Little Ranger Peak via Ranger Creek — Saturday, Feb. 18, 2023

Parked along 410 and caught the White River Trail to Ranger Creek. Trail is mainly snow free up to the viewpoint. Just a dusting of powdery snow which must have been overnight as the ground below was frozen. Poles did manage to grip and even stick a bit in the hardened terrain. A few minor obstacles along the way - one tree had a notch cut in it which made footing great.  Didn't expect to see anything from the viewpoint today but we stopped anyway. A big blowdown right above the viewpoint requires a diversion above the exposed roots - maybe 25 feet off trail. The snow begins in about 0.3 and by 0.5 miles is several inches deep with ice below. We didn't use traction and had no issues heading up. The snow is hard and you stay mostly on top - no snowshoes needed. Water was dripping onto the trail from the branches then we experienced frozen rain, and finally snow. We turned around 0.7 from 1198 junction, but not because of the trail. Heading down we slipped several times on the snow-covered ice, but never fell. Poles were helpful and spikes would've been unnecessary.