Laura M Clark

Summit Peak – 13,304, The Unicorn – 13,030, Montezuma Peak – 13,158

RT Length: 10.18 miles

Elevation Gain: 3534’

I parked the night before at the Summit Peak Trailhead and had the whole place to myself until I left the next day.

The 2WD dirt road in is in good condition, with plenty of areas to pass other vehicles. I got plenty of sleep, and was on the trail at 5am the next morning. I figured this trail would be easier to take clockwise, as in the dark it would start on an actual trail. This was good thinking, but the ‘trail’ was more of a game trail that I lost and found repeatedly. After the hike was over, I concluded this would still be the better way to go, and you’ll see why later. The trail starts at the south end of the parking area, immediately crossing a bridge over Treasure Creek and following Treasure Creek Trail 710.

The trail quickly went through a flower filled meadow, and then headed south, through an open gate and open meadow. Here the trail was easy to follow, even in the dark.

After hiking for 1.3 miles, I came to a cairn, turned right, and headed north up what was supposed to be Treasure Creek Trail. It was a faint trail for a bit, but it was easy to lose.

As I was hiking on this trail, I came across a rather fluffy ptarmigan. In fact, I almost stepped on her, and would have if I’d already put my flashlight away. I stopped for a second, and told her she could stay put and cover her babies if I could go around her. As soon as I said this she exploded. She jumped up into the air, and no less than 12 ptarmigan chicks cascaded out in all directions. A feather bomb had gone off, and I felt bad for her. A few seconds later I could hear her calling to the chicks, and watched them all make their way back to her. Sorry mama, but nesting in the middle of a trail, even a small trail, is a bad idea.

I continued through a faint trail that at times was a great trail, littered with flowers and pine trees

At 11600’ I turned left again, and headed west to treeline, still following a ‘trail’. I was headed to the right. (Both arrows point to the same place)

This was easy to ascend, and the snow avoidable

After ascending, a fairly decent trail led me south, towards the Continental Divide Trail, which skirted the south side of Summit Peak

From here it was a steep tundra hike to the summit. This is choose your own adventure, without many obstacles. This is the route I took.

There was as summit marker at the top

I summited Summit Peak at 7:30am

Summit Peak:

From the Summit I could see The Unicorn and Montezuma to the north

It was a beautiful day on the summit, and there was cell reception, so I spent some time there before turning around and heading back to the Continental Divide Trail. The route back down was straightforward

Back on the Continental Divide Trail, I followed it around the north side of Summit Peak. There were trail markers to show the way, which was a good thing because the trail was faint

Here’s an overall look at the route to The Unicorn. There was snow on the trail in places, and it was curious there wasn’t a trenched trail over the snow, considering this is the Continental Divide Trail, and I’m sure tons of others must have been through this area already this year.

And some step-by-step pictures.

As I was doing this traverse, I could hear, but not see a herd of elk. I wasn’t sure where they were in the basin, but they sure were being loud, so I figured there were a couple dozen of them. Here I left the trail, and it became a class 2 hike, with just a short section (no more than 10 feet) of easy class 3 climbing up a sort of chimney.

I summited The Unicorn at 9am

The Unicorn:

To the northeast I could see Montezuma Peak. This was my overall route to get there. It was all class 2, except for a brief period of class 2+ scree as I ascended the ridge.

This is also a good view of how I descended from Montezuma and made it back to the trailhead

I descended the short chimney

And then I headed northeast, towards Montezuma, being careful to avoid the snow fields in the way

And now to climb the west face of Montezuma. It was steep, but mostly class 2 until just before gaining the ridge, where it was 2+, and choose your own adventure on the scree/talus.

After gaining the ridge I turned right, and headed east towards the summit of Montezuma

I summited Montezuma Peak at 10am

Montezuma Peak:

Here’s looking back at the route from The Unicorn to Montezuma

There were a ton of bees at the summit, so I didn’t stay long. I turned and headed east, down the ridge. This is a class 2 ridge (seriously). I just stuck to the ridge proper and had no trouble descending. Here’s my overall route down the ridge

Then I headed southeast

I planned on descending this grassy gully

As I was descending, I finally saw the herd of elk I’d heard earlier in the day. I sat on a rock for 10 minutes, just enjoying watching them. Some were resting in a circle, others were grazing, and two mamas were watching their babies enjoying a patch of snow. I hated to disturb them, but I had to get going. As soon as the wind shifted, they could smell me, and they were off. There were tons of signs they’d bedded down for at least a few nights there in the past few days.

