Roughouse Mt.1.22.08

After last week's failed attempt I was back for another round. I knew the summit of Roughhouse Mt. (Pt 4780+) # 94 on the BC/100 would be easier with more settled snow and with more time in hand I was confident for success. I wanted to see If skiing would make for an easier time and result in quicker summit time. I got an early start and I was treated with a most inspiring view of the moon over Snoqualmie Pass. I stopped to take a picture but I couldn't reach the camera so I passed regrettably. I continued on and soon I was parked in single digit temps. I was thankful that at least there was no wind to make the situation more of an issue. After entirely too much time of packing and layering up I was off. I had rigged up the Beagle with his own layers but the ill fitting get up didn't stay on even with the addition of some pack straps. I was surprised that even though my x/country skiing experience is minimal I was making good time maybe even faster than just booting it alone. I soon made it to the point where I had left the road and switched to boots and snowshoes. The conditions were much better than last week and soon I was to my turnaround point of last week. I had stopped maddingly close to the summit but because of serious time constraints I had to turn around. I blazed the remainder of the climb to reach the summit which I was surprised to find a radio tower. In my research of this peak I hadn't heard mention of it. I think the name of this peak is derived from this "roughhouse". The views were mostly blocked by the substantial tree cover. I quickly descended back to my stowed belongings. I debated on whether or not to change back to skiis. I decided to just to see how it go. I am not a graceful faller so I was worried about the long descent even though it is not steep in the least. Initially I did fine in the deeper snow but when I reached the more packed portions of the road I felt like the skiis were a detriment instead of an asset. I booted out with the only excitement was trying to wrestle a deer's leg that was fully intact from the knee down from Tanner. A great day with great with perfect weather and one more summit checked off my list.




Approx 12 miles 1900 feet of climb 5:30 car to car