poison ivy
Well-known member
With last week’s attempt at the Tripyramids not quite as successful as I hoped, I knew another trip would be in order this weekend. HikerBob agreed to accompany me as long as he could pick the trail -- and his route up Livermore and Scaur Ridge conveniently lacked any of the brook crossings that troubled us last time. Gaiagirl was not scared off by our previous misadventure and also decided to join us, as the Tripyramids are among her favorite peaks.
When I arrived at the trailhead, HikerBob was already there and in a very sound sleep… I had to tap on his car windows a few times before he woke up. He had told me several times that he was not going to do the trip if it were raining (as forecast) or if the Livermore Road trail was not ski-able. I looked at the sheet of ice at the beginning of Livermore Road and thought it was very likely that I would be heading out Bob-less. However, HikerBob said that he thought we could ski it -- thankfully he did not walk very far in, where ski conditions got worse before making his decision. Gaiagirl arrived just after this and we geared up and got on the trail by 8 a.m.
All three of us decided to ski… HikerBob & I also brought our sleds. My new sled, named Friday, was a vast improvement over my last one thanks mainly to HikerBob’s custom-made poles and Bob Hayes’ suggestion strapping gear in. Skiing the road was certainly interesting -- lots of ice to contend mixed with bare spots and small pine needle clumps that would put a stop to your glide pretty quickly. I had a blast skiing down the first little hill and turned to watch Bob & Gaiagirl head down. HikerBob looked absolutely terrified as he tried to snowplow on the ice -- with some success. Gaiagirl took a spill and decided to abandon the skis -- she is such a fast hiker that she was able to keep pace with us pretty well. HikerBob tried skiing for a while longer then switched over to bareboots.
Once we passed the bridge for the cross-country ski area, the conditions changed to sandy snow. I actually preferred skiing on the ice -- at least I could get some glide in. But I’m nothing if not stubborn and managed to ski all the way to the Scaur Ridge Trail. There, we changed into our boots and got ready for the five-miles of hiking we had planned. HikerBob was feeling very tired and was overheating so he decided to only hike North Tripyramid. He told us to go on ahead and meet back up with him on the way down.
It was unbelievably warm -- in the 40’s I’d say… and the wind that was blowing on us was actually warm too. We were constantly shedding clothes and trying to cool off but we were definitely glad the rain forecast for the day had given way to blue skies. There were plenty of bare patches along the lower portion of Scaur Ridge, making me regret the decision to wear my plastic boots. Fortunately, once we got to the little brook crossing the snow cover increased and it at least looked a little more like winter even though it didn’t feel like it weather-wise.
Gaiagirl and I arrived at the Pine Bend Brook Trail at 11:20 and wrote the time in the snow for HikerBob before continuing on toward North Tripyramid’s summit. Soon, a trio of hikers passed us and noted that Bob was still on his way up and had given us strict instructions not to wait for him on the 4,180 ft. North Tripyramid summit. We cruised right along until reaching the final steep pitches, where I fell a bit behind as always. Eventually, I made it up to the familiar summit rock and we celebrated with lunch and pictures before heading on.
There is a pretty steep col between North and Middle Tripyramids -- as we descended I realized it was going to be a tough climb back up for me. The unbelievably warm temperatures (and probably a touch of dehydration) had left me with a bit of a headache but I figured I would muddle through the remaining half-mile to our second peak. As we arrived at the summit of 4,140 ft. Middle Tripyramid, the wind picked up, blowing in the gray clouds and rain. We quickly took pictures and I celebrated reaching the halfway point on the winter list before turning around and heading back the way we came.
I took out the Swiss Bob and slid down some of the steeper pitches off Middle Tripyramid. Unfortunately, the snow was so mushy from the warm weather that it was probably more difficult to sled than to walk. I put the sled away as we began the climb back up North Tripyramids -- it wasn’t as bad as I expected it to be, but I was glad when it was over! Gaiagirl and I sped as quickly as possible down the trail to try and catch HikerBob. Unfortunately by mid afternoon, the snow was so mushy that we ended up postholing a bit along the way. We finally caught HikerBob at the snowline-- he had turned around after the summit of North Tripyramid and we all headed back down to Livermore Road together.
At the road, HikerBob & I changed over to skis, while Gaiagirl decided to walk. I was ready first and started the downhill portion of the ski first -- it was so much fun. Although I had to be careful to maneuver around the pine needle clumps, I was able to get a lot of good glides in on the upper section, which was still covered by mushy snow. It was a lot trickier skiing down the second icy half of the road but I managed to stay on my feet all but once -- on a section that was signed “Caution: Thin Cover.” In fact, it had none and I came to an abrupt stop on a sandy patch and fell over. The awesome ski out was over before I knew it and I arrived at the trailhead just past 4 p.m. About 15 minutes later, Gaiagirl and HikerBob walked out as well and the rain finally started in earnest.
