Fourth Of July Creek Icicle Ridge #1570

I wanted to hike up Icicle Ridge and the weather was questionable but it looked the same for the weekend so I went for it. There are large floral displays in the first two miles, mostly lupine and arnica but also others. Fortunately the trail condition is excellent as the climb is relentless. I reached the ridge crest east of the old lookout site at 6800 ft and had a momentary view of Glacier Pk to the northwest before it started to rain steadily. I had wanted to photograph some panoramas of the Stuart Range peaks to the south. The peaks were sharply defined against a cloudy sky on the way up and now they were obscured in gray and not particularly photogenic. Another time. After a quick snack I descended to a sheltered spot in the trees for lunch. Despite the weather it was an excellent,interesting and enjoyable hike. 10.6 miles round trip, 4500 ft elev. gain, 2 hrs 40 mins up.