Teanaway and Tarzan Buttes 2/21/2009

The drive to 29 Pines on clear road was easy and fast. The walk on hard packed snow to Way Creek trailhead was also easy and fast. Then we started heading up and suddenly it was no longer so easy and fast… but well worth the effort.



When we started it was cloudy and our hopes for views were not quite that high but soon after we left the car, some blue patches appeared above us and before we reached the Way Creek trailhead it was pretty obvious the views are waiting up there. This gave us strong motivation to keep pretty good steady pace all the way up.



The views were fantastic. Perfectly clear into Teanaway and towards Stewart Range and even Mt. Rainier peaked at us from above the inversion layer we could see hanging above Cle Elum area.



We soaked up the views for quite a while before continuing down (it was not as bad as we expected considering the snow conditions) and back uphill to Tarzan Butte. Tarzan Butte does not have any significant views but adds little bit of challenge and holds a flat area on the top hidden in the trees which makes for a nice peaceful place to sit and chill.

Stats: 11 miles loop, 3700 ft elevation gain, appr. 7 hours car to car. Our snowshoes enjoyed a free ride on our packs the whole trip.