Republished from the WTA website here.
Hiked the Persis/Index traverse. Main takeaways:
- Road is closed for logging 6 miles from the Persis trailhead; consider using a sturdy mountain bike on the approach.
- Route is completely snow-free in late season, traction/ice axe/heavy boots unnecessary (early season has steep snowfield above 2000 ft cliff).
- Huge amounts of blueberries mean black bears in area, bring appropriate food storage systems if staying overnight.
- Consider bringing a lightweight 30m rope as a handline for going up/down one section of steep loose dirt.
- Plentiful water sources from tarns on the first half of the traverse from Persis to Persindex, none from Persindex to Index.
- We had cell service for most of the traverse.
We parked right off of Highway 2 at the start of NF-6200. This is an active logging road and is usually gated shut; don’t drive up if the gate is open, you’ll be locked in. Started at 5:20 am, biked six miles up gravel roads (2500 ft gain) to the Persis trailhead. We walked several sections because the road is quite steep. Had to move aside several times as logging trucks drove past. GPS is very helpful here because the road branches many times - it’s a maze back there!
[Read More]