Our team: 4 lovely ladies, all runners and experienced hikers
Saturday morning, we met up at Gateway Park and Ride at 5:45am for the drive to the Vista Ridge TH. The forecast called for 60% chance of showers before 11am. It was raining a bit more than we expected, so before heading out, we talked about weather. It was supposed to clear. It might be a bit windy. It wasn't anything to worry about. So we loaded up the car and were on our way.
We took a little bit of time getting to the TH, making a stop for coffee and taking a couple of wrong turns. When arrived at Vista Ridge just before 8am, we were the first there. The rain had slowed to a drizzle, so we grabbed our packs and headed up the trail.
We passed through the burned trees from the Dollar Lake Fire as we hiked up Vista Ridge. The wind was moving the fog through the trees, which was both beautiful and eerie.
As we continued along the trail, the clouds continued lifting. Just as forecasted.
My thoughts: No one expected such bad weather, based on the forecast. We had an agreement in advance to leave the trail if it got too dangerous. Unfortunately for us, that point came when we were likely at the worst possible place, the Timberline High Point. We were 3 miles from Cloud Cap, 3 miles from the Gnarl Ridge Trail. Continuing to Gnarl Ridge would get us below tree line sooner, and closer to Hwy 35, where we would be likely to get to shelter quickly. Also, we knew it was much more likely we would be able to get a ride from the Elk Meadows TH than the Cloud Cap TH. I was fortunate to have the dry bag in my pack for my electronics. Water had gotten into my pack and pooled at the bottom, even with a well fitting pack cover. I am thankful we had a strong group that worked together as a team. There was no second guessing, we knew collectively what we needed to do.
And that was it. We knew our attempt at a TT360 was over for this year. There was no way we could have continued, our gear and boots were too soaked. (Note: Three days later, my GTX boots still have not dried out.) Sunday morning, we "hiked" to brunch at Timberline Lodge, took a tour, and then had a friend, who came up on Saturday evening, drive us back to Vista Ridge TH to pick up the car.
Final Stats: 18.8 miles, 4833' EG, 9 hours, 3 minutes (Includes about 1.2 miles of road walk)
Note: A big thank you to the awesome driver who picked us up on Hwy 35 and dropped us off at Timberline. I don't know if you read the PH forums, but I know you're a hiker. We are all extremely grateful for your kindness and willingness to go 30 miles out of your way to get us out of the cold and wet weather!
Another note: Planning has commenced for Timberline in 2 Days 2015! Yay for TFFs!
