I was itching to climb in the snow, so headed up Baldy via Register ridge. Due to clothing and gear, this is the heaviest pack I've ever carried up Register and I could feel the difference
I put microspikes on fairly early. I saw what looked like snowshoe tracks which disappeared in the final, steep section. I started to lose traction (steep and icy) and stopped to put on crampons and take out my ice-axe. Is it just me or does snow make a slope without much vegetation look steeper?
I felt much more comfortable with crampons and realized I should have put them on sooner. I traversed along the side of Harwood rather than deal with the sloping snow-covered Devil's Backbone trail. The wind had blown the snow off saddle between Harwood and Baldy. This was a pain to cross in crampons but I didn't want to be taking them on and off. Thw wind was blowing a steady 30 mph, so I stayed to the right (north) as I headed up the ridge to the summit. The last 500 vertical really felt hard.
Once at the summit, I took two quick pictures with my iPhone from the main wind break. It was mostly filled with snow, which also covered what appeared to be a tent and tent poles
I considered digging the stuff out and packing it down, but the cold and windy conditions convinced me to head down and find a sheltered area for lunch.
The first person I saw on the descent was a happy hiker with his yellow lab coming up. I stopped at a nice spot with a good view about 500 vertical feet down. Said hi to folks who were coming up from the ski hut. Two guys coming up asked how much further -- I gave them a time estimate. One said the climb was killing him -- I told him I felt the same way for my last 500 vertical. Then I encountered Martin and Edith coming up -- we've run into each other many times on Baldy. They were also on Baldy when Shin Nimura celebrated his 300th ascent. Last but not least, I met and hugged Larry Wong -- he was celebrating the end of the world
by climbing Baldy.
I had fun practicing plunge stepping down through the forest before reaching the rock garden at the base of the bowl. Took off the crampons and switched back to microspikes. It was amazing how hot it felt sitting in the direct sunlight at noon. The bowl itself looked like it could use another foot of snow (at least) for a proper climb, although I ran into a fellow who had ascended that way. Kept the micros on almost all the way to the road.
The scariest part of the day was trying to find a parking place at PF Changs in Victoria Gardens. First, it took 15 minutes just to get from the freeway exit to Foothill avenue. Then as I'm stuck between cars in the parking lot, a person starting backing up directly into my drivers side door
I honked, they kept backing up, I kept honking. They finally stopped -- whew. The wonderful Gung Pao chicken and Red Hook IPA were definately worth the trip -- thanks to the manager Jeff and his great staff. After that, getting home was a piece of cake.
Merry Christmas,
Ellen
