Bagged this peak 9/14 via Ski Hut up and Backbone down.
Forest Service was installing new marker poles and yellow directional arrows painted on rocks when we were there; they were working in the small boulder area a little before the summit.
I found the Ski Hut trail easier to find than I expected and it to be less steep than I expected too. Even the top scree trail area we got through fine.
For Backbone, again it was better than expected – wider, shorter – though I gave it its due respect as I know its dark history and the fact a bad fall is often fatal. A sketchy corner a friend told me about seemed to have been widened – I didn’t even notice it until my hike buddy pointed it out.
We took the ski run down to the lodge but bailed onto the service road as the run just was rocky and annoying on the joints after a bit. Lodge restrooms open but no food/drink and lifts were closed. So that added 3 mi on a gravel road to our hike.
Fun, full day!
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