| Ref: Golden
Hikes |
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Fab puts new booties
on the hounds. |
| Scramble: RT
5.5; 3.25 up. The weather seemed unstable
everywhere, we decided to do something close to home; Flattop came to
mind. We would have to use our '82 Ford pickup since our "better
truck" is inoperable. Despite the age and appearance, she's in good
shape and got us to the cabin. We parked there and walked the
last
200 meters
to the trailhead. The trail is easy to follow, especially at this time
of the year when the shrubs are denuded. Further, the snow concealed it
but we just followed the drainage and gained the south-west
ridge near the back of the draw. From there, we could see the summit
cairn. Aware of the drop on
the east side of the summit ridge, we put the dogs on leash before
continuing. It was windy at the top; the view was restricted
but still nice with the beautiful layers of clouds. We moved rocks to
make a flat area for the dogs to coil on; Flattop Mountain is
not flat! After emptying our packs and sheltering the dogs with our
jackets, all we had left was our orange garbage bags. We put them on
and recalled how last year, on a scramble up Mount Crook (Oct 24th),
we
also had to
wear the orange bags. We joked about the Halloween dress-up...
The top was not the best place for a stay, after 15-20 minutes,
we started down. We soon released the hounds and they followed the
footprints in the snow, ahead of us, still full of energy. |
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The start of the
trail. |
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Going across the
avalanche path, glad there are no leaves. |
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The trail is obvious
in the forest. |
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We followed a path
along the creek. |
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Further up the
drainage, 10-15 cm of snow. |
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Lincoln is perched
ahead, waiting. |
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Looking back. |
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Almost on the ridge,
the summit is visible. |
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Nice broad ridge
behind Fab. |
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South-western view. |
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Walking along the
ascent ridge. |
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The top is left of
center, now we leash-up the dogs. |
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The view is
restricted but beautiful nonetheless. |
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Northern view beyond
Flattop's summit ridge. |
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A quick pause next
to the cairn. |
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The doggies are
bundled up but we can't linger. |
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The broad ridge and
ponds would be nice to explore in the summer. |
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Heading back. |
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Valley clouds are
lifting. |
| Back
to home page |
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