Ashlu and Elaho Divide

Our original plan was to exit via the Clendinning Headwaters, but like most good backcountry plans, it evolved mid-trip. Instead, we made our way out via Limelite Creek, which turned out to be a solid choice (and slightly less character-building than expected).

The route followed the East–West ridge, linking up a beautiful line of peaks:

• Buck Mountain

• Zig-Zag Peak

• Mount Wood

• Mount Charlie Charlie via its north ridge

• Pykett Peak via the north ridge

• And finally, Icecap Peak via the south ridge

From Icecap, we dropped down to the Amicus Mountain col, wrapped around the southern slopes, and booted up to the col between the summit and W1. We gained the summit of Amicus via the west ridge, then traversed around to the north glacier of Amicus W1, skiing down to the north side of Porterhouse Peak.

With the weather turning sour and visibility tanking, our Porterhouse attempt from the south side ended 50m shy of the summit, close enough to smell victory, but not close enough to touch it. Sometimes the mountains just say “nope,” and that’s okay.

Our exit via Limelite Creek was smoother than expected. We stuck to the west side of the creek for the most part. The last 300m through the forest to the Elaho G100 road was flagged and looked like someone had done recent trail work. thank you, mystery trail gnome!