Intermediate Snowshoe - Buck Mountain (Winthrop)

Great day exploring new terrain, where we saw no one after leaving the TH parking area. We walked the road back a piece to encounter 1st Creek Road, then headed up. We elected to take the lower route following eastern side of the creek, as was less mileage. After the road ended around 3600’, we worked up to the ridge west of 3929’. From there, we paralleled a fence briefly, before then crossing a fence to get to the main north ridge. Following up the final ridge, we flushed a group of rough grouse. From the summit, views were somewhat obscured by clouds, but we were able to spy the Big Craggies. 

From the top, we considered different descent routes, but given the amount of trail breaking and shorter day length, we returned the way we came. Of course, the road walk portion seemed so much longer than on the way up! Next time, I make a mental note to aim for an “over the top” route for a loop trip.