Sherman and Gemini
Today I got my first two mountains of the year, Mt. Sherman (14,036') and Gemini Peak (13,951'). I look at these peaks every day out my front window, so it was about time to pay them a visit. I climbed Sherman in 2000, and today's climb made it the first 14er I've summitted twice. I hadn't gotten Gemini on my last trip, which is a shame because the pair make a pretty easy double.
Our times were good: I met Peter Lubin at his house at 5:30am; we were at the trailhead at 6:08 and hiking at 6:22. I hiked with trekking poles and carried an ice axe on my pack for glissades on the way down; Lubin carried skis with the hopes of skiing the big east-facing bowl between Sherman and Gemini. We climbed quickly (over 1200 vertical feet per hour, not bad at all for my first time out) and reached Sherman's summit at 8:02. It was windy on the ridge, but we managed to not get swept off our feet.
After summitting Sherman we headed to Gemini to eat. Things for me got pretty relaxed from there. The trip back towards Sherman was casual, and Lubin geared up for the skiing while I headed up and back over Sherman's summit and down the ridge. I met a group of about 6 near the Sherman-Sheridan saddle, the only other group on the mountain today. The glissades were great, and I took my sweet time in reaching the cars about 12:10. Lubin skied back to the cars at about 12:50. Great day!
Our times were good: I met Peter Lubin at his house at 5:30am; we were at the trailhead at 6:08 and hiking at 6:22. I hiked with trekking poles and carried an ice axe on my pack for glissades on the way down; Lubin carried skis with the hopes of skiing the big east-facing bowl between Sherman and Gemini. We climbed quickly (over 1200 vertical feet per hour, not bad at all for my first time out) and reached Sherman's summit at 8:02. It was windy on the ridge, but we managed to not get swept off our feet.
After summitting Sherman we headed to Gemini to eat. Things for me got pretty relaxed from there. The trip back towards Sherman was casual, and Lubin geared up for the skiing while I headed up and back over Sherman's summit and down the ridge. I met a group of about 6 near the Sherman-Sheridan saddle, the only other group on the mountain today. The glissades were great, and I took my sweet time in reaching the cars about 12:10. Lubin skied back to the cars at about 12:50. Great day!
