The Mt Persis summer scramble is six miles and 2,500 ft, but with winter (and snow), the road is not plowed all the way to the trail head adding approximately two miles each way, and 1,500 ft of additional elevation gain, hence we’re looking at 10 miles and 4,000 ft of elevation gain. Yeehaa! As such this trip will provide plenty of cardio and thigh burn, but with potential for excellent views of Index and the surrounds. Because the days are still plenty short, we should plan on an early ... More

The Mt Persis summer scramble is six miles and 2,500 ft, but with winter (and snow), the road is not plowed all the way to the trail head adding approximately two miles each way, and 1,500 ft of additional elevation gain, hence we’re looking at 10 miles and 4,000 ft of elevation gain. Yeehaa! As such this trip will provide plenty of cardio and thigh burn, but with potential for excellent views of Index and the surrounds. Because the days are still plenty short, we should plan on an early start, arriving at the end of the plowed section of the road by 6:45AM with a plan to be walking shortly after 7am. Google maps indicates about 57 miles and 1 hr 20 min drive time from the Green Lake 65th P&R so those interested in carpooling should plan on meeting at 5:15AM. Also, if there are other carpool meeting places that make more sense than the 65th P&R please email this group with suggestions on carpool meeting place alternatives. For those unfamiliar with the TH, the turn off for NF-6200 on the right-hand side Hwy 2 is 9.4 miles beyond the traffic circle between Sultan and Start Up. According the WTA website, from there drive about 3.5 miles and turn left onto FR 6220. After another mile, take the next left (lat 47.7929, long -121.6443, elevation 2390 ft.) uphill and follow the road as it switchbacks to the north and south to a cleared area about 3/4 mile from the last turnoff. Take the left road uphill over the crest (2910 ft.) to the parking turnout (another 3/8 mile). The unmarked trail head is 30-50 feet beyond the parking area on the right side of the road where dirt eroded from the trail cascades down to the road. (Approximate lat long is 47.797395, -121638944, elevation 2870 ft.). Given the conditions, please bring: • ice axe • snow shoes (and it wouldn’t hurt to have traction devices like micro-spikes or yak tracks if others before us have created a beaten down & slippery track ) • helmet • one shovel per four people • 10 essentials for winter travel (plenty of layers). • There’s a chance we’ll be walking out on the road in near darkness, so make certain you have a functioning headlamp with fresh batteries and spares. Group gear we’ll distribute at the TH includes: • Rope • Stove • Shovels • Sleeping bag, bivvy, and insulation layer (I’ll carry these) We will start where the snow plowing ends at approximately 1,400 ft elevation or so on the Gold Bar USGS quad. The plan is to ascend the road to the actual trail head at approximately 2,870 ft elevation. From there we’ll ascend up through snow fields on the Index USGS quat to trees and then will head north and east to the ridge. As we continue our ascent we’ll keep well off the ridge to avoid cornices and will traverse south passing below the summit. Finally, we’ll swing around and ascend summit from south to north.

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