Sauk Mountain — Monday, Jul. 4, 2011

North Cascades > North Cascades Highway - Hwy 20

Joining me today were Phlemy, The Transporter, Blissman and Cascade Dreams. I'd chosen this trip thinking that there would be some snow, but not much. Wrong. There is snow where it counts! We got a somewhat early start so the snow was fairly icy in spots. It was also steep as you went up the face of Sauk so it was a bit treacherous even for those equipped. Three of our group had ice axes and the rest did not. I believe that ice axes are important to have on this trip, but not realizing this I'd neglected to ask everyone to bring theirs. Phlemy and I called it quits about halfway up, and the rest of the group shortly after. Still, the views are spectacular from the parking area so it wasn't a complete loss. One awful incident happened while I was waiting for the rest of the group at the parking area. A skier was starting up the road with his two dogs when a truck ran over one of them. It was an accident that no one could have helped, but there were hurt feelings all around. The dog's owner was very gracious in not blaming the driver, and tried to help him feel better. Still, an awful incident. The dog was moving afterward, but I'm certain he had internal injuries by the way he was behaving. So sad.