"I would definitely recommend this trip to a friend."
At Colchuck Lake, after some debate, we elected to put on skis and shortcut across the lake to the Colchuck Glacier. This probably saved 20-30 minutes over the standard route along the shore.
We started up the Colchuck Glacier under sunny skies and a cool glacier breeze at 11:00 and made Colchuck Col at 12:15. We took a break at the col and watched rain falling to the south, east, and north.
Our first objective for the day was Rooster Finch Tower- the higher of the two towers on the west shoulder of Dragontail. 500 feet of climbing across the slop and up a couloir led us to the east face of the tower, where we scrambled one pitch in our plastic boots, then soloed a half-pitch in rock shoes before roping up for the final 5.4 crack to the summit. Awesome views down the northwest face of Dragontail, Colchuck Lake, Stuart Lake, etc. A museum-grade 1/4" bolt and a new runner around a chockstone provided a reasonable rap anchor.
Back to our gear, we debated about the best way to reach our second objective: Dragontail Peak. We decided to explore the col above Rooster Finch, not sure if it would go with our 37 meter rope.
We carefully peeked over the cornice and found a spot where we could down climb to the glacier below. Eighty feet of reverse front pointing down a 60 degree slope led to easier ground. A short walk brought us to the summit of Dragontail, where we enjoyed another short rest amid splendid views and sunny skies and no wind.
After 5500 feet of climbing, we were all glad to know that the rest of the day would be downhill. We had to descend about 100 feet to clear the rocks before donning our skis. In less than 15 minutes we'd dropped the 3300 feet to the shore of Colchuck Lake. We were thankful for the fresh snow up high that covered the ice. The 2500' from Asgaard Pass to the lake was dreamy spring corn. Our hoots and howls echoed off the massive walls of Dragontail.
Again we debated the sanity of skiing across the lake. Tired legs overruled cautious minds, and we set out across the middle of the lake. The lake was melting out from the edges though, and I broke through six feet from the far shore. The lake was gracious in its warning: I dropped in about 18" inches- just enough to go over the top of my boots, but not enough to really soak me.
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