June 25, 2011, Hillman Peak,Crater Lake Natl Park

We got lucky on Saturday because they opened the North Entrance Road on June 24 at 1pm.  Coming from the Cascade Lakes Highway made it an easy approach.  The snow banks along the North road were enormous and the coverage on the surrounding terrain provided lots of eye candy.  The only limiting factor was the limited pullouts.  As we rounded a bend the sight of Hillman Peak was soooooo inviting, especially since there wasn€™t a track on the short and steep slope.  I again adopted the €œMark H€™ philosophy of a gentleman€™s start time and left the campervan at 12:30pm. This year I used a smarter approach via the right climber€™s ridge which provided a pleasant ramp with a slight and refreshing breeze.  This year I also stopped short of the upper ridge line.  Last year, I went to the top and discovered I was on a knife edge with an unfriendly descent into Crater Lake.  The descent was short, steep and sweet corn. It was a pleasant short excursion on snow. Another sunny day with corn snow.  The only thing better would be if my ski buddy,Jill, were skiing with me.  ;)  There are numerous short roadside tours available between North Junction and Rim Village.
 
Photo 1-View looking north from Hillman Peak
Photo 2-Nice corn turns
Photo 3-View of Hillman Peak along left side of Crater from Rim Village