Elk:

Once they were off I continued descending. When I made it to the bottom of the gully I turned left, and headed east along the plateau

At the end of the plateau, when I came to the trees, I turned right and descended south towards the creek. This was a lot of bushwhacking through downed trees and flowers and grasses that were as tall as I am, but I just aimed for the creek.

When I reached the creek, I stayed about 30 feet from it’s banks, and followed it (and game trails) southeast back to the trailhead. It’s important to stay above the creek because there are waterfalls to avoid.

I made it back to my truck at 11:30am, making this a 10.18 mile hike with 3534’ of elevation gain in 6.5 hours.

On to the next trailhead!

Conejos Peak – 13,176’

RT Length: 9.87 miles

Elevation Gain: 2183’

This wasn’t my first attempt at Conejos Peak. I was actually here much earlier in the season, doing my best to establish a new winter conditions route. I was obviously off the main trail, and around 12,500 (my lucky elevation for finding cool stuff in the mountains) came upon this: An elk skeleton from last season.

So, I did what anyone else would have done in that situation: I severed the skull from the spine, strapped it to my backpack, and hiked it back to my truck.

The deadhead fit perfectly into the back of my Tacoma. I drove it home, and when I opened the back of my topper I could see dozens of maggots, and there was an awful smell. Apparently, what looked like a pretty clean skull still had grey matter inside, along with maggots taking care of the issue. I’d kept the skull attached to my backpack, which was now covered in those maggots and grey matter (Yay! New backpack!). I threw away the backpack and decided to use my outdoor fire bucket and boil the skull to begin the cleaning process, and get rid of all those maggots.

Of course, I told other people about my find, which was longer tip of nose to end of antler than I am tall, and I was warned there might be rules against taking it and bringing it home. Afraid I’d unknowingly done something illegal, I called up the Colorado Department of Wildlife, and asked them if I could keep the deadhead. They asked me a couple of questions, like where I found it and on what date, then gave me the all clear to keep it. The DOW employee who helped answer my questions was named Chad (the only Chad at the office), so I named the deadhead Chad. I’m currently working on mounting it (I’m thinking mountains in the background), and I’ll post a picture to my IG when it’s done.

Ok, on to Conejos Peak.

The road to the trailhead is easy 4WD. Here are some pictures of the more ‘difficult’ spots. Side note: on my way down a rancher had hauled a horse trailer up to the top, so it’s doable if you’re a good driver.

I parked about 1.5 miles below the Tobacco Lake Trailhead at the trailhead for 720 for a couple of reasons: I wanted the extra elevation gain, and the last time I was here there was snow on the road further up and this was where I’d parked. I really liked the size and location of the site at 11,180’.

There are other sites to camp further up, near the actual trailhead.

I spent the night at the trailhead, had a buck stick his head inside the back of my topper to say hi, it rained, and I saw a pretty cool rainbow. I was on the trail at 5am, following the road up to the actual trailhead.

There was a register at the trailhead, which I signed, and I was on my way. The trail to Tobacco Lake is class 1 and easy to follow. The only issue I had was the smell: ranchers are grazing cattle in the area, and they all seem to have diarrhea. The trail was littered with it, and since it had just rained, it was still wet. Here are some pictures of the trail to Tobacco Lake. One thing to note: there are willows to navigate.

Tobacco Lake kind of sneaks up on you, and you can clearly see Conejos Peak from the lake.

I skirted the north side of the lake, and came upon a rocky area. There was a big cairn here indicating the trail. I followed that trail west.

From here on out the trail goes from class 1, to class 2, to following game trails, but there are enough cairns to help you find your way. Here’s the overall route to the ridge:

And some step-by-step pictures. There are a lot of different ways to gain the ridge (I’m guessing due to melting conditions from winter), but the route is obvious in summer conditions. You’re aiming for the orange arrows.

Once on the ridge I turned left, and followed it south to the summit

The summit is to the west of the trail

I summited Conejos Peak at 7:15am. There was excellent cell service, so I stayed up there for a bit and answered some emails.

Conejos Peak:

Time to head back the way I came. I turned and headed east, back to the trail

Here’s my overall route back to the lake, following the ridge north, and then descending back into the basin by heading northeast

Once at the lake and the stream crossing, I turned left before the stream and followed the trail east back to the trailhead

I signed out of the trail register, and followed the road back to my truck

I made it back to my truck at 9am, making this a 9.87 mile hike with 2183’ of elevation gain in 4 hours.

On to the next trailhead!

