Alpine Scramble - McNeeley Peak

We departed the Sunrise parking lot just after 7 AM. The parking lot was already 3/4 full, with spectators watching the amazing sunrise. We made quick time to the Huckleberry Creek trail, where we left the crowds behind. At around 6600’ we departed the trail toward the northwest. We tried to stay in the trees to avoid walking on meadows. It was a little bushwhacky at times, and we ascended higher up the sub summit of McNeeley than we probably needed to, which required a steep descent to reach the base of the peak. The three students took turns navigating their way to the summit. They did a fantastic job. We found a little rocky area to practice some class 3 rock scrambling along the ridge. We reached the summit without issue before 9 am. 

On the descent, we opted to drop slightly lower on the ridge, below the tree line. We still tried to stay out of the meadow as much as possible, and were sure to spread out and try to avoid trampling on vegetation. We arrived back at the cars at around 10:30 am. 
Overall this is a great scramble for students to practice their route finding skills and team work. The amazing views certainly didn’t hurt. 

I had to get home right after our trip but encouraged the participants to stay and explore the area on a perfect weather day.