Circle of Solitude: x-country/layover diversions
Posted: Thu Jun 26, 2014 10:35 pm
Headed out next week to do the Circle of Solitude, clockwise: Cedar Grove - Forrester - Colby - Avalanche - Cedar Grove.
My hiking partner and I would normally modify the route by choosing some x-country routes over trail. We would have taken Milestone Pass, and possibly Harrison Pass as well. Harrison Pass sounds like it would be at the upper end of our comfort zone. (We are Level 4 hikers comfortable to easy Class 3.)
But on this trip we'll have a third, who is Level 2 and has only a little bit of (mostly Class 1) x-country exposure. And this person is pretty afraid of heights. So Milestone & Harrison are definitely off the table. As well, we won't have microspikes or ice axes with us.
We will, however, have one, maybe two layover days to park ourselves somewhere on the route, and go exploring.
Where would you go? We are after high alpine scenery (no fishing or anything). My initial thought is a layover day exploring Milestone Creek. Or, one of the other basins immediately west/southwest of Lake South America.
Some other ideas, in order of when we'd encounter them -
* East & Reflection Lakes
* Center Basin
* A second day (besides Milestone) exploring another of the basins above L. South America
* Picket Creek/Lake
* The high lake basins draining into Colby Lake
* The Whaleback
* Josephine Lakes
* Sphinx Lakes
I'm quite sure some of those are unrealistically far to go on a day-hike - our layovers on this particular trip might tend away from big miles or endless bushwacks - and/or would be above the comfort zone of our newbie.
Thanks,
Elizabeth
My hiking partner and I would normally modify the route by choosing some x-country routes over trail. We would have taken Milestone Pass, and possibly Harrison Pass as well. Harrison Pass sounds like it would be at the upper end of our comfort zone. (We are Level 4 hikers comfortable to easy Class 3.)
But on this trip we'll have a third, who is Level 2 and has only a little bit of (mostly Class 1) x-country exposure. And this person is pretty afraid of heights. So Milestone & Harrison are definitely off the table. As well, we won't have microspikes or ice axes with us.
We will, however, have one, maybe two layover days to park ourselves somewhere on the route, and go exploring.
Where would you go? We are after high alpine scenery (no fishing or anything). My initial thought is a layover day exploring Milestone Creek. Or, one of the other basins immediately west/southwest of Lake South America.
Some other ideas, in order of when we'd encounter them -
* East & Reflection Lakes
* Center Basin
* A second day (besides Milestone) exploring another of the basins above L. South America
* Picket Creek/Lake
* The high lake basins draining into Colby Lake
* The Whaleback
* Josephine Lakes
* Sphinx Lakes
I'm quite sure some of those are unrealistically far to go on a day-hike - our layovers on this particular trip might tend away from big miles or endless bushwacks - and/or would be above the comfort zone of our newbie.
Thanks,
Elizabeth