With the celebration of my nephew's baptism completed, I set out for the second event of the weekend. Sunday I would lead my first provisional climb for the Mazamas up Mt Ellinor in the Olympic Mountains.
I chose Mt Ellinor because it was not difficult to ascend via the SE Chute. However, by the time my Advanced Rock field sessions were finished, I expected the snow would have melted out. So I told the members of our team in advance that we may take the trail to the top.
Sure enough, the day of the climb the trail and the SE Chute had melted out, so up the trail we went. We decided to start at the Lower Trailhead, which proved to be a wise decision. The extra 1.6 miles along the pleasant forested ridge made the hike worthwhile. At the Lower Trailhead there is a trail that leads down to Big Creek Campground. The idea of hiking from the campground to the summit intrigues me, perhaps another year...