Mount Locke
Hike Review
We drove as west as we could on the offroad trails we found on the Upper Buttermilks and ended up with about a two-mile hike to the foot of the Kindergarten Gully west of Mount Locke.
The hike was entirely off-trail and I did not find the optimal way up Mount Locke. The trail I found was meandering and it went through obstacles such as trees, bushes, and stream crossings.
The views were jaw-dropping at times, though some of the time, we could only see a few feet in front of us.
The ground was hard-packed dirt, which was great as I was worried about it being muddy.
There was no other soul on this mountain (or nearby mountains) on this day.
What I Learned
At a minimum, I need to put athletic tape in all my adventuring backpacks. Just a roll of athletic tape would have allowed me to continue to our destination as I could have protected my heels that had developed blisters. Though, what I really should have done is to remember to bring my first aid kit.
The mountaineering boots strangely did not fit me well. The heels kept rubbing and I developed a hot spot less than a quarter mile in. Less than a half mile in, they turned into blisters in both my feet and every step was painful. I think I should get new, better-fitting mountaineering boots.
We arrived at camp at 1 AM, so I wanted to sleep in. Which meant that we started hiking at 8 AM. It was already 65+ degrees, which meant that I was a sweaty mess from the start. Ideally, we would have arrived at camp earlier, slept earlier, and started hiking at 5 or 6 AM.
I carried almost all the ice climbing equipment, which meant that my backpack was about 30 lbs while Cassie’s backpack was less than 10. In the future, I could distribute the load a little more equally as Cassie was hiking without many issues while I was struggling with the heat and altitude.
What Happened?
1.7 miles, 3 hrs 19 mins, 540 feet of elevation gain
I have been dreaming about ice climbing in the summer for a couple of years now. In 2024, I was perfectly ready to go: I had a willing partner in Cassie, I had all the equipment I needed, and I had accumulated enough knowledge to give it a go in a safe manner.
We started the day off knowing that it would be a bit hot given that the night temperatures never dipped below 60 degrees even though we were at 9400 ft. When we started hiking, we knew that we were in trouble—Cassie was dressed a bit too warm for the hike (but perfect for the ice gully) and both my feet had hot spots at the heel less than a quarter mile into the hike. My mountaineering boots were rubbing on my heel and I instantly wished that I was carrying my boots up to the couloir while wearing my trail runners. Even though it hurt with every step, I carried on.
About half a mile in, we crossed over a ridgeline and dropped into a meadow. We took a small break and I tried removing my socks as well as loosening the boots to see if that would help—it didn’t. We crossed over several streams, bushwacked through bushes, and made our way through a dense forest. It was slow going as I was overheated and every step brought pain (and knowledge that every further step would bring more pain).
At a certain point, I was worried that a popped blister would real pain and damage to my feet that would ruin our plans for the rest of the weekend. I kicked myself as I did not pack a first aid kit—I longed for athletic tape that would protect my feet. Even though we were less than a mile away, even though the couloir was in view, I decided to turn around. Cassie was so graceful in supporting the decision even though it meant that she was done with this effort too.
With the decision made, we rested at our high point just shy of 10k ft. We talked about how we’d come back better prepared next time and how we would use all that we learned to get further next time.
The hike back wasn’t easy as we still had to bushwack, but it was easier than the way up—physically and psychologically. We made it back to Ramona and looked forward to Bishop, where we ended up stopping by Schat’s Bakery for a delicious sandwich.