White Clouds – Castle Peak

Ever since seeing Castle Peak the previous year, I’ve had my eye on getting to the summit of this stunning mountain. The route itself does not stray far from basic class 3, but the steepness, route-finding, and loose scree present their own challenges.

I was expecting to feel like I was lording over all the Sawtooths from the top, as the summit is about 1k higher than anything over there–instead I was awe of just how small and distant they seemed.

For those comfortable with the scree and strain of the climb, I highly recommend the trip.

• For me, the trickiest part was just below the summit. When coming up out of the long gully, you’ll see two chutes. Neither of those are what you want. Instead look to the left for a cairn which goes around the rocky fin.
• There is a bypass to avoid the long walk to Chamberlain Basin. I aimed for the low, white scree pass–which worked (the east side *looks* sketchy from the top of the pass, but is managable). After looking up the bypass later, I believe I went on a *less* unofficial route. Still worked. ¯\(°_o)/¯