Elain near the Alpental parking lot
Elain and I had planned to climb Denny Mountain. However, we got a very late start for several reasons: we overslept, the drive to the pass was slower than usual, and we had to park at Summit West (the Alpental lots were full of skiers- go figure). We finally got to the upper parking lot and started up the forested slope about 11 AM. Trailbreaking was arduous, so we tried to follow snowboard tracks which had been packed down a bit. About 1000' up, it began snowing quite hard. We didn't like the snowpack conditions in light of the warm temperatures and the new snow, so we turned around. The most hazardous part of the trip was walking along the icy Alpental Road, where we had to dodge large SUVs careening around blind corners, hemmed in by high snow berms on both sides. Overall, we had a good time and enjoyed getting out in the snow.
Elain near the Alpental parking lot
Steve near the Alpental parking lot