Langley via the old/new army pass

We started from the horseshoe meadow parking lot on the 3rd around noon. An air force drone had crashed near the Tuttle creek area and so the Northeast couloir was not accessible. The old army pass had some frozen ice and cornice overhanging the route. We therefore decided to go via the new army pass. We camped at the high lake to have a shorter hike on the following day and also to avoid the unrelenting mosquitoes near the Cottonwood lakes. It was impossible to even stop for a few seconds at the lower elevations because of the mosquitoes. On the 4th morning, we started out at 5 am and reached the top section of the new army pass. This is where there were multiple, steep and short snow fields one could choose from in order to reach the top of the pass. The snow had a good degree of firmness in the morning for the crampons and ice-axe to bite. I opted for a short snow section followed by some class IV scrambling while Michael went for a longer snow section with a simpler top out. From then on, it's a slog to get to the summit. We were surprised to find ourselves alone the entire day, in spite of the holiday. The way back down was slightly easier as the snow had softened quite a bit and we could kick our feet deep into the snow to get a good hold. When we got back to the tent, we found that it had moved around quite a bit since the anchoring didn't hold up against the strong gusts of wind. We packed up quickly and made our way back to car.