Headed up there on Wednesday from Top Spur for an overnighter. Despite being midweek, there were three other groups, probably like us looking for a clear day this July. There were still clouds hanging around the mountain early in the hike so not much of a view from Bald Butte. It didn't really clear around the summit till late afternoon. There were zillions of little flies low on the hike, just a few bites from them, but bugless at McNeil Point, even in the rare moments when the wind died down. We chose our campsite slightly to the west of the ridge the shelter is on to get a little more shelter from the wind. Everybody else camped on that ridge.
There was two brief pieces of snow to walk over and on the way home in the morning, one was exposed and icy and we decided to hike up and over it. It was less than ten feet wide but at 8am it was hard and icy and you would have gone a very long way if you had slipped.
Flowers were quite nice - glacier lilies and paintbrush especially, and there were only a few logs on the trail.
McNeil Point
- akehoe1800
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Re: McNeil Point
Wow! Sure looks WAY nicer than when I was up there that Monday. Had to fly back to Florida on Tuesday and it was my only chance for decent weather for a real hike while I was visiting home. Started in the rain at 8am and found my way into the clouds. Still got a small peek at the mountain and found some brief patches of sunshine while I was up there. It cleared up later in the day, but I had a date with Trillium lake and a kayak so I rushed (ran) back down the trail . The flowers up there were beautiful!
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Re: McNeil Point
Do you know if the two tarns are melted out up by the PCT (below McNeil Point)?
Re: McNeil Point
Yes, and one is mostly dried up. See akehoe's "flowers around the lake" photo above.fettster wrote:Do you know if the two tarns are melted out up by the PCT (below McNeil Point)?
- adamschneider
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Re: McNeil Point
Three weeks ago, there was no snow anywhere on the Timberline Trail in that area, and one small patch of snow near the lower tarn, which was almost dried up.fettster wrote:Do you know if the two tarns are melted out up by the PCT (below McNeil Point)?