I loved having Tuesdays off last term. I had most trails all to myself. Heading out from Mount Baldy Trailhead around 0630 there were 2 other groups headed up. I made it up Mount Baldy Road uneventfully and played in the snow around Top of the Notch restaurant for a bit before continuing up Devils Backbone. Snow was sparse, it was only concentrated in the shade. At the saddle between Baldy and Harwood I ran into a couple of EMT's having a beer. It was their 1st time hiking Mount Baldy so we continued up as a group. After the switchbacks the trail disappeared under snow and ice. I had forgotten my Crampons after specifically buying them for this hike and nobody else was equipped for snow. This made for a slow ascent past the snow to the summit. Once we got to the summit, it was time to celebrate! There was plenty of snow in the rocky wind barriers so we turned one of them into our “cooler.” We had a couple beers and took a nap before we began our decent towards Baldy Bowl. Going downhill towards the Ski Hut we encountered a lot of ice since most of the trail was in the shadow of the mountain. After the Ski Hut the trail was free and clear of snow all the way back down to the main road.

Jake, Jacob, Kate, hope you're out there having a good one!