MissQ

another

Here are a couple more...

Here is a pic of Granite from yesterday...

Kurt, Yea that sounds like where I stopped. I looked up the route to the lookout and it looked snowy, steep, and rocky. I kind of wish we hadn't even talked to that guy b/c I probably would've done it if I didn't know about the dangers....ignorance is bliss ya know? As far as Muir goes, I know the chances of the weather being so bad that we need to stop probably aren't that great in mid-June but I'm worried that b/c my husband has this stuck in his head that he is doing it no matter what, if something does happen he'll see it as more of an exciting challenge to reach his goal then a danger and I'll be the worry wart having an anxiety attack on the side of the mtn. Maybe I can just take some downers before the hike?

"How much snow was up on granite mountain? Where did you stop? Granite Mountain has a notorious avalanche chute that you want to avoid under certain conditions, so that may have been a wise move on your part. There is an alternate route that people taken in the winter. " We met a guy on the way up that was training for Rainier, he told us that this was the most dangerous he had seen Granite b/c of how the snow was melting and exposing holes or something. He also mentioned the avalanche risk and that the winter trail was the one that was open but that once we got to the main snow field there was even another route we could take that was less dangerous. I stopped probably about 90% of the way up. I went through several small patches of snow but what looked like the last push up to the lookout was completly covered, that is where I stopped...and I was thiking if it was a safe place to stop or not but people in other groups ended up dropping off at the same point I was at.

Thanks for all of the advice everyone. After some thinking and a hike to Granite Mountain this weekend I think I am going to pass on this trip to Muir. My husband and his brother are going to go at it by themselves. My husband is super determined to make it to Muir (it will be his 30th bday) and I don't want to be stuck in a situation where I don't feel comfortable b/c he doesn't think it is unsafe. Plus, I don't want to be the one who makes us all turn back if I could convince them to do so. When we did Granite mtn yesterday I had to stop once we got to the snow b/c I was just too uneasy. While I am disappointed in myself that it is taking me so long to feel more comfortable in these situations I don't think this particular trip to Muir is the time to push past my comfort zone. It really bothers me b/c I know I can physically do it and I'm usually up for challenges but it doesn't feel right Anyways, thanks again for all of the advice...I'm thinking I should take some sort of moutaineering course to be more confident while climbing/hiking.

I was wondering if anyone would be up for that but thought 'what experienced climber wants to spend a day hangin out w/ a bunch of kooks trying to get to Muir' but I never thought of beer as bargaining power! I will def put a post up when the date gets closer and mention pints of Guinness included

Hey, one thing at a time there...

woo hoo! I knew something!

What are blue bags? For poop?

Funny that you mention burgers and beer b/c that is what the brother says he's going to eat on the way up: "It's gonna be cheeseburgers and beer dude"

Didn't think there would be a sign like 'Danger, you're on a glacier' but never know. Although I don't think they have experience specifically for navigating white out conditions, we all have training at navigating by compass in low visibility conditions from Scuba diving experience.

Kurt, You're correct in your assumptions...we are tenting it (I guess the reservations were a waste?) and I am new to snow...be as condescending as you see fit Are there signs (natural or man-made) to warn you if you're heading too far in the wrong direction?

Blake...I thought this would be a good climb to move to the next level as far as experience goes? You have to push beyond your comfort zone at some point in order to progress. I guess I shouldn't say we aren't 'experienced hikers' we have been hiking a lot and training for this climb, but it will be the biggest hike for us to date. We have some experience hiking in snow but not much, we do plan on doing more before this trip.

I tend to get a little over anxious so no surprise that I'm worried about the climb. I'm always the one saying 'let's play it safe and turn around' and my husband tends to be the 'no, let's go for it' type so sometimes we don't see eye to eye when a situation arises. When I'm starting to feel uncomfortable in a situation my husband thinks it's just getting exciting. Anyways, SOBO, I never thought about putting other people out by having the bro turn around early, again please excuse my inexperience. I guess we'll have to reevaluate our strategy to get him to train more. Until now it's been 'We're going up w/ or w/out you!' now we'll have to say 'If we have to come down b/c you did't train we're going to kick your ass!' So, this is definitely something that is do-able for people at our level...not like we need a guide or anything? And if we run into bad weather we can stay put and wait for weather to pass? Or just camp where we are? I mean, obviously if the weather forecast is calling for some humongous storm we'll call it off but otherwise we should be able to handle some bad weather as long as we use common sense and don't push our luck just to be able to make it to our destination?