STRAWBERRY PEAK MOUNTAINEERS ROUTE
Posted: Thu Sep 22, 2022 12:08 pm
I hiked with a few members of my crazy Wednesday group to Strawberry Peak via the mountaineer's route. We met at Red Box, left a few cars there, and shuttled to Colby Canyon. Trailhead. The trail was in good shape. I have a friend who is currently doing maintenance work so it was looking very nice.
The last time I hiked this route was in 2016. I remembered the Poodle Dog bush was overwhelming along the ridge just before the start of the class 3 climb. Also, the ridge was mostly clear and easy to walk through. However, this time there was a large section along the ridge that was overgrown with thorny bushes. Not hard to navigate but a bit challenging to avoid and getting impaled by the yuccas. Ouch!
We took our first break at Josephine Saddle. Then we headed up the mountaineer's route. As I mentioned earlier the terrain was not quite the same as before. However, no more Poodle Dog except for a very tiny bush yay!!!!!
Ascending the class 3 rock scrambling was just as fun as I remembered. It was a clear day and the views were amazing! I took my time to soak in the views. I did manage to find one lonely purple flower hidden in between the rocks.
At the summit, we ate lunch and took the obligatory summit photos. Of course, someone brought Strawberries to share. I signed the register and noticed an old Eispiraten sticker which was cool.
We descended the trail going back to Red Box. The route was clear and not as slippery as I remembered it.
It was a perfect day.
Stats: 8 miles, 2300' gain
The last time I hiked this route was in 2016. I remembered the Poodle Dog bush was overwhelming along the ridge just before the start of the class 3 climb. Also, the ridge was mostly clear and easy to walk through. However, this time there was a large section along the ridge that was overgrown with thorny bushes. Not hard to navigate but a bit challenging to avoid and getting impaled by the yuccas. Ouch!
We took our first break at Josephine Saddle. Then we headed up the mountaineer's route. As I mentioned earlier the terrain was not quite the same as before. However, no more Poodle Dog except for a very tiny bush yay!!!!!
Ascending the class 3 rock scrambling was just as fun as I remembered. It was a clear day and the views were amazing! I took my time to soak in the views. I did manage to find one lonely purple flower hidden in between the rocks.
At the summit, we ate lunch and took the obligatory summit photos. Of course, someone brought Strawberries to share. I signed the register and noticed an old Eispiraten sticker which was cool.
We descended the trail going back to Red Box. The route was clear and not as slippery as I remembered it.
It was a perfect day.
Stats: 8 miles, 2300' gain