We woke up Sunday morning with the original intention of checking out the conditions on the MR, but it wasn't meant to be. Some sort of truck fell on my head just above the E-ledges, and by the time I reached LBSL, I was in bonk mode. Some improvement came with sunrise, but when Tom suggested we do the Smiley Face route up Thor instead, I wasn't one to argue.
So, conditions:
Really, no snow to contend with at all up to the saddle above Clyde Meadow. Maybe the occasional dust over the rocks.
Girl Scout Lake has a nice layer of ice on the surface (well, except for the giant hole we punched through while playing 'who can throw the biggest rock').
The Smiley Face was fun (Mike's and my first time climbing it), even though the snow was a little slippery.
We got back to the WPS by 2 p.m. (hey, it's 5 o'clock somwhere!) after descending the SE coloir. A really fun day, and thanks, guys for having me along!
-L
Maybe we should start calling him the elusive GigaMike! Wait, that sounds familiar...