Henry Mountain – 13,272, Fossil Mountain – 12,764 and Square Top Mountain – 13,007

RT Length: 10.96 miles

Elevation Gain: 3927’

I started from Gold Creek Campground outside of Ohio City. The road in was an easy 2WD dirt road, that led me to a dispersed campground maintained by volunteers. There are about 5 sites, with vaulted toilets. I didn’t feel right using the empty campsites, as I wasn’t really camping, but sleeping in the back of my truck, so I parked at a dispersed site directly across the road, near the trailhead, at about 10,050’. Also, it was quieter, as a family with two small children and rather loud dog were staying in the campground. There was a makeshift corral for horses there as well.

I was on the trail at 5am the next morning. The trail starts at the north end of the camping area.

I followed Trail 532 northwest for 2.5 miles to Mill Lake. This is an easy to follow, class 1 trail the entire way to the lake.

There is one junction early on that isn’t on a topo map, but it’s well marked. Just keep going towards Mill Lake.

At Mill Lake you can clearly see Fossil Mountain. The easiest way to get there is to turn right, and head northeast through the trees until you see the ridge. It’s a short (100 yards at most) hike to get there, and the bushwhacking is easy.

The route will be easily visible. There are rock ledges if you go to far left or right. You want to take the tundra northeast until you make it to the ridge, and then turn left and follow the ridge west. Here I gained 850’ of elevation in .75 miles

Here’s looking at the last bit of the route to the ridge. There’s no need to hike all the way to the top of this little bump in the ridge, as it isn’t ranked. I skirted it and headed towards Fossil Mountain.

Now the hike became fun. The ridge goes at a class 2 scramble until the base of Fossil Mountain, then becomes an easy class 3 scramble to the summit.

Here’s the overall route I took

And some step-by-step pictures

I went straight up and over this large rock formation. It was easy class 3. You can go to the right to get around it, but you’ll be met with loose talus and a gully.

I summited unranked Fossil Mountain at 7am

Fossil Mountain:

From the summit of Fossil Mountain, looking to the northeast you can see the other two peaks I was headed for today, Square Top Mountain (unranked), and Henry Mountain

It was a straightforward ridge hike to get to Square Top Mountain, where I pretty much stayed on the ridge. There were some easy class 3 moves, and at times I needed to dip to the left or right. The rock is very loose in areas, and very stable in others, so basically it keeps you on your toes. I lost about 180’ of elevation going to the Fossil/Square Top saddle. Here are some pictures of the ridge to Square Top Mountain.

From the saddle, here’s looking up at the path towards Square Top. The first half was on tundra, and then the rocks began

It was here I noticed a small herd of elk. I stayed where I was until they noticed me, then watched them watch me as they ran away.

Check out the herd of elk:

Ok, continuing with the ridge. This part looked difficult, but I found it was easy class 3 if I just kept to the ridge.

Now to summit Square Top Mountain. This was relatively simple, as there were several options. I went up the gully nearest me (and down the one on the other side). The rocks here were loose, but the angle was light.

After ascending the gully, I turned left and easily walked to the summit

I summited Square Top Mountain at 8am

Square Top Mountain:

Looking to the northwest I could see Henry Mountain

I descended Square Top Mountain to the northwest, and hiked on tundra to the summit of Henry. There were some very faint fame trails here I utilized.

As I came to the top of the ridge, I was greeted by 4 mountain moats. Usually, mountain goats are pretty tame and just watch me. These ones did for a while, but as soon as I got out my camera and they could hear the shutter snap, they took off. Well, three of them did, the other one stood and looked like he was ready to fight, but then turned and followed the others

The summit of Henry Mountain is to the northwest, so I headed northwest towards the obvious highpoint on more tundra

I summited Henry Mountain at 8:40am

Henry Mountain:

This was an out and back hike for me, so I turned around and retraced my steps back to Fossil Mountain

Here’s the overall route I took, skirting Square Top this time

And some pictures of that rocky ridge between Square Top and Fossil

Then down to the Fossil/Square Top saddle

And up the ridge, back to the summit of Fossil. This part was class 2

At the summit of Fossil Mountain I was greeted to 4 ptarmigans on the summit cairn. They actually led me for a bit down the trail.

I descended Fossil Mountain to the northeast, staying directly on the ridge. Here’s the overall route. Note where I entered/exited the trees, as it kept me on tundra and avoided the rocky sections and brought me back to Mill Lake.

Here’s looking at that easy class 3 section down the ridge. Once again, I stayed directly on the ridge and kept it easy class 3

Then back towards the tundra

As soon as I came to the first group of trees on the tundra I turned right, and headed down towards the lake

After a quick bushwhack in the trees, I could see the lake and a trail below

I followed the trail around the east side of the lake, back to Trail 532, and then followed that trail back to the trailhead

I made it back to my truck at noon, making this a 10.96 mile hike with 3927’ of elevation gain in 5 hours. Please, note, I spent a lot of time admiring the wildlife and looking for cool rocks.

