Mt. Davidson SW Route

Left the road and headed up to the large rock formations located to the left of the water tanks. I was surprised at the ease of the climbing and decided to solo the formations as far as I could. I topped out a couple of hundred feet from the top of the first peaklet located to the southwest of the true summit. I crossed a small snowfield until I was out of the saddle and scrambled on easy talus the remaining few hundred feet to the summit. Lot's of interesting historical inscriptions at the summit. Some on rocks, many on the large iron flagpole. It sure must have been a huge effort to bring up the pieces for the pole and then to place it on the summit. The people who did it may be surprised to learn that it has survived for more than 125 years! I lingered on the summit and eventually headed down the large and steep snowfield on the north side. I realized that with my sneakers, the snowfield was a bad bet, but it looked pretty fun. I figured that I'd get my feet soaked, but the shoe skiing that I experienced was way worth it. I ended up coming down near the center of town and had St. Mary's church as my beacon. I then strolled through town and was back at the truck less than three hours after I left. As long as you're in VC, be sure to check out some of the many great sites and attractions in town. Some of my favorites are the Radio Musuem, St. Mary's, and the Bucket of Blood Saloon with it's expansive views of the comstock from the rear window.