On the Sawtooth, took a cairned route pretty far around to the right of the gendarme, which included trail segments, grass, some 2+ boulders and one class 3 move. The ridge is wet in spots from the recent heavy rains; increases the care needed on exposed sections just a bit.
As has been reported elsewhere, the mud on the return trail is pretty spectacular. I found the trail easy to follow (from above, in daylight), but it's full of deep mud in many places. Since losing the trail isn't an option, not much choice but to plow through- bring the right gear, expect to get very wet, and try not to sink too deep too often. Or come back in the winter.
Agree with Naturekin's report on where the trail rejoins; in addition to the flagging, this spot is close to pole #2 of the large wooden poles on the Bierstadt trail.
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