Met my new hiking friends Erica, Glen, Ania and Randy at the Ranger station. After they left Glen's truck at Manker, we headed up Baldy via Bear Canyon. Ania had climbed Skyline with Grieg Kiline on Saturday, though unlike me, she showed no evidence of being tired. Randy wore his new double-plastic boots as a test run for Orizaba next month.
It was a beautiful day. Once we passed the Narrows, we donned microspikes due to ice. The last system was an ice-storm -- nearly everything up high was covered in ice -- including the dirt trail, shrubs and rocks. We had lunch on West Baldy, which afforded more solitude and better protection from the wind. Erica shared her amazing honey mustard pretzels -- we're all addicted now.
After tagging Baldy, we headed down to the saddle and up Harwood. We started down the Devil's Backbone and dodged icy missles dropping out of pine trees. After missing Register Ridge (my fault), we back-tracked and found it. It was very nice to be off the icy Devil's Backbone and on the south facing (less icy) slope.
Right about the time my quads were ready to blow, we intersected the Ski Hut trail. The dirt road felt flat in comparison to Register Ridge. The gang opted to let me choose a dinner spot. None had ever been to the original Vince's spaghetti -- one of my favorites. After great food and fellowship, we headed home.
Thanks to my friends for a perfect day. A great weekend of hiking makes it much easier to sit in front of a computer and write
Miles of smiles,
Ellen