Hi everyone,
I'm new to this sport and I'm already hooked! I started on the ski hut trail at 5:40AM and made it the to the ski hut some time around 7:30AM. I met two other climbers that were going to try the bowl so I decided to go that route as well. Being my first time up the bowl I wasn't quite sure what to expect. I took a route following the left side of the first chute. There were a lot of softball sized rocks falling around me which was 'exciting'. When I reached the base of the big boulder I was amazed at how steep the bowl was. I looked back down and noticed how far it was. At this point I realized that the only way down would be to go all the way up so I snapped out of it and got my head back on track and made it to the top of the bowl. After that I made it to the summit which was insanely cold and windy. I made my way back by following the baldy bowl trail which had a lot of traffic. As soon as I made it past the ski hut I noticed clouds forming what seemed like 50' over my head which was really cool. By the time I got back to the parking lot the whole mountain was covered in clouds.
Overall it was an awesome day! Being my first time out mountaineering I am pretty excited with all the new snow coming next week. Can't wait and hope to see you guys out there!
Mt. Baldy summit via Baldy Bowl
Yeap - another one gets hooked. It's easy going up and you're right, when you stop and take a look down, you realize how much elevation you've gained.
Good luck and make sure you don't damamge your wallet too much buying more gear. Ah hell - you only live once, BUY! BUY! BUY!
Good luck and make sure you don't damamge your wallet too much buying more gear. Ah hell - you only live once, BUY! BUY! BUY!