A Long Way to Go

Steep and slick. We hiked up this snow-filled notch almost all the way to the top. We should have hiked it all the way but that's another story.

We had already made quite a bit of progress at this point. This is one of my co-workers Merlin who volunteered (with a little coaxing) to help pack. I really appreciated the help and he really enjoyed the hike. By the time third day he stated that this was the highlight of his Alaskan experience.

Almost there!

I should look up the name of this flower. It is very unique. It only opens on the sunny days which explains why I never saw it open last year.

At the Top

Merlin rests his sore feet while enjoying a view of the Stikine River.

I talked to someone who had been up here numerous times and he suggested camping by a couple small lakes. Unfortunately the lakes were completely filled with ice still but we found another spot we really liked instead. This is a nice view of the Stikine. Twin Lakes are also visible just above the second small lake near the center of the photo. We would eventually paddle down to the Twin Lakes Cabin where we were picked up.

Castle Mountain through the scope. I think this was the 3x side of the 3-9x scope.

Castle Mountain.

Goat Hunting

The dappled mountains south of the Stikine River. After enjoying the scenery for some time I thought we may as well go walk down a ridge in search of goats since there was no guarantee that this beautiful weather continuing, in fact the forecast called for worsening conditions.

Posing with my trusty old rifle in hand. A little bit past this point we saw our first goats. A small group of three way down in the valley behind me. Wait, there are five. No, I see nine... There is another two over there... Okay, it finally ended up being nineteen goats in the valley but all of them were nannies, kids, and yearlings from what we could see.

It wasn't much longer and we spotted a billy in front of me right on the ridge. I started stalking it and would sneak ahead as Merlin would watch for the goat, then I would signal for him to come as I would watch for it. After the initial sighting we didn't get a glimpse of it for a while. This picture was taken while we were stalking the goat. Unfortunately the wind was not in our favor and as we got close to the spot where the billy was located I looked to my left and saw the billy moving rapidly down the hill, already out of range. At least it was the first evening of hunting. I watched him for a while and then looked back up the ridge...

Where this guy was looking back at me. I scooted ahead to rest on a rock and took a shot. Although the shot was in the vitals a couple shots were necessary to put him down so he wouldn't try to walk on a ledge where he may have fallen. We were just above a large notch that led to the Popof Glacier, about 1500 feet below (Yikes! not a good place to slip). Finished boning him out around 11pm or maybe a little later (my watch decided to quit working). As we started hiking back we noticed something in the sky. It was a faint display of northern lights. They eventually increased their brightness and would shoot up into the sky silhouetting Castle Mountain and the rest of the mountain range. Even for a relatively small display it was very spectacular because of the mountains. In addition, the August meteor shower was occurring, by the time we reached our camp (about midnight) the skies had cleared making it a perfect night to sleep outside and watch the meteor shower and enjoy the northern lights, which is exactly what I did. I didn't fall asleep until the dawn started invading the horizon.

First morning

After a delicious pancake breakfast with Michigan maple syrup, we headed East to pick up the goat meat. (The taste of food is enhanced in proportion to elevation gained and distance hiked.)

This is the peak we would climb later in the day. The "gateway" is a small saddle on the left (West) of this peak.

Camp as seen from Popof. There were a few survey markers in this location dating back to 1929.

After getting the meat and eating a hearty lunch we decided to go to a nearby peak to enjoy the scenery. This is the green side of the ridge, still has a little snow but not much. It was melting fast while we were there.

Gateway

Hiking up the last pitch before cresting the ridge

A light fog moves in to add a little bit of mysterious atmosphere as we approach the top of the ridge.

Incredible! As we crest the top of the ridge the fog/cloud begins to dissipate.

The gateway to another world. One of the most dramatic climatic changes I have witnessed, all within a few hundred feet. We went from green mountain side to rock and ice in the span of what seemed like mere seconds.

The Other Side

Stepping into a world of snow and ice! What a difference one little ridge makes! The Popof glacier is on the right and another galacier is directly in front of us. I think this is one of the most inspiring views I have witnessed in my life. The lower reaches of Popof Glacier visible is about 2000 feet in elevation while the peak near the head of Popof sits at 5870 feet.

This is the origin of the glacier that was directly in front of us.

We thought we would have some pretty good views if we climbed this thing but first we had to figure out how we were going to make it up.

Ah, a little seam. Merlin shows off his caulk boot climbing skills. Quite impressive, I might add. It was tricky enough climbing in regular boots.

Up to 3830 Feet

Here I am following Merlin up a steep little climb.

As we sat on top of the little 3830 foot peak the clouds would roll past us and we would go from t-shirts, shorts and bare feet soaking up the sun to completely dressed with everything we had in a matter of minutes depending on the cloud and wind going past us. Neat weather. This is a shot just as a cloud moves past our perch.

The clouds would boil up on the ridge to the east (the ocean side) and every so often they would spill over into the glacial valley and peaks. It was a lot of fun watching the weather. We sat up here and admired the incredible view for several hours.

I thought these small rocks were interesting with their seemingly delicate resting spot on the rock outcrop made smooth by glaciers.

Evening Light

Merlin stands and watches a rock tumble over the edge after giving it a little push.

Reflection of a clear sky. Could it get any better?

The sun's rays illuminate a stretch of the Stikine River just upstream from Farm Island.

Evening light on the mountains beyond Popof Glacier. It ended up sprinkling just a little during this night. Just enough to make me sleep under the tarp but not much more.

Good Morning

The second morning had a little bit of fog/cloud before 7am. Eventually it would completely burn off but it took a little while.

Walked over a little rise in the ridge and spotted these three goats. At first I thought it was a nanny and kid but it didn't take long to realize that these were a group of billies. The one that is standing apart from the others seemed to be the largest and the leader of the group.

We were amazed at how quickly the goats made their way across the mountain. They can be seen (barely) trotting single file on the next mountain. It only took them about five minutes to get over there. It took us a lot longer.

When we crested the ridge to the "Gateway" yesterday this was the glacier that was directly in front of us. This view is from the head of the glacier where the clouds kept forming the day before.

On top of a 4250' peak with Castle Mtn in the background.

We were looking for a safe way down this glacier and eventually found a nice spot where I sat and slid down the glacier. Merlin "skied" down in his boots.