rocman and madman joined me for this little three-bagger... a really nice loop trip starting and ending at the end of FS 9714... however, today the snow-covered road added a 3 mile walk to the summer trailhead and the start of our loop.
Find the starting point for this trip by driving 2 miles north of the Mineral Springs Restaurant on Hwy 97... then turn left and park (3000') just off of the highway on FS 9714.
The 15 degree temperature got us moving quickly... as we were able to use the monster truck tire tracks to our advantage... allowing us to walk in the tracks to the end of the 3 mile road (3600')... where we put on our snowshoes, made the easy crossing of Iron Creek, stayed to the left of the summer trailhead sign and headed directly up Iron Bear's SE ridge.
Brushy at first, the terrain became more open as we gained elevation... with nice views (Rainier and some of the smaller Teanaway Peaks) starting at ~4800 feet.
We stayed on Iron Bear's SE Ridge and followed it all the way to the summit (5489')... where we made the 50 yard walk over to a point that offered slightly better views of Earl, Navaho, Miller and Three Brothers... with distant views of Mt. Stuart and some of the Stuart Range.
Leaving Iron Bear we had to give back 150 feet of elevation before starting the 300 foot elevation gain up to the partially treed summit of Jester Mountain (5520+). While Jester Mountain is on the Back Court 100 List, Iron Bear doesn't meet the list criteria... that being said, views are much more open and broader from Iron Bear.
Leaving Jester we had to give back 300 feet of elevation before starting the 250 foot elevation gain up to the partially treed Point 5459... where we continued SE for a short distance to find the SW trending ridge that led back down to FS 9714... leaving the 3 mile road walk back to our cars.
~10 miles roundtrip, gaining ~3000 feet of elevation gain.
While the loop portion of this trip can be done in either direction, it was Wednesday, so we chose to do it clockwise... also, knowing that the best views of the day would be from Iron Bear may have helped in the decision making process.
GPS route and photos of our loop trip to Iron Bear, Jester Mtn and Point 5459.
..
"Teanaway 70" Peaks List... a guide to hiking and scrambling in the Teanaway Area.
----------------
0
"Teanaway 70" Peaks List... a guide to hiking and scrambling in the Teanaway Area.
----------------
I noticed your TR is linked on the Wenatchee Outdoors page. You're famous now! Won't be that sunny today up there, but tomorrow looks much nicer for Blewett if anyone is looking for sunshine.
"Einstein stating that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light, is as a blind man stating that nothing can travel faster than the speed of sound" 1979
They don't make years like they used to.
0
"Einstein stating that nothing can travel faster than the speed of light, is as a blind man stating that nothing can travel faster than the speed of sound" 1979
They don't make years like they used to.
You cannot post new topics in this forum You cannot reply to topics in this forum You cannot edit your posts in this forum You cannot delete your posts in this forum You cannot vote in polls in this forum
Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate NWHikers.net earns from qualifying purchases when you use our link(s).