On to the next trailhead!

Trico Peak – 13,321

RT Length: 8.78 miles

Elevation Gain: 2844’

My stats here are going to be off (to be explained later).

I arrived at the Black Bear Pass trailhead the night before, excited to find a good camping spot near the road, at about 11,100’. If you drive a little further up, 100 yards or so, there are a few more sites.

I parked, read, ate dinner, and fell asleep early. I was on the trail at 5am the next morning. The trail follows 4WD dirt road 823 for 3.3 miles to Black Bear Pass. A stock 4WD can make it to the pass, but be mindful it’s a narrow shelf road at times, with few places to pass other vehicles. Here are some pictures of the road.

After hiking for 1 mile I came to the junction for Prophyry Basin and Black Bear Pass. I went right, towards Black Bear Pass.

And continued on, towards Mineral Basin.

There was a little snow to contend with in getting to Black Bear Pass, so I went left to avoid it.

To my left I could see T10, which hadn’t been on my list for today. However, looking at it now, it looked doable from this side, so I headed over there. There seemed to be several viable routes. At the grassy area I put on my microspikes, and headed up. The first 150 feet or so were straightforward, and then the choss hit. Terrible, terrible choss that gave way as I ascended. I was creating rockslides both above and below me, which included not only scree and choss, but also microwave plus sized rocks. Nothing was stable. It looks like the route changes every time someone attempts to go up or down. I got cliffed out several times, backtracked, and tried different ways. Finally, I knew while I could have made it up, I wasn’t going to recommend this route to anyone (someone’s going to get seriously injured or die), so I might as well head back down. I made it about 100 feet from the summit before turning around. Please don’t attempt this route unless you have great balance and are good with floating and falling talus and boulders (none of the rocks were steady. None of them, and many fell with the scree). For me, this was outside of my choss-safety zone.

Ok, so from Black Bear pass, I headed northeast, with Trico clearly visible.

This was actually a straightforward and easy route. There’s a faint trail you can’t see from below, that will get you all the way to the summit.

Here are some pictures of the route

Once I gained the ridge, this was the overall route to the summit

There was a faint trail here as well.

I summited Trico Peak at 8am (still wearing my helmet from T10)

Trico Peak:

I took advantage of the bluebird day and 2 bars of LTE service at the summit, and stayed for about half an hour, calling people and answering emails.

Then I was on my way back down to Black Bear Pass.

Back at Black bear Pass I turned left, and followed the road 823 back to the trailhead, avoiding the small section of snow along the road.

I made it back to my truck at 10am, making this a 8.78 mile hike with 2844’ of elevation gain in 5 hours, along with a lot of route finding on T10, and spending a half hour on the summit of Trico.

On to the next trailhead!

Copeland Mountain – 13,183

RT Length: 17.49 miles

Elevation Gain: 4975’

I arrived at the Wild Basin Ranger Station I RMNP at 4:30am and was on the trail at 5am. There are several adjoining lots in the area, with room for about 50 vehicles. The very well market trail starts at the southwest end of the parking area.

I was headed to Ouzel Lake, on a trail that first passed Copeland Falls, Calypso Falls, and Ouzel Falls (that’s a lot of falls) along the way.

In true RMNP fashion, this is a well maintained, class 1 trail.

After hiking for 1.5 miles, I continued straight (towards Calypso Lake and Ouzel Falls) at this junction

I continued to follow the well-maintained trail southwest, crossing several bridges

After hiking for just under 2 miles, I came to another junction, where I turned right and continued following the trail towards Ouzel Falls

Here’s where I made a mistake. After hiking for about 3 miles there’s a junction where you turn left. In the dark, I didn’t see this junction, and continued on another half mile before realizing my mistake. In any event, turn left at this junction, and continue heading towards Ouzel Lake.

It is along this part of the trail you’ll get your first glimpse of Copeland Mountain.

Here’s the final junction before coming to Ouzel Lake. Follow the signs and continue straight. Also, tale note of the gully on the left. That’s what you’re going to want to ascend, and it’s a bushwhack below treeline with very little for sense of direction. That’s where you’re going to want to aim for to gain the ridge.

The trail was a bit washed out just before making it to the lake

After hiking for a total of 6.75 miles, you should make it to the lake. It was more than that for me, because of my little side trip.

