Pica cirque is still clear of smoke
If I'd not had such a clear view from the summit, I would not choose the road east into Aspen Grove. The Timpooneke trail to the north is still clear. But directly behind Robert's Horn what looks like a dirty thunderhead towers high into the sky.
I pick my way carefully across the talus slope. The rooks are gone now, but the cliff continues to boom and clatter intermittently. Somewhere in the middle of the talus I lose the rubber end from one of my walking poles. The metal cleat beneath it tends to snag in small cracks between the stones. But I'm not about to slow down or go back to look for it.