Went on another hike yesterday, to Heliotrope Ridge. The hike takes you all the way to the edge of the Coleman Glacier, which leads right up to the summit of Baker. It was a cloudy morning and the time we spent at the glacier overlook was foggy and cloudy. The glacier is AMAZING - you are literally right on top of it. There were a bunch of guys practicing there skills in the crevasses; ice axe, crampons, ropes, the whole bit. It looked very unsettling and dangerous...being on the glacier, that is. It was also awe-inspiring; reminded me of Superman's home. However, we decided to backtrack 1/2 a mile and take a turn up the climbers route; this is the route that those who wish to summit Baker take.
The climbers route added another couple of miles, and another 1000' of elevation gain, but as you can see, it was worth it, as the clouds finally gave way to some sunshine. My two companions, Julie, and my sister-in-law Nicki, did great on this hike as they made it up almost all the way. The last little bit got really hairy so I left them below and climbed up to the 1st camp. From what I can tell, there are two camps you can make on your summit bid; this lower camp which is at the 6000' level, and a higher camp much higher up. There were a bunch of guys setting up tents to make there early morning summit bid. I have to confess, there was a big part of my heart that wanted to join them...that may be coming one day.
Before we made our way down, Julie thought it would be fun to shrink me to miniature size. Thankfully, she didn't leave me in that state.
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