The water level was high, so the place where I would usually cross was underwater. I changed to my creek crossing shoes, and waded the creek here. The water level was up to my thighs.

This is where the bushwhacking begins. I followed light game trails as they skirted the east side of the lake, then found a creek/drainage (not on a topo map), and followed it south to the ridge. When you see it, you’ll know it’s an obvious drainage, the trouble is finding it in the dense growth. Here are some pictures of the terrain.

Once you find the drainage, which will be full of vegetation and downed trees, and maybe even some water, continue heading south.

The drainage became rocky, which meant route finding was easier.

I headed up the rocks until they stopped, then turned right, and followed what could have almost once been a road for about 10 yards west, turned left, and followed another rocky drainage south to treeline. There was actually a cairn here (circled)

The rocks were solid, and easy to scramble over. The rocks eventually became dirt, and I briefly entered the trees before making it to treeline, but I was always going south

From the lake, it was 1.2 miles, with 1100’ of elevation gain to treeline. At treeline, I turned right, and followed the slope southwest towards the summit, gaining another 2100’ in 1.2 miles. While a topo map makes it look like a gentle slope, it was anything but. The summit always looked out of reach. It was one long false summit, where you thought you were almost there, and then you were surprised by more rock. The terrain started out as tundra, then switched to rocks that tended to roll if you weren’t careful. Route finding and terrain were all class 2. There was also a lot of water here. Even at the summit, I could hear the water rushing under the rocks. Below, on the tundra, I saw several small streams of water flowing downhill. This was all choose your own adventure. Here are some pictures.

At what I thought was going to be the summit I was met with some unexpected snow. The snow was punchy, so I skirted it to the right and regained the ridge

Only to find more rocks, Here you can see the true summit of Copeland Mountain

I summited Copeland Mountain at 10:45am

Copeland Mountain:

There was a plastic tube summit register at the top, which needs more paper. The only paper in there was (of course, since it’s a plastic tube) wet. Here are some of the views from the top of other peaks in the area

I turned around and headed back the way I came, but navigation was a bit tricky, as everything looked the same

I headed northeast, and knowing if I went too far north I’d cliff out, I kept this meadow in my sights and aimed for it until I could see a proper route back down

Here’s the route I took back to treeline

Note where Ouzel Lake is to the left, as that’s where you’re headed.

Here are some pictures of the gully down

And the short traverse to the east

Then the bushwhack back down to the lake, following game trails where I could find them

I once again put on my creek crossing shoes and crossed Ouzel Creek. I’d really recommend creek crossing shoes, as the rocks under the water were very slippery

Here are some pictures of the trail back to the trailhead. The signs (in daylight) make route finding easy. Keep heading east towards either the Ranger Station, or Wild Basin Trailhead (the signs differ, but they get you to the same place).

I made it back to my truck at 2:45pm, making tis a 17.49 mile hike (with a bit added due to missing my cutoff) and 4975’ of elevation gain in 9 hours, 45 minutes.

Side note: if you see strange looking tracks, that look like a cross between a moose and a deer, they’re probably Alpaca Tracks. I saw a trekking company with a few guests and 6 alpacas hiking into the basin to camp. It looks like they do this a lot. Make sure to step aside for them as they pass by you on the trail.

On to the next trailhead!

Or so I thought… While I’d been hiking they had closed off the parking area, with about 15 vehicles in the lot. As I tried to exit, a ranger asked me if I’d mind waiting a few minutes, as they were felling trees in the area. While I waited for about 45 minutes, not one single tree was felled, and they decided to let me go. I drove out, and someone was grading the road, so I waited for him to pass by. He asked me to drive slower (although I’m not sure how I could drive much slower than 5mph). When I got to the gate, it was locked, and I had to wait again for someone to open it. Apparently, they’d closed the roads for mitigation/tree work, etc. but hadn’t put up any signs warning people arriving before they got there they were going to close the road. 3 hours later, I was on my way home.

13150

RT Length: 8.32 miles

Elevation Gain: 2188’

I drove up to Hancock Ghost Town outside of St. Elmo and parked my truck in the dark. The road was better than I remembered it: Dirt 2WD with some clearance needed. It was just before the Alpine Tunnel Trailhead. If you have a high-clearance 4WD vehicle you’re ok trashing, you can drive it all the way to the Upper Hancock Lake Trailhead.

I was on the road at 5:30am, following the road south, crossing a bridge, and then turning left onto 4WD road 295.

