Stats
| 6 miles | Standard Route – SW Ridge from Fourmile Creek (from midway between Leavick and 12,100’ gate) | Company: Donna Siglin Wildlife: marmots |
| 2200 feet | Start: 7:50 am Summit: 10:15 am Stop: 12:15 pm | Weather: Clear/cool – 6:00 am Cloud formation – 10:00 am Rain – 12:30 pm |
The day started unwell. Actually, not so bad considering other alternatives… Some 8 miles up bumpy Fourmile Creek Road, lodged at a roadside campsite, one tire completely flat. To be fair, I had noticed it in the previous evening’s downpour while sipping red wine and devouring mac and cheese (mmmm powdered cheese) under the makeshift rain fly canopy. So I had all night to hope for the best. Immaculate reinflation. A suitable spare. Luckily, in my “learning to drive days”, my dad created ample opportunity to practice such skills as “checking the oil”, “backing up”, “freeing oneself from ice and snow”, and of course, “changing tires”. Before I was allowed to set foot to pedal in the old Oldsmobile ( a classic according to some), I had to master the aforementioned skills and earn the honor of road worthiness. Despite my claims the day began unwell, while it did begin that way… all turned around with the successful replacement of spare (yes, fully inflated!) on front driver’s side hub.
Then to the hill. Mt. Sherman is a combination of ruined mines and loose rock. We created a loop of the short hike by climbing a trail in the talus south of the Hilltop Mine. At one point, my hiking partner suggested I tell the two girls from Indiana behind us that we were creating our own route. They seemed amenable to route-find with us and we ended up summiting, descending with and giving them a ride back to their car. At summit, we were shrouded in billowing veils of foggy clouds accompanied by brisk winds coaxing us back from whence we came. The descent was also brisk, paused only by several marmot sightings amid the ruins of mining buildings.
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