Howdy All
My last Skyline was on December 19 with Pyrodude, Tracy and Marilyn. The snow was manageable with microspikes and poles. It also helped to know the route. Pyrodude led and Tracy swept -- Marilyn and I were in the middle. I felt like a baby duck following its mother It took an hour longer than my last Skyline due to the snow. We saw a backpack laying on the traverse but no evidence of a fall. As we walked up the ramp, a State Park Ranger explained there was a rescue of several people. State Park rangers hiked down to the Skyliners, warmed them up, then hiked them to the tram. This was the last pack left on the route.
The Craigmesiter texted me yesterday asking if I was on Skyline. I responded "Hell no!" Learned this morning that a group of hikers on Skyline were rescued by Riverside Mountain Rescue Unit. Ten RMRU team members hiked down, geared them up and hiked them out. Apparently, one hiker in shorts and tennis shoes slid off the route in an icy section. That individual is still missing
I have climbed Skyline in winter conditions with crampons, ice-axe and helmet. I have no desire to do that again. The traverse was an icy slope.
Please be careful friends.
From the heart,
Ellen