Trip: Mount Baring - Standard Trip Date: 12/05/2020 Trip Report:
With ski conditions a bit less than ideal this weekend, @cfire and @Kit decided to go Smooting, naturally. I had climbed Baring a couple times before, but none more recently than about 18 years ago so it was time to head back! In the intervening years the climber's path has become a highway, making for easy (albeit steep) travel below the snowline. Once we got to the snow we traded trailbreaking duties within our party and a couple other guys on the mountain that day. The shared effort made for a quick ascent, only about 3.5 hours from the cars. Perfect for the short days of late fall!
It was a bit breezy up around the summit but we found a sheltered nook to take our well earned lunch. Kit shared some home baked cookies, I shared a bit of chocolate, and @cfire helped us wash it all down with some Maker's. Quite Civilized! The descent down the steep forest, however, felt somewhat barbaric on our middle aged knees (Team combined age of nearly 150 ). No matter, we had smoked salmon and beer at the car to gentrify our exit from the wilderness.
Good people watching at the Barclay lake Trailhead, after our ~7 hour romp in the alpine!
You know how much fun this is!
Index and Persis
Steep snow out of the notch
Topping out
The south Peak of Baring
Index and the Olympics
The horn of Kaleetan marks the Snoqualmie pass peaks
Heading back to the notch
Gunn
More fun! Kit's boots were making his knees feel good in comparison.
Late afternoon light on Baring
Gear Notes:
Sigh....snowshoes. Ski poles were handy as was an ice axe for the final bit out of notch (though you could get by probably without it) Approach Notes:
Lots of gpx tracks on the interweb. Go a bit behind the outhouse at the Barclay lake TH and look for start of climber's path in a small stream gully.