Braving the Devil’s Backbone

Tried climbing Mount Baldy in February of 2013, but had to turn back at the Devil’s Backbone as a storm moved in.  Moved to Northern California shortly after and that was that, until this February when I was able to come home to visit and take another shot at Baldy!

I started at Manker Flats and made my way up to the ski area.  By then I was hiking in snow and had to wear spikes.  By the time I got to the Backbone I had to switch to crampons, along with my helmet and axe and continued on my way.  I met up with two other solo hikers who were stuck a little ahead of me and we helped each other through that patch.  We decided to finish together, which proved to be a good thing.  By the time we reached the saddle, winds were so strong we could barely stand!  We eventually made it to the summit, braved the winds for some photos and then made our way down the Bowl, where conditions were much better!