Trip Report: Sundial and Blanche Peak Hike
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Sundial and Blanche Peak Hike By Brad* Yates |
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| HIKE | 06/22/2025 | MSD |
| Sunday June 22 five of us set out with two tasks to complete, a combined climb of the Sundial and Blanche Peak, along with placing a WMC Centennial Journal holding remembrances of Mohamed Abdallah who passed away on June 30th 2024 from an accident on Sundial. The mountains were moody with wispy clouds wrapping and unwrapping their summits, when we first arrived at Lake Blanche Sundial was fully shrouded in cloud, while taking a break on the polished quartzite of the north shore of the lake the clouds began to disperse from the Sundial, the lakes surface being perfectly still it afforded us the opportunity to take some rather stunning photo's. After a snack and layering changes we left the lake to the trailless terrain approaching Sundial all the while as views opened and closed with the play among the clouds. After crossing a few easy boulder fields, streams and the glacier polished quartzites of the approach we reached the more treacherous part of ascent. After a group discussion we began the actual climb of Sundial. I had the group climb at an angle to avoid being in the line of potential rockfall, though not always possible. With some coaching the group arrived at the exposed ridgeline of the Sundial massif where we would stash poles and other protruding objects before commencing with the knife edge scramble to the actual summit. With guidance and encouragement our group soon arrived at the broader summit. In the preceding days I had compiled in a WMC Centennial Journal various items to honor our friend Mohamed, pictures, Deirdra's tribute, the articles written by Gloria Waston and Julie Kilgore that were in the August 2024 Rambler. We all signed the journal, took a few pictures and left it in the summit mailbox. Off to the next peak. As we descended Sundial towards the climb of Blanche Peak we saw another group climbing towards the saddle we had climbed earlier, it consisted of non earlybirds Andee, Ray, Brandon, Greg and Rebecca who would join us on the hike up Blanche Peak. Blanche is not an official peak name but just point 11,033 on the map. It is a rather straight forward hike, just follow the ridge to the Big/Little Cottonwood ridgeline till one is looking down on Snowbird and LCC. All ten would gather at the summit for lunch and photos. After descending to the Blanche/Sundial saddle the group would split again, Andee's group going the direct way while I took my group down a scenic little valley further west eventually arriving at Lake Blanche and the main trail system. Signed in group, Amy Konkel, Eve Kovacs, Steven Lopez, Mary Freidman and Brad Yates. |
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