A great day overall!
Pictures can be found here.
- Ivy
When I arrived at the trailhead, HikerBob was already there and in a very sound sleep… I had to tap on his car windows a few times before he woke up. He had told me several times that he was not going to do the trip if it were raining (as forecast) or if the Livermore Road trail was not ski-able. I looked at the sheet of ice at the beginning of Livermore Road and thought it was very likely that I would be heading out Bob-less. However, HikerBob said that he thought we could ski it -- thankfully he did not walk very far in, where ski conditions got worse before making his decision. Gaiagirl arrived just after this and we geared up and got on the trail by 8 a.m.
All three of us decided to ski… HikerBob & I also brought our sleds. My new sled, named Friday, was a vast improvement over my last one thanks mainly to HikerBob’s custom-made poles and Bob Hayes’ suggestion strapping gear in. Skiing the road was certainly interesting -- lots of ice to contend mixed with bare spots and small pine needle clumps that would put a stop to your glide pretty quickly. I had a blast skiing down the first little hill and turned to watch Bob & Gaiagirl head down. HikerBob looked absolutely terrified as he tried to snowplow on the ice -- with some success. Gaiagirl took a spill and decided to abandon the skis -- she is such a fast hiker that she was able to keep pace with us pretty well. HikerBob tried skiing for a while longer then switched over to bareboots.
Once we passed the bridge for the cross-country ski area, the conditions changed to sandy snow. I actually preferred skiing on the ice -- at least I could get some glide in. But I’m nothing if not stubborn and managed to ski all the way to the Scaur Ridge Trail. There, we changed into our boots and got ready for the five-miles of hiking we had planned. HikerBob was feeling very tired and was overheating so he decided to only hike North Tripyramid. He told us to go on ahead and meet back up with him on the way down.
It was unbelievably warm -- in the 40’s I’d say… and the wind that was blowing on us was actually warm too. We were constantly shedding clothes and trying to cool off but we were definitely glad the rain forecast for the day had given way to blue skies. There were plenty of bare patches along the lower portion of Scaur Ridge, making me regret the decision to wear my plastic boots. Fortunately, once we got to the little brook crossing the snow cover increased and it at least looked a little more like winter even though it didn’t feel like it weather-wise.
Gaiagirl and I arrived at the Pine Bend Brook Trail at 11:20 and wrote the time in the snow for HikerBob before continuing on toward North Tripyramid’s summit. Soon, a trio of hikers passed us and noted that Bob was still on his way up and had given us strict instructions not to wait for him on the 4,180 ft. North Tripyramid summit. We cruised right along until reaching the final steep pitches, where I fell a bit behind as always. Eventually, I made it up to the familiar summit rock and we celebrated with lunch and pictures before heading on.
There is a pretty steep col between North and Middle Tripyramids -- as we descended I realized it was going to be a tough climb back up for me. The unbelievably warm temperatures (and probably a touch of dehydration) had left me with a bit of a headache but I figured I would muddle through the remaining half-mile to our second peak. As we arrived at the summit of 4,140 ft. Middle Tripyramid, the wind picked up, blowing in the gray clouds and rain. We quickly took pictures and I celebrated reaching the halfway point on the winter list before turning around and heading back the way we came.
I took out the Swiss Bob and slid down some of the steeper pitches off Middle Tripyramid. Unfortunately, the snow was so mushy from the warm weather that it was probably more difficult to sled than to walk. I put the sled away as we began the climb back up North Tripyramids -- it wasn’t as bad as I expected it to be, but I was glad when it was over! Gaiagirl and I sped as quickly as possible down the trail to try and catch HikerBob. Unfortunately by mid afternoon, the snow was so mushy that we ended up postholing a bit along the way. We finally caught HikerBob at the snowline-- he had turned around after the summit of North Tripyramid and we all headed back down to Livermore Road together.
At the road, HikerBob & I changed over to skis, while Gaiagirl decided to walk. I was ready first and started the downhill portion of the ski first -- it was so much fun. Although I had to be careful to maneuver around the pine needle clumps, I was able to get a lot of good glides in on the upper section, which was still covered by mushy snow. It was a lot trickier skiing down the second icy half of the road but I managed to stay on my feet all but once -- on a section that was signed “Caution: Thin Cover.” In fact, it had none and I came to an abrupt stop on a sandy patch and fell over. The awesome ski out was over before I knew it and I arrived at the trailhead just past 4 p.m. About 15 minutes later, Gaiagirl and HikerBob walked out as well and the rain finally started in earnest.
A great day overall!
Pictures can be found here.
- Ivy
![Grand Teton Day Hikes and National Park Map [Map Pack Bundle] (National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/41DB0jvRnbL._SL500_.jpg)
![Yellowstone National Park [Map Pack Bundle] (National Geographic Trails Illustrated Map)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51kGuJ72qjL._SL500_.jpg)
