TR: 4/29/2017 Castle Peak & Peter Grubb Hut
Posted: Sun Apr 30, 2017 2:02 pm
Hi All,
Yesterday I enjoyed a quick snowshoe day-hike up Castle Peak at Donner Summit, and I also visited the Peter Grubb Hut. I posted photos down below.
Overall, it was a nearly perfect day for the summit. There was no wind, the weather was warm, and the sky was so clear I could see Mount Lassen. There remains A LOT of snow. The Peter Grubb Hut is buried under a 25+ foot drift (see photos below).
Snow Conditions:
The snow quality was very mixed. In the morning, the snow was consolidated and firm; although I wore snowshoes, I could easily have worn running shoes and microspikes on the hard-packed approach through the trees. Later in the day, I encountered steep icy patches while ascending Castle Peak's western ridge. I'm glad I had aggressive traction on my snowshoes (MSR Lightning Ascents). With the televator bar up, the ascent was a breeze -- it felt like climbing stairs. During my descent, a couple hours later, the top layer of ice had melted and created some safety problems. Although my snowshoes gained traction in the top one-inch of snow, the top layer was prone to sliding over an icy base. I fell a couple times and fortunately self-arrested. I did not feel entirely stable or safe during the descent, and I wish I brought my 12-point crampons for this section.
I arrived at Donner Sno-Park at 9:30 am, reached Castle Peak summit at noon, and I returned to the Donner Sno-Park at 3:30pm.
I posted a few photos below. You can view all my photos on Flickr here: https://www.flickr.com/gp/victorhansonsmith/9T720D
Yesterday I enjoyed a quick snowshoe day-hike up Castle Peak at Donner Summit, and I also visited the Peter Grubb Hut. I posted photos down below.
Overall, it was a nearly perfect day for the summit. There was no wind, the weather was warm, and the sky was so clear I could see Mount Lassen. There remains A LOT of snow. The Peter Grubb Hut is buried under a 25+ foot drift (see photos below).
Snow Conditions:
The snow quality was very mixed. In the morning, the snow was consolidated and firm; although I wore snowshoes, I could easily have worn running shoes and microspikes on the hard-packed approach through the trees. Later in the day, I encountered steep icy patches while ascending Castle Peak's western ridge. I'm glad I had aggressive traction on my snowshoes (MSR Lightning Ascents). With the televator bar up, the ascent was a breeze -- it felt like climbing stairs. During my descent, a couple hours later, the top layer of ice had melted and created some safety problems. Although my snowshoes gained traction in the top one-inch of snow, the top layer was prone to sliding over an icy base. I fell a couple times and fortunately self-arrested. I did not feel entirely stable or safe during the descent, and I wish I brought my 12-point crampons for this section.
I arrived at Donner Sno-Park at 9:30 am, reached Castle Peak summit at noon, and I returned to the Donner Sno-Park at 3:30pm.
I posted a few photos below. You can view all my photos on Flickr here: https://www.flickr.com/gp/victorhansonsmith/9T720D