I followed 295 south for 1.75 miles, where it ended at the Upper Hancock Lake Trailhead

At the Upper Hancock Lake Trailhead there was an obvious trail at the south end of the lot. I continued following it south, and it eventually crossed and became the Colorado Trail/CDT

On this trail I skirted the west side of Hancock Lake, and the east side of Upper Hancock Lake. This was an easy to follow, class 1 trail. I was headed to Chalk Creek Pass.

The trail was wet and muddy, but luckily the water wasn’t too deep.

At this sign I went left, and followed the trail as it switchbacked up Chalk Creek Pass

At the top of the pass, I left the trail and headed east. It was my goal to gain the ridge.

There are a ton of ways to gain the ridge. I took a different way up than I did down. Word of caution: the terrain is rocky and loose. Don’t trust any rock, even the large ones, as they roll. Here are the routes I took, solid line up, dotted line down (but it’s really choose your own adventure). This is how I would recommend ascending and descending.

Here are some pictures of the route up. Oh, and there were quite a few spiders/spiderwebs here. The spiders had bodies about as thick as a nickel, and I probably saw 200 of them or more. My trekking pole was useful in clearing away the spiderwebs.

Once I gained the ridge, I turned right and looked southeast, and I could see the summit of PT 13150

I made this a ridge hike, and was able to keep it class 3, but on the way back I was able to keep the hike class 2, so that’s the description I’m going to give you. Instead of taking the ridge, this is the route you want to take, staying level at about 12975’ of elevation:

Here are some pictures of the route

You’re looking for this gully to ascend on the ridge. There’s a cairn at the top.

I gained the gully, and looked east. I could see PT 13150

This was an easy ridge hike on very loose rock. I stayed on the ridge.

Then the ridge dipped down a bit before the final ascent

This was once again a loose, rocky ascent

Here’s the route I took

I summited PT 13150 at 8am

13150:

There was a plastic summit register tube, and of course, everything inside was wet. For the descent, I turned and headed back the way I’d come, but this time I descended via a small gully, then stayed level at 12975’ to make it back to the saddle. The arrow in the first picture points to where I descended

Here are some pictures of the route to the ridge

I then dipped down, and aimed for the saddle

Here are pictures of my route back to the saddle

At the saddle, I turned left and headed east back down into the basin. I could clearly see the Colorado Trail/CDT below

Back on the trail, I followed it back to Hancock Lakes

And left the Colorado Trail/CDT to head back to 295

The 4WD road back

I made it back to my truck at 10:30am, making this an 8.32 mile hike with 2188’ of elevation gain in 5 hours.

On to the next trailhead!

For anyone interested, here are a few pictures from the ridge (that you can avoid, if you want)

Fairview Peak – 13,224 and Green Mountain 12,692

RT Length: 7.75 miles

Elevation Gain: 2314’

I drove up to Cumberland Pass from Pitkin the night before my hike, and settled in. The road was dirt 2WD, with a few places where clearance would be helpful, but otherwise it was an easy drive. There was someone in a tractor grading the road, so I can only imagine it will get better from there. I people watched for a few hours, then had the pass to myself for the next 18 hours, as it was only busy during the afternoon.

The next morning, I was on the trail at 5:30am. I actually followed a 4WD road, at the west end of the parking area. Side note: On this hike I saw over a dozen grave markers. I’m not sure if there were bodies buried underneath, or ashes spread, but it seemed excessive.

I followed this road west and then southwest as it gained and lost elevation.

After hiking for a little over a mile the road didn’t end, but it was snow covered, so I followed the ridge.

Here’s the route up to Green Mountain

I could tell there was a road here at one time, but it hasn’t been used in quite a while. At points it was a small trail, and at others it resembled a runnel. It was rocky, but only about 650’ of elevation gain to reach the unranked summit. Here are some pictures of the route.

The summit was to the left (south)

I summited Green Mountain at 6:20am

Green Mountain:

From Green Mountain I turned around, and looked northwest. I could clearly see the summit of Fairview Peak, and the route I needed to take to get there.

This was going to be a ridge hike, with a lot of ups and downs, but also fairly straightforward. I headed northwest, and followed the ridge. There were a lot of mines in the area.

Here’s the view looking over at PT 12556 (not ranked, etc.). There were 5 crosses in a circle at the summit. I’m not sure of their significance.

This was fairly easy terrain, mainly tundra that eventually became rocky

From 12556, this is the route I took over to Fairview Peak, skirting one of the points on the ridge to the left by traversing over rocky, but stable terrain.

Here are some pictures of the route, which was very rocky

At the top of the ridge, I could clearly see the summit hut at the top to my left. I headed south to the summit

I summited Fairview Peak at 7:45am

Fairview Peak:

The summit hut was open, so I went inside. There was still a lot of snow on the floor. It didn’t look like anyone had been there yet this year. There were tools, ladders, and a box with the history of the structure and improvements being made inside.

