Fantastic day in the Pinalenos with Preston today. Our original plan was foiled...there was too much snow/ice on the Swift Trail to get up to the Dutch Henry Trailhead. So we made a spur of the moment decision to climb Ladybug Peak instead since the trailhead was nearby.

We unknowingly climbed up into a winter wonderland. Clear bright skies led us up into the higher elevations, and around 7000 feet or so we encountered our first patch of snow. There was more and more along the trail as we climbed to the peak. What an awesome experience. Footing was a little dicey on a couple of the switchbacks, but overall not too bad. This trail is a steep climb gaining well over 3500 feet in total. It's through pristine forest the whole way. From the summit the views are typically outstanding.

We flew down through the soft snow, marveling all along at the beauty of the snowy Pinalenos.

The day didn't work out as originally planned, but I don't know if it could have ended up any better.