I took some pictures today on a climb of Mt. Muir. I'll upload them in the morning. The cables snow is not too much different from the pictures I posted here a week ago.
When were getting our walk-in permit on Friday, the ranger mentioned that someone had fallen from the cables the previous day. He had gone up to do an early ascent, so hit the cables when there was still overnight ice. He slipped and went under the cables, slid down the rock slab, then the rest of the way on the snow until stopped by the rocks at the bottom.
She said he was hurt, but insisted on walking out without a rescue being called. When he got to Lone Pine, "he was banged up, his eyes were goofy, and he seemed very much in shock." They encouraged him to go to the hospital, and presumably he did.
When we got to the cables this morning, we naturally looked for evidence on where he had fallen. Contrary to what I had expected, it was not the icy section at the west end of the cables. It was about 50' short of there, and not a spot that looked particularly dangerous. His tracks in the snow were clear. Lucky man.
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The summit snowfield is a non-issue. There's a nice track to follow, or you can walk around it if you want.
