between Pyramid/Gothics was uneventful. The ledge heading up to the summit of Gothics was a bit of a scramble, but not terrible. For some strange reason, I am scared to death of Gothics. Maybe it's the size, the openness, the name, I'm not sure, but then again, I am scared of every mountain when I am alone. My borrowed motto: Feel the fear and do it anyway.
I made the decision to traverse to Armstrong and found myself on a snow spine, and not in the trees I remember from my trip to Gothics this summer. It is amazing how five feet of snow will change a mountain. Had it been a clear day anyone could have seen me up there. I left the Sawteeth junction at 10:45 and arrived at the Gothics/Armstrong col at noon. Another uneventful, though sometimes icy trip up Armstrong and back up Gothics and I decided to take a shot at Sawteeth, rather reluctant about the idea of having to go back in to the AMR for it on another day.
All told, it was a spectacular day, despite the lack of any real view. I simply enjoyed the hike and embraced the challenge of pushing myself. I guess people may not realize that I am truly scared every time I leave my car on my own. I try to have a healthy respect (albeit too healthy I think at times) for the mountains and consider it a priviledge when they allow me to complete my goals.
My goal is 24 peaks for this winter. As of today, I am at 15. I consider myself very lucky. Oh, I saw my shadow today, very briefly, on my way up Pyramid. You'll all be happy to know, we have six more weeks of winter.
Pictures...
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