Paddy Go Easy Pass 7.3.06

I always have had fond memories of Paddy Go Easy Pass so I eagerly left somewhat early this morning. I was looking to scout a route for Tucquala Peak (pt 6821) which lies SE of Sprite Lake. The plan was to leave the trail around 5300ft and traverse NE to attain the ridge line and see if any routes were within my abilities. At 5150 there is a very good boot path leading in the direction I wanted so I took it. The path is easy to follow and leads to an old mine site which I found fascinating. There are train tracks coming out of the cave along with a very strong flow of water. I am guessing that the miner's may have dug into the water table. I wouldn't have wanted to be in the mine when that occurred. From there I just climbed the path of least resistance until I topped out on the ridge above Sprite Lake at around 6200ft. I had hoped to attain the ridge farther SE on the other side of South Paddy Go Easy (pt 6566). I decided to climb the peak that is just East of Sprite Lake. The slopes are short and still snow covered so it was a quite pleasant ascent and made for a quick descent back to Paddy Go Easy Pass. The trail was covered with snow at the pass so it took me while to find the trail. After poking around for a bit I rejoined the trail for the quick return to the truck.