Took my annual spring training trip to Mt. Rose today. Arrived at the trailhead at 8 and there was only one other car there. The portable toilet was out of paper and in pretty dire need of being emptied.
Saw one trillium in bloom towards the start but the rest need a little more time. I did find some Calypso orchids (fairy slippers) which are always so beautiful to see. Heard a grouse in the usual spot near where the trail crosses into the Skykomish Wilderness, and heard some varied thushes up in the snowy forest. I only ran into one other hiker all day - sure beats the crowds at Si last week and listening to the waterfalls instead of traffic is always a bonus!
I chose the clockwise (left) side of the split from Horse Camp at first. Snow starts a little ways past that point and fairly quickly gets deep with lots of holes. Since the trail is narrow and steep I got tired of trying to dodge the holes and headed back down to try the other direction. I've never hiked the right side of the loop and was pleasantly surprised by the wider and easier trail. The trail is well marked with orange diamonds on trees and was never hard to follow. There are a few stream crossings but nothing too tough.
Snow became consistent on the trail after a few hundred feet of elevation and was at least several feet deep towards the top. Mostly fairly solid but every once in a while I would posthole to my knee or thigh. I ended up turning back shortly after the trail heads west toward the summit (maybe about 1/2 mile before the end?) since I had lost time on the backtracking and had to head home. Looks like getting to the summit would be doable this way but I can't say for sure.
Even without the summit views it was a great day our in the woods!
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