May 25, 2025
~ submitted by Matthew Lettington
Just a few weeks ago, I led a club trip to Marmot Mountain. Thanks to a recommendation from one of the participants, we took a chance and approached via the south ridge. The gamble paid off — we were treated to a lovely ridge walk and even spotted a marmot sunning itself!
With my wife and daughter away at a weekend-long Scout camp, I had the perfect opportunity to head out hiking with my son. We decided to do a double-feature: Gemini and Marmot — doubling his chances of seeing a marmot in the wild!
We followed an even easier variation of the route I’d taken a few weeks prior. This time, I discovered a boot track that led up the tail end of the ridge. Although it faded in a few places, the club members showed great patience, sticking with it until we picked up the path again.
Near the summit massif, we took a short detour, hoping to spot marmots. We sat in silence for a good ten minutes, all eyes fixed on “Marmot Rock.” I don’t think Hemingway took his eyes off the rock at all! Alas, the weather was chilly, and as one member aptly put it, “If I were a marmot, I’d be cuddled up in my home right now.”
The summit itself was shrouded in cloud, but the snow was in excellent condition for kicking steps. It was a very direct ascent up the snowy slope, and before long we found ourselves on the breezy summit, pointing out familiar peaks as they appeared between gaps in the mist.
The descent was where the real action happened! We had several new inductees into the Island Mountain Butt-Sliders. My son brought his crazy carpet and made the most of it. While it was too steep for sledding right off the summit, his belly worked just fine! Many others opted for the quick descent — on their butts. The sled came in handy further down, but he shot off like a rocket and had to roll off it to hit the brakes instead of the rocks.
We eventually made it back to the car. I’ll admit the day was longer than I had hoped — not because of the hiking, but thanks to the time it took to navigate the long, rough road. Still, it was well worth the effort.
See more images and videos! https://photos.app.goo.gl/XQvD9boq7jWNcAYu8