From inside the structure, I could see Green Mountain to the southeast

I turned and headed back the way I’d come, back down the ridge

Here are some pictures of my route back to Green Mountain

Here’s a look at re-gaining the last 225’ to the top of Green Mountain

From the summit of Green Mountain, I headed northeast. I could clearly see the road I was aiming for that would take me back to Cumberland Pass. I’m sure you can see the road in this picture, but snow blocked my access to get to it, so this is the route I took.

Here are some pictures of my way back to the 4WD road, which started out rocky and then turned to tundra

And from the road back to Cumberland Pass

I made it back to my truck at 10am, making this a 7.75 mile hike with 2314’ of elevation gain and a ton of searching for cool rocks in 4.5 hours.

On to the next trailhead!

13,308 and 12,580

RT Length: 31.68 miles

Elevation Gain: 6041’

I drove to the Eddiesville trailhead the night before, and was up and on the trail at 4:30am. I’ve been in this area for over a week, and was fairly confident I wasn’t going to need microspikes or an ice axe (I didn’t). The trail starts at the south end of the parking area, and follows the Colorado Trail.

I followed the Colorado Trail for 8.25 miles, all the way to the San Luis Peak/13166 saddle. This was a very well-marked trail, which made it difficult to get lost. Also, there weren’t many trail intersections, also making it easy not to get lost. I crossed several small creeks and downed trees on my way, and passed through two gates (latched, not locked).

Here are some pictures of the terrain, which followed Cochetopa creek up the basin.

After hiking for 7 miles, I crossed Stewart Creek

I was now above treeline, and could see the 13166/San Luis Peak saddle.

The Colorado Trail nicely brought me there.

I would now lose 255’ of elevation as I headed down west, towards another pass, still following the Colorado Trail

Here’s the route

It was all pretty easy, class 1 hiking

I arrived at the next pass, and lost another 460’ of elevation, once again, on a nice class 1 trail. This one took me through Bondholder Meadows

Here’s the route

After hiking for a total of 12.5 miles, and at 12290’ of elevation, I saw this cairn, and turned left, leaving the Colorado Trail. I headed south a short ways to the ridge. There was a little bit of snow here, but spikes (etc.) were not needed.

Once on the ridge, I turned left again and followed it southeast. Here I stashed my backpacking gear and started hiking with a daypack with just the necessities. Please keep in mind, what you see here is a false summit. This was all easy class 2 on tundra.

At the false summit, I could see the true summit of 13308. I would need to descend about 135’, and then re-ascend another 335’ to make it to the summit. This area was a mix of tundra and rocks. I followed the ridge southeast.

Once I reached the top of the rocky ridge I was greeted with Alpine tundra. I headed east towards the summit.

When I got there, I was unsure if I was at the summit, or if it were the pint further, so I climbed up and down (still class 2) to the summit further east, but when I got there, the first summit looked higher. When I checked my altimeter, both summits had the same elevation, but when I got back to the first summit, there was a summit register, so there’s no need to climb back and forth. Here’s the view looking at the second summit

And a view from the second summit looking back at the first

I summited PT 13308 at 11:45am

PT 13308:

I headed back down the ridge to where I’d stashed my gear, first descending, then reascending, then descending again.

Here’s looking at that rocky false summit

From that summit, I could see my next peak, 12580

This is where the wind picked up. Forecasted winds were 20-25mph, but I’m sure these exceeded 50mph. I had to hold onto my bandana, as it kept getting blown off my head. I made my way back to my stashed gear, then back to the Colorado Trail.

Once on the Colorado Trail, I continued following it northwest for about .75 miles

I rounded the side of a hill, and PT 12580 came into view. I left the trail, and headed towards the summit. This was all class 2 on tundra, then class 2 on rocks

There was a summit register, which hadn’t been signed in over a year, so I’m thinking this isn’t a very popular peak. I summited PT 12580 at 2pm

PT 12580:

Now to head back down the trail. I took the same way out as I did in. I wanted to sleep close to Bondholder Meadows, but preferably in the trees.

I ended up hiking further than intended, because the campsites I found were full of very dead trees, each placed perfectly to fall on me wherever I chose to sleep. With the current wind gusts, I didn’t want to chance it, so I hiked to the very end of the trees, and found a place to camp surrounded by willows, near a creek that still had a little bit of snow.

I set up my bivy, ate dinner, and bedded down for the night. It was an uneventful and warm night, except for the purring I heard around midnight and the thundering hooves I heard when I woke up. I never saw either animal.

