The view from half way up the mountian
We drove to the visitor center early this morning and signed in. The park authorities have a great system in use and it's highly recommended that you use it. Ali and I, like many other visitors about to subject themselves to some degree of mountaineering, submitted our precise route and a basic itinerary to them by writing on a card and displaying it on the board in the entrance. The cards are checked daily and any cards that haven't been removed after their proposed arrival time will generate a search and rescue operation. I made sure I wrote nice and clearly.
Our itinerary was quite simple. Up Avalanche Peak then down Scott´s Peak.
A peek through the bushes as we climbed up the mountain
As usual I found the first 30 minutes quite tiring but once we got warmed up I was fine. There was definitely parts that were challenging and at times we literally had to pull oursleves up the face of the moutain. Occasionally we'd stop for a handfull of banana chips to re-energize ourselves before moving on. It took just over four hours to reach the peak. That's a lot of banana chips! It was exhausting but the view was well worth our efforts. I've never seen anything like it.
View from the summit
An spooky shot of moss growing on the trees
Ali stops for a well earned rest
In this shot I managed to capture a Kia just as it flew away from me
The beautiful Kia
Ali and I pose for a picture at the summit of Avalanche Peak
I just about make it to the top
