"My buddy and I decided to head up the Mount Si Trail as a means of reaching Blowdown Mountain, Crater Lake Mountain, and Dixie Peak. We got started before the sun came up and made good time up to the haystack. We decided to go for the scramble one person at a time while the other person stayed back with my buddy's dog, because we knew he would not be comfortable coming back down the haystack. Well it wasn't before long that he decided to book it up the haystack after his owner. At this point I decided to follow them up because there was no point in me waiting at the bottom anymore. Long story short we got the dog down, but with A LOT of coaxing. The haystack had decent steps kicked in pretty much all the way up the gully to the top. Once we were back down the haystack with the dog in one piece it was on to Blowdown Mountain. We stayed on top of the ridge the best we could and then made our way up the southwest ridge of blowdown on what's left of an old road. The last time I was here I was sinking up to my thigh in snow and ran out of daylight, missing out on Crater Lake Mountain as a result. I vowed I would be back with snowshoes. After a short break we made our way around..." — Al-Rashid • Jan 19, 2013

"We arrived at the new Mount Si trailhead at 6:30 as a group of Boeing Mountaineering Course students were signing in for their evaluation hike. I used my headlamp for the first mile or so until the rising sun began to poke though the trees. Snow began on the trail at 2 miles and was steady after 3. As we gained 3500' of elevation the temperature rapidly rose as a result of an extreme temperature inversion in the region. After a short break for pictures and a snack by the rocks near the top, we headed around the back of the haystack. The haystack was mostly melted off besides the standard scramble route up the NE col, which was filled near to the top with a mix of ice and slushy snow. Due our experience with this ~60' scramble we hatched a plan to alternate up to the summit to keep Automahn from danger on the slippery descent. Unfortunately I started up with the leash in my pack like a dummy. Auto ignored Joel's attempts to constrain him and had climbed half the way up before I could get to him, then refused to follow me down, apparently intent on making the summit himself. We completed our half-hatched plan and then spent the next hour slowly coaxing a stubborn mule-of-a-dog bac..." — Jeb • Jan 19, 2013