We parked one car at Albion Basin and another at Snowbird.
We rode the tram up to the top of Hidden Peak. The tram driver
was a impatient lady who made it clear that the last tram
was going down at 8:30 whether or not you were on it. She
seemed to despise the clueless tourists who screamed and sighed
as the tram moved and stopped. As she told us about how the
tram was going to go down with or without you, she seem to
fantasize about watching these same tourists missing the last
tram and having to walk down the 2-3 hour descent in the dark.
But only as she engages the tram down the mountain, waving
sarcastically, and cackling at the poor souls.
After we left the tram on Hidden Peak, we then traversed Alpine
Ridge up to Mount Baldy. The hike up to Mount Baldy from Hidden
Peak was easy. On top of Mount Baldy there is a weather metering
antennae.
From Mount Baldy we proceeded east down the rugged, wildflower
covered, east side of Mount Baldy.
On the way down Mount Baldy (The most challenging part of
the hike, loose rocks, steep), We met a family with 3 kids,
who were doing the same route but in the opposite direction.
The father of the family playfully told his children that
we (My friends and I) were going in the wrong direction. The
man's wife wasn't in a good mood, and they still had at least
an hour and a half to make it back to Tram Lady. It was about
7:30.
As we watched the family summit Mount Baldy, you could see
the silhouette of the father running like a bat out of hell
down it's west ridge, to try to stall the tram. I bet for
Tram Lady it was like Christmas, as she cackled into the cold
night air. He should have went in the wrong direction like
we did.
From there, we continued on up to the Sugarloaf.
It was cold on top, I didn't bring any extra clothes. From
there we hiked down the steep switchbacks to Cecret Lake in
Albion Basin. We sat at Cecret Lake for about a half hour
in the dark listening to Dallas play his Indian flute in the
dark. The sound seemed to visually echo and reverberate throughout
the giant alpine cliff walls. I wonder if the family could
hear it as they began their epic hike down in the dark.
