Gray Peak

February 20, 2016

Deb, Bill, Kevin, and I spent a wild night in a lean-to at the Heart Lake campground. The wind was howling and fresh snow blew in through the open door, meaning we awoke partially buried in our sleeping bags. After breakfast we set out our separate ways; Deb and I for the long trek to Gray, while Bill and Kevin were heading in to climb the Trap Dike. We hiked quickly along to Marcy Dam over about two inches of fresh snow on top of bare ground and ice, so we used microspikes for this stretch. The snow continued to fall as we hiked and was beginning to accumulate, so we stopped at a convenient lean-to and changed into our snowshoes. We followed tracks of one other person up to Lake Arnold and then started breaking fresh trail towards the Feldspar swamp. A couple from Quebec came up from the rear and since they were also heading to Gray, we shared the trail breaking duties. Feldspar swamp was a non-event in frozen winter conditions, and we quickly gained the trail up towards Lake Tear. The french couple began to slow down here, so Deb and I passed and took over the trail breaking for the rest of the route. As we climbed Gray, the snow got deeper and occasionaly we had to cut through some drifts. There was a good crusty layer at the bottom, so you could always dig a bit with the snowshoes until you found some traction, and the crampons remained in our packs. It was so foggy up on top that we walked right over the summit and only noticed that we had come too far thanks to a big sign indicating the path along the ridge to Marcy is closed. We looked back and spied the Gray summit sign and scampered back for a photo. The howling wind, spitting snow, and complete whiteout conditions evaporated any lingering thoughts of extending the hike to Skylight. Best to save that peak for a nice day. We started our descent and shortly along the trail passed the french couple and another pair on their way up. We took a quick lunch at Lake Tear of the Clouds and then decided that since we did not get any views on top of the mountain, we should at least take in some views from below, so we descended along the Opalescent river all the way down to Lake Colden and back out via the fantastic Avalanche pass route. As we were crossing Lake Colden we met a group of four younger folk who asked us if the ice was safe. I stated that I had no idea, but it was supporting us in our snowshoes, and that they should seriously consider not crossing potentially thin ice on bare boots. We continued and they made the risk/reward decision to follow, and fortunately the ice was solid enough for everyone. In avalanche pass we met a friendly young ranger on skis and she thanked us for wearing snowshoes. I warned her that she would not be pleased about the next group coming, and she sped off to give them hell. It started to rain and the snow began to get mushy as we descended. As we neared Marcy dam, the snow became very thin and slushy, so we paused at a lean-to to change into spikes while the group of four showed up. They said they had received a good scolding from the ranger, but admitted that they deserved it. We walked along for a bit and found the spikes to be a hinderance as they were balling up severely on the slushy trail so we switched to bare boots for the rest of the day. We passed a scout troop scratching along in snowshoes on the muddy final stretch of trail (must have met the ranger), all snow having melted from what was there in the morning. We happily arrived back to our lean-to at Heart Lake and changed into dry clothes and celebrated the completion of our 10 hour hike with a beer. Kevin and Bill showed up thirty minutes later after a successful climb of the Trap Dike, and we all went into Lake Placid for supper at the pub.

Fresh snow to play in.

Breaking trail in the easy snow.

Lake Arnold.

The crux of Feldspar swamp today.

Lake Tear (in the clouds).

Drifted snow on the Gray herd path.

Summit!

Heading through Avalanche Pass.

Muddy trail of the Van Ho in the rain.

[Home] [Main]