7 miles of hiking • 1750' elevation gain •
With an 11 am start, my plans ended up a bit overambitious. My intention was to summit Fryingpan Mountain via the Cowlitz Trail from the west. I imagined wandering through flower dotted meadows with lakes in this area of the William O Douglas Wilderness that is well known by equestrians. Hit persistent snow at 4400 feet and it felt a bit like the Benson Plateau in April. Had to turn back before even hitting the turnoff to the summit of Fryingpan. Did not see another human and the only tracks in the snow I saw were cloven.
