Montana's Tallest Challenge: Climbing Granite Peak

On June 28, 2024, a group of six of us embarked on a climb of Granite Peak in Montana, led by experienced guides Dave Ashely and Shelley Johannesen.
We began our journey from Cooke City at the Lady of the Lake trailhead, setting out at 9am. Our initial day saw us covering 9.3 miles and ascending 2,303 feet to reach our base camp at Sky Top Lakes.
Day 2 commenced with an early start at 6am for our summit attempt. We hiked 2.3 miles to the base of Granite Peak and began our ascent, starting with crampons and ice axes on the snow tongue. Due to the early season, the snow pack held the dangerous loose scree in place. After navigating the snow tongue, we proceeded to the SW Ramp, which involved a combination of snow climbing and class 3 scrambling up to the summit ridge. A brief traverse across the summit ridge led us to the peak itself.
In the late afternoon, the sun had softened the snow considerably, resulting in a slower descent than anticipated. We packed up our base camp around 5pm on June 29th. Opting for a continuous push, our group undertook the 9.3-mile hike back to the trailhead, completing it around 1am the following morning.

[@LinusWilson]

Why did u pack snow shoes?

[@MikeHikesUSA]

@@LinusWilson Between Sky Top lakes and the base there is a long boulder field approach. There was still plenty of soft snow when we were out there. Post holing in that would be agonizing and potentially dangerous.