November 20-21, 2004, Mt.Curtis-Gilbert,Goat Rocks
11/20/04
WA Cascades West Slopes South (Mt Rainier)
2322
1
On Saturday I hooked up with Sergio and his friends Jerry and Eric. Our adventure would take us to the Goat Rocks area beyond White Pass. We hiked in via Conrad Creek TH. It was one hell of a hump to get out there. 8 miles until camp but a good portion of it was flat so it wasn't that bad. We left the th just after 10 and they arrived at camp by 3. Me being my slow self rolled in an hour after. Once camp was set, bellies full, and fire going we just sat around and told stories about trips past. We weren't alone as we were soon greeted by Jack, his distant cousin Jose, and adopted nephew Yager. The sunset was amazing from this area. Once the sunset the thick clouds rolled in high from the south. We started having doubts but remained optimistic. The next day we woke to blue, sunny skies. Sergio and Eric decided to climb Mt. Gilbert while Jerry and I traversed over a bowl to an adjacent peak. Snow was variable with nice windblown pow to ice. Since we decided to leave by 1 we didn't have the time to kill and wait around for snow conditions to improve. So we skied/rode what we could, broke down camp, and got outta there. The hike out killed the bottoms of my feet. By the end I just walked thru creeks instead of navigating around them. Overall the Goat Rocks could have used a few more feet of snow. However, the terrain and views coupled by the clear weather made the whole experience worth while.
We were in the Goat Rocks in July, had the entire place to ourselves, and stupidly neglected to bring snow sliding implements. I think mid to late June would be a good compromise in terms of fairly easy access (the very good trail would be mostly melted out) and still-good snow. It looked like this:
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