
| Were we successful? Well, we didn't climb on top of the summit boulder--too difficult for me, anyway. But, that wasn't the goal. We hiked the class 1 trail to the summit, then continued along the animal trails and across the rock slabs to descend on the western slope to Apple and Pear. From there we scrambled a steep Class 3 route along a small, flowing stream just to the south of those big rocks. Then we hiked along Charon's Garden Trail, through Valley of Boulders, and back to the Jeep. Great day, great weather. Because of Easter and Holy City nearby, the refuge was packed. But our early start and more challenging route meant that we saw very few at the beginning, and none once we struck out off the main trails. We didn't realize how packed it was until we returned to the parking lot (both lots were full!). |