Round Top

16 Mar 1997 - by Arun Mahajan

With George Van Gorden leading, six of us tried to climb Roundtop on Sunday the 16th of March 97.

The snow was icy in the woods near Carson Pass. It was a gloomy day and the sun remained only a rumor. As we got out of the woods, the wind picked up and started to blow the snow around with great force. As it was, the view was obscured by the clouds, and then this blowing snow got inside the sunglasses at times making the vision further blurry. We had a hard time keeping balance, but the terrain is gently rolling, so we continued on, tottering like a bunch of drunks. I saw the wind almost topple Ted in front of me. I got spun around a couple of times too. Nancy's cap flew by in the wind. We made it to the base of the saddle above Lake Winnemucca, there I got bowled over by the force of the winds. We decided to call the trip off, the wind was too fierce and the top of the saddle would have been even worse. On the way back, the sun flirted with us for a short while but that was about it.

A minor gear observation, those new MSR snowshoes (worn by George) edge well since they dont have the tubes that most snowshoes have, and thus, traversing is easier. Only constant use over a few seasons and all types of terrain will tell how sturdy they are.

Trip members: George Van Gorden, Chris, Ted Raczek, Nancy Fitzsimmons, Bob Suzuki and Arun Mahajan.


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