Started at 5:30 am. The willows were muddy/slightly frozen. Sections of it were hard to follow in the dark, but I could see the trail leading up to the ridge, and was able to merge back onto the main trail. The section above the willows was frozen on the ascent, flowing water on the descent. The next section of trail (just below the first ridge) was steep (fall line in places) with scree. Once on the first ridge the view made me forget about the ball bearing scree. As others have stated, the boulder filed cairns were interesting. I stayed further to the west on my way down and had an easier go. Fun trail, but if I take my kids up La Plata we will take the NW ridge.
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