Bogley

[peakbagger1971]

I've been real anxious to get out and do some hiking and high pointing. I decided to go for the Wasatch county high point Mt Cardwell. I happened to have a free day on a Thursday and decided it was about time to start bagging some county high points. The weather had been a bit sketchy all week. We had had some pretty intense afternoon showers during the week but I was relieved to see that the for cast called for a lower chance of showers for that particular day. I was ready to go.
I really didn’t know what to expect as far as snow. My Plan was to climb Murdock Mt. as well as Cardwell Peak. I brought my brand new crampons with me. I had just gotten them for my birth day. I was kind of excited to use them. When I got up to the place where I would start my hike, there was a lot of snow in spots. I realized that my snow shoes would probably have been a better tool then the crampons. The snow was patchy though and there was a lot of bare areas. I strapped my crampons to my feet and began my ascent.
The research I did gave me a couple of different stating spots. There is no trail. I decided to start just above Bald Mt Pass because it seemed to have the best access to both peeks. That was my first mistake. I ended up hiking a mile further because of that. The other start place was below the pass and if I do it again, that is were I would start from.
I believe that the crampons did help at the beginning to get traction on the steep slope but after that they just got in the way because there was too much exposed rock. I took the crampons off and tied them to my pack. Another mistake that I will explain later. The snow fields weren’t steep but they were hard to cross. It was sketchy crossing them because I never knew when I would stay on top or sink to my hips. I tried to stay to the rocks as much as possible.
I arrived at the summit of Murdock Mt and decided to place a cache. (soon to be posted). I walked around and enjoyed the breathtaking views of bald mountain and the other surrounding peaks as well as the lakes. I also spent some time figuring out the best route to Mt Cardwell.
Off I went down the slope to the ridge that connected the two peaks. After about a quarter a mile I realized that my crampons were no longer attached to my pack! I can’t remember the last time I noticed them there. I deciced that I must have left them at the peak so I left my pack and trecked back up to Mt Murdock. Upon arrival I noticed that they were not there. I used my gps to follow my tracks back to where I left my pack all the time looking for the crampons. No luck.
I decided to press on,discouraged but not beaten. I finally made it across the snow fields to the summit. Another impressive view. I found it interesting that this was the high point when there were so many peaks surrounding me that were much higher.
After nabbing the caches on the peak I headed down but this time decided to take as straight a route as I could to the highway. I found that keeping in the trees was the easiest route because the snow was harder. I arrived at the highway a little more then a mile below were I parked. My feet were soaked and my toes were numb, but I made my way back up the highway to my truck. I will be back in a few weeks to follow my tracks back up to Mt. Murdock looking for my crampons.