Early Winter Scramble - Evergreen Mountain Lookout

Started at 7:30 a.m. from FS6530 (Rapid River). The trailhead was a bit hard to find - there were no markers, but following the Gaia map made it straightforward enough. The first hour followed an old forest road: wet, muddy, and littered with leaf-covered puddles and small streams that made footing tricky.

The first (and only) major stream crossing at about 2,200 ft was a bit challenging - gaiters and waterproof shoes were definitely worth it. Otherwise, the trail up to the ridge was beautiful but fairly uneventful.

I reached the southwest ridge proper around 8:30 a.m. The initial section through the forest up to the road intersection (~3,600 ft) was pleasant and easy to follow, with minimal bushwhacking. After crossing the road, though, the real bushwhacking began - thick enough that I regretted not just staying on the road. I reached the upper trailhead around 9:40 a.m., where the first hints of snow appeared.

A couple of hundred vertical feet higher, the snow started in earnest. It was firm and easy to travel, with an existing bootpack. I didn't use snowshoes or microspikes.

Around 5,200 ft, on the open ridge, the wind picked up sharply, blowing snow across the slope, obscuring the previous track and creating wind-loaded patches. I decided to go straight up the ridge - a short section with occasional knee-deep postholing.

The lookout itself was extremely windy. I tried to take shelter on the north side, but the chill was biting, so I didn’t linger as long as I'd hoped.

On the descent, I followed the road back down to around 3,600 ft, then rejoined my earlier tracks and made quick return to the trailhead.