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Alpine Scramble - The Barrier

This was an unsuccessful but educational attempt of Barrier Peak, which was an alternate to Mt. Ruth due to an unfavorable weather forecast.

Placeholder Contact Profile Fritz Klein
May 25, 2019
  • Road suitable for all vehicles

  • Snow was continuous above about 5200', ranging from moderately soft to moderately hard.  On steep slopes at about 5850', the snow was hard enough that it wasn't always possible to get the ice axes into the snow enough for a good self belay.

This was supposed to be a trip up Mt. Ruth, but the forecast was for a rather wet, windy, foggy day, so we attempted Barrier Peak instead.  Hiking to Owyhigh Lakes and for some distance beyond was reasonably pleasant.  However, the snow got harder on the steeper slopes just as it was getting rainier and windier, so the best choice was to turn around.  The rain continued off and on for the rest of the day, but didn't seem to dampen our spirits too much as there was plenty of good conversation during the descent to the cars.