A west view from the Northeast Summit
I used a new access route further east than the others and found
it to be a pretty good way to get to the eastern parts of the
ridge. I parked at the Sibbald Pond PRA and started up the ridge at
R2 (see map) or you could park on the edge of Hwy 68 beside R2. I
did find a trail that had been cleared (mostly) of deadfall that
took me to R3, a rain gauge of all things, after that I just
meandered up avoiding the worst of the deadfall. I highly recommend
that you get my track log if you want to find the lower trail
(e-mail me).
Once I got to the saddle on the east side of the NE Summit I
encountered extremely deep snow which combined with the steep grade
to sorely test me. I think it took 30 minutes to travel that last
400 meters. However, once I got to the summit the views were
outstanding so I guess it was worth it (its' always worth it)! I
initially planned to continue along the ridge to get Sleepy
hollow’s new cache on the North Summit, but the required
elevation loss and gain as well as the deep snow would have used up
the last of my energy. So, after hiding my cache in a pine tree I
retraced my steps to the car. Brutus also thought this was a good
idea! The round trip distance was about 7.6 kms with an elevation
gain of 530 meters and it took me 4 hours 15 mins.
There is a FTF reward as well as packages of BVPete's special
note cards (Great Capping Adventures) for the next four
visitors.
THE JOURNEY TO THIS CACHE IS A SERIOUS UNDERTAKING,
REQUIRING SIGNIFICANT SECTIONS OF STEEP OFF TRAIL HIKING AND ROUTE
FINDING. PLEASE ENSURE YOU ARE PROPERLY EQUIPPED