Astrid M. at Golden Ears:
“It took our group 7 hours to reach the small emergency shelter. Recent wet weather created several muddy patches and made the roots and rocks slippery. One bridge over a creek is broken and slanting down southwards (hold onto the north handrail). A good part of the lower trail is more a creek bed than a trail, meaning lots of loose rocks. After setting up our tents at around 5:30 pm we heard distant thunder. Three of us decided to try to summit before the storm moved in but got turned around by hail and lightning. Luckily the sky cleared and we were treated to one of the most beautiful sunsets I have ever seen. The next morning we awoke in a cloud. We waited until 11 am to see if the sky would clear, but visibility stayed poor so that the summit was not possible. We returned to the parking lot in 6 hours back.”
