Going into this hike, I knew it was going to be a challenge.  Dix is the 6th highest peak at 4857 feet.  The last mile you climb 1600 feet and hit a slope of at least 50%.  It is steep.  We also went in with no idea what condition the trail was going to be in .  There had been snow a couple times in the previous week, and we only saw 1 person sign in for Dix after the last big snowfall.  We were prepared to break trail as needed.  Thankfully there was one brave soul ahead of us that left only a bit before us.  

Friday, I went up to the Upper Elk Lake parking area and found that it was full, and a half dozen cars were already parked on the shoulder....

This is it, I'm down to the final 5 peaks of the 46'ers.  I started May 15, and I will be finishing up, if all goes to plan, September 5.... so just over 3.5 months, 255 miles, and 84.8K feet of elevation gain and loss.... if all goes to plan.

So, I planned to do the Great Range this weekend.  As of this moment the Gardens parking lot is marked as full, so I may not be able to.  If that is the case, I'll come home tonight and go right to bed when I get home to get up early and try again Friday morning.  I suspect there are just a bunch of day hikers out today and when I get there I'll find a parking spot.