ChillyChugach

    W e made great time to our campsite (maybe a little too great) so we had the whole afternoon to screw around on boulders and contemplate life in general. Cody striking a pose in the morning sun.  Yukla standing tall in the background. View from the perch. Hot hot heat climbing up to our campsite on the east side of Yukla. Beautiful spot to camp!  Polar Bear and Eagle peak in the background right. Another view from camp.    Early next morning, we set off upward toward Twincicle glacier. Everything was going great - we made it up the glacier less than an hour after leaving camp, and the ridge ahead looked clear of snow. And then, all of sudden... Whoomph.    We were walking just above the glacier when I heard it, and I thought my ears were playing tricks on me. Then again. Whoomph.    We both definitely heard it this time, and terrifyingly enough, it propagated all around us. There was no question about it. The only way to go was down. It was a has

  I t was summer conditions all the way to the Eklutna campground, where I ditched the bike and set off on foot across a very moderately flowing river.  I didn't even need to take my boots off - the water was less than ankle depth for most of the braids with a jump across one deeper section. Riverbed in the foreground, Watchman north ridge in the background.     O nce on the far side, I found an overgrown orange flagged trail, followed it for a while then went straight up brushy fields to gain the ridgeline.    I t was easy travel on the ridge.  Most of the snow had melted on east facing aspects, making crampons unneeded if sticking to the melt line.   Eventually snow cover increased, so I donned gaiters for the inevitable deep snow encounters.     A bout midway through the ascent, the ridge dips down to a flatter bench.  I didn't trust that traveling on this bench would turn out well, so I opted to regain the ridge.  In retrospect I could have avoided several expose