Scaur 3605', Foolkiller 3548', W Sleeper 3881' : April 1st
Neither Pigpen, Onestep or I could resist the temptation to visit the Foolkiller on April Fool's Day. We used snowshoes virtually the entire way - for traction on the steeps (and ice on Tripyramid - surprise, surprise) and for the still surprisingly deep snow off the beaten path.
It didn't take long after starting on the Pine Bend Brook Trail to heat up and need to strip down to nearly summer-weight clothing. I maintain that it's OK to wear shorts anytime after the equinox, but my cohikers thought the combination with winter plastic boots was strange. As usual the bushwhack over and back to Scaur was staightforward - is there an easier whack anywhere?
Back on the PBB Tr for a short while, we left it at about 3600' heading East over to Foolkiller (thanks to Neighbor Dave for suggesting this route). With bushwhacks one never knows what to expect, but today made up for some of our more trying adventures by having all three of the off-trail sections be open and readily navigable. The broad Foolkiller/Tripyramid col is park-like and really quite beautiful. The Foolkiller ridge was easily traversed to the jar on the eastern end. Snowshoe sliding down the steep western slope to the Sabbaday Brook Trail through the soft snow in the warm sun was a blast.
The ascent to the N Tripyramid/M Tripyramid col hadn't gotten any less vertical since the last time we were there! Great views from M and S Tripyramid - even Camel's Hump was visible on the western horizon. The southern slide was completely bare! - not surprising, really, but certainly a contrast to all the snow and ice we covered during the rest of the day.
We had trouble following the Kate Sleeper Trail, but the woods were wide open to the summit of West Sleeper. The whack down the NE ridge back to Sabbaday Brook was mildly thick in places, but again there were lots of opportunities for snowshoe glissading!! With the spring thaw in its early stages, all the crossings of Sabbaday Brook were uneventful - most still had intact snowbridges.
Another great day in the mountains!
Neither Pigpen, Onestep or I could resist the temptation to visit the Foolkiller on April Fool's Day. We used snowshoes virtually the entire way - for traction on the steeps (and ice on Tripyramid - surprise, surprise) and for the still surprisingly deep snow off the beaten path.
It didn't take long after starting on the Pine Bend Brook Trail to heat up and need to strip down to nearly summer-weight clothing. I maintain that it's OK to wear shorts anytime after the equinox, but my cohikers thought the combination with winter plastic boots was strange. As usual the bushwhack over and back to Scaur was staightforward - is there an easier whack anywhere?
Back on the PBB Tr for a short while, we left it at about 3600' heading East over to Foolkiller (thanks to Neighbor Dave for suggesting this route). With bushwhacks one never knows what to expect, but today made up for some of our more trying adventures by having all three of the off-trail sections be open and readily navigable. The broad Foolkiller/Tripyramid col is park-like and really quite beautiful. The Foolkiller ridge was easily traversed to the jar on the eastern end. Snowshoe sliding down the steep western slope to the Sabbaday Brook Trail through the soft snow in the warm sun was a blast.
The ascent to the N Tripyramid/M Tripyramid col hadn't gotten any less vertical since the last time we were there! Great views from M and S Tripyramid - even Camel's Hump was visible on the western horizon. The southern slide was completely bare! - not surprising, really, but certainly a contrast to all the snow and ice we covered during the rest of the day.
We had trouble following the Kate Sleeper Trail, but the woods were wide open to the summit of West Sleeper. The whack down the NE ridge back to Sabbaday Brook was mildly thick in places, but again there were lots of opportunities for snowshoe glissading!! With the spring thaw in its early stages, all the crossings of Sabbaday Brook were uneventful - most still had intact snowbridges.
Another great day in the mountains!
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