The next morning I was up and on the trail by 6am, headed northeast along the Colorado trail. Here are the two passes I needed to go over

At the top of the last pass, now all I had to do was follow the class 1 trail back to the trailhead.

Here are some pictures the rest of the way back to the trailhead. I saw a couple of bull moose munching in the willows, but that’s common for this area.

I made it back to my truck at 10am.

This was a 31.68 mile hike with 6041’ of elevation gain.

On to the next trailhead!

Ruby Mountain – 13,278

RT Length: 4.74 miles

Elevation Gain: 2212’

I started from the Argentine Pass Trailhead at 5am. The 214 road in was easy 4WD, with a lot of small potholes, so I took it slow. There’s room for several vehicles at the trailhead.

I continued following 214 northeast (the road parallels Peru Creek) and quickly came to a gate and Shoe Basin mine.

I passed the gate, and continued along the road.

After hiking for about half a mile I turned left onto what used to be a road, but is now more of a trail.

I continued following the trail until I came to a junction. Going left will take you to the Peruvian Mine, and going left will take you to the Paymaster Mine. I turned right, and continued following the road.

The trail became overgrown with willows but was still easy to follow

I now had a pretty good overview of the route into the upper basin. The Paymaster mine is circled.

And some step-by-step pictures along the way. There is a cairn marking where you leave the trail. The willows here are pretty thick, but only lasts for 20 feet or so.

There was still melting snow and water on this part of the trail

Just before making it to the mine, I turned left and climbed up the hill. The route was obvious.

Now in the upper basin, the route seemed obvious to me. I was going to take the snow free slope to the ridge.

This was all class 2. Here are some step-by-step pictures of the route I took to the ridge

The tundra quickly turned to talus, but was all class 2 and easy to navigate.

Once gaining the ridge, I turned left and followed the ridge southwest to the summit. This was an easy tundra stroll

I summited Ruby Mountain at 6:30am

Ruby Mountain:

Here’s a view of Gray’s Peak from the summit of Ruby Mountain

It was a windy day on the summit, so I turned around and headed back the way I came. Also, beware of the cornices… there’s plenty of tundra to walk on, so use that.

Here are some pictures of the descent route back to the basin

Back in the basin, I turned left and headed northeast towards the Paymaster mine and back to the road

I followed the road back towards the Peruvian mine (circled), turned left, and followed it back to 214.

Then I followed the road back to the trailhead

I made it back to the trailhead at 7:45am, making this a 4.74 mile hike with 2212’ of elevation gain in 2 hours, 45 minutes.

On to the next trailhead!

13,026

RT Length: 12.96 miles

Elevation Gain: 2979’

Day 3 at the Eddiesville Trailhead, and I really, really didn’t want to get out of bed. It had been between 25-30 degrees the past two mornings when I woke up, and this morning it was going to be even colder. There had been a thunderstorm last night, and I knew there would be a thick layer of frost on the ground. And it was cold. I mean really, really, cold, and I had a creek crossing I knew I was going to have to get through. I have Raynaud’s, so this is actually something rather dangerous for me to attempt, especially in cold weather so far from communication. And all I had to wear were yoga pants and a thick jacket. The weather forecast had called for warmer weather, so I hadn’t brought my warm snow pants. I stayed under the covers for about 15 minutes, contemplating if I should even go out. I mean, I didn’t even know if the route I was going to attempt ‘went’. Then, all of the sudden, something clicked. I started asking myself if it were really worth it, and immediately my attitude changed, and I shot out of bed. No, I love mountaineering, and that comes with being uncomfortable sometimes. This was all mental, and I needed to get myself out of this funk. I never regret a hike, and I was just being silly. Once I started hiking, I’d warm up. I had to just rip the band aid off and go.

I was on the trail at 4:15am. The trail starts off at the south end of the parking area.

I followed the Colorado Trail south and then southwest for 5.4 miles. This is a well maintained, class 1 trail, easy to follow, even in the dark.

After hiking for about 5.4 miles, I came to a clearing, and to my left I could see an avalanche runout. It was my plan to climb up this runout and see if I could summit the peak this way.

I left the trail, and sat down on a rock to exchange my hiking shoes for my stream crossing shoes. The creek was too big to pole vault across, and the water level was too high to rock hop, so even though it was 5am and freezing cold out, I was going to cross the stream and get my feet wet.

Imagine my surprise when the water was warm! Well, not warm exactly, but warmer than the 25-degree air I’d been hiking in. It was an easy stream crossing, