Too long for a condition update, maybe not enough for a trip report? I'll let the big boss decide. I moved to CO in early October and was hoping to get a big day in so I could post a good report as an introduction and look cool for the internet. Life, fire closures, and now snow got in the way, so instead of something exciting I did Quandary.

Yesdterday (01/12/2020) I did Baby's First Winter (conditions but not calendar!) 14er (and mine), Quandary Peak. Originally hoped to do the west ridge route but recent snow took that off the table for my current experience level. Instead I figured I'd just do the standard east ridge route, using it as a mellow shakedown hike, plus the light snow and cooler temps in the forecast would mean fewer people and add a little extra flavor. 1-4" of snow was in the forecast for the morning, with moderate winds and temperature of 1*F at the summit. Since it would be cold and I had a couple previous ice cream related adventures fall through, this seemed like a good time to bring an ice cream sandwich to eat at the summit as well. Everyone likes ice cream.

Even for a Tuesday with light snow falling and the temp showing 13 *F I was surprised to be the only car in the trailhead parking lot at 8am. The trail was packed down and easy to follow, with 1-2" of new accumulation at that point showing that nobody else had been up there this morning. There was ice under the fresh snow in places, so I put my microspikes on and kept them on for the rest of the day. You could probably manage without them if you were careful but I wouldn't recommend it. It continued snowing lightly most of the morning, with enough wind once you were above treeline that you wanted as little exposed skin as possible.

The sun had come out briefly a couple times along the way and by the time I reached the summit it had stopped snowing, but visibility was pretty limited. I don't have a thermometer (might get one now for curiosity) but it was quite cold and I'd definitely believe the low end of single digits, plus the wind chill. I pulled out my ice cream sandwich, hungry and excited for a treat. Sadly despite the temps and keeping it in an outside mesh pocket exposed to the cold and wind it was a melted bag of mush!

Subsequent research has revealed that home freezers are generally set around 0 *F and commercial ice cream storage is even colder. It was a cold day for people, but not for ice cream. That was a significant chunk of my planned calories for the outing, I ended up consoling myself with some cashews and Clif Shot Blok chews (that were quite hard from the cold!). The descent was quick and easy, with a short break to watch a group of four mountain goats hanging out on the trail before going down the side of the ridge.

Back at the car I pulled off my first microspike and half the outsole of my boot peeled off with it. RIP. Getting back to town I got a take-out burrito (naturally) from a place I hadn't tried before. Ended up being a 4/10, pretty disappointing. At least I had more actually frozen ice cream in the freezer. Now I need new boots. Overall a good day.

Looking forward to getting out more and posting some more exciting reports in the future!