We arrived at the trailhead at 12:30p the weather was sunny and clear. We ascented the mountain with a party of six. 1 mile into the trail the route was covered with snow but easy to find. Avelanche danger was moderate so we made an ascent up the chute. When we arrived at the rocky ridge on the left side of the chute the wind began to blow 30 mph. One climber took off her fleece hat and it blew over the side of the mountain at 30 mph. From here to the summit the wind increased up to 40-50 mph, the route was not designated but there were footprints and it was easy to see the watchtower to find the way. Ice axes were absolutely neccesary to reach the summit and crampons were definitely useful as 3/6 people had them and used them. At the summit we were granted a clear 360 view of the cascades. We headed back down shortly and were forced to hike in the dark for 1hr reaching the trailhead at 5:30p. Headlamps were useful as were windproof jackets.

I did'nt think I was going to make it to the top because of the snow. The snow and ice was not bad and the trail was easy to follow all the way up to the avalanch shoot. From there on I followed footprints straight up on the left side of the shoot. Since you are no longer on the trail it gets realy steep. In some spots I fell through the snow up to my calf but in most places it was only a foot deep. Following the ridge on the left of the shoot is the way to go. Comming down was a blast. I slid down about 1400' on my cold butt (I was wearing shorts) down the avalanch shoot. WOW that was fun and easy. I am doing this again (If it doesnt snow). I was heasitant at first but was reasured by many other hikers that the avalanch danger was very low. We had wonderful weather at the top. The sun was shining and all the mountain peeks were showing.

Headed up to Granite Mtn on Sunday after finding that the Denny Creek route was packed full of cars. The trail has a compact layer of snow on it up to the fork that goes to Pratt Lk. After that, the snow gets a bit deeper, until it's a good 6-8"". The going gets tougher when you break out into the first clearing, where 1.5' of powder awaits. Unfortunately, the trail disappears about 2/3 of the way up, and the most obvious route is right up the avalanche chute. We turned around here. Overall, a nice trip.

Awoken from a nightmare with Tontiah, the Aztec Sun God, I immediately got out of bed and headed for Granite Mountain. The fog was thick in Seattle, but around North Bend the day turned very clear, and now out of the winter holidaze I have been suffering I saw that there was virtually no snow in the foothills. Mt. Si looked dry as a bone. There was no trace of snow on the trail until arriving at the the avalanche chute, which looks like it saw quite a doozy a while back. The trail cutting back and forth between the chute and the forest edge, eventually it comes to a crosing over the chute (the normal start of the winter shortcut). The bushes have yet to be completely covered however, so I continued on the regular trail. Within 50', the squirmy end-tail of the avalanche led straight up to bare grass! With the snow so wore down and such a straight path ahead, I just meandered right up the middle of the grassy chute. As the grass ended in snow, I traversed to the ridge to the left, and soon found boulders leading almost all the way to the top, almost all snow free walking! It was cold and snow covered on top, but very sunny. Beautiful day!

I decided to sneak a quick one in. I left the fog filled city, heading uphill. The wind coming down from the pass blew my pick-em-up truck all over I-90. I like to start hiking before consciousness set in. It was still dark at 700 am. The trees have kept the snow off the ground mostly. Just as I arrived at the chute, the sun popped over Snoqualmie Pass and lit up the mountain. I never get tired of glowing pink mountains. If you have never seen the chute after a slide, you should come by soon. About 500 feet from the top, a good sized slab fracture was evident and the debris was scattered along the bottom third of the hill. The easist walking is up the gulley on debris; however this is not recommended. The snow on the left is solid, but not very deep. Any snow in the shadows would not hold my weight. I went almost to the end of the trees before turning around. (About 4200') The right side has huge bare spots. The winter route is not yet in shape, however avalanche danger is as low as it gets in the morning.