[Guiran]

Daring Friday the 13th to do its worst, three of us headed up to Gothic Basin and 2/3 of us made it up Del Campo Peak. This is probably my favorite scramble in Washington (so far). Remarkably stable talus on the approach, only a little bit of scree at the bottom, and sound rock all the way to the top. Great views of the Monte Cristos, Baker, and Glacier - though haze kept Rainier invisible. Foggy Lake makes a great swim this time of year on the way back down. From Foggy Lake, traverse broken talus counterclockwise around the lake. On the low hill separating Foggy Lake from another, smaller lake, a climber's path should be visible. The track heads around the smaller lake and then climbers to the brushy hill below the talus field at the base of Del Campo. Follow a few random cairns up the talus field towards a gully that should now be visible. DO NOT GO UP THE GULLY. Ascend class 2-3 rock to the left of the gully to the ridge below the summit. Here a climbers path fades in and out among the rocks. There are two options to reach or come down from the summit. To the climber's left is a steep, rocky path that leads to the summit blocks. It's pretty close to the edge and feels somewhat exposed. The other option is a series of sandy traverses to the right. Both times I've done Del Campo, I've ascended on the left, then gotten suckered in by the sandy path on the way down. Having never descended on the left, I don't know how the exposure would feel on a descent, but I think it might actually be the better of the two choices. On a side note, has anyone else noticed that there seem to be *way* more people camping along the Mountain Loop this year? Both times I've been up there recently, every turn-off and campground seems full. Someone at the Green Gables market was telling me there were 3000 people camping a few weeks ago. Where did all these people come from? The Mountain Loop has always seemed like such an overlooked place.

[Dogpatch]

[aestivate]

[kiliki]

The Mt. Loop hwy area has been a zoo for years. Full campgrounds and packed trails have been the norm for at least 15 years (hey, I'm only 35-I don't know what it was like before that). I believe that the Ice Caves have long been the most visited spot in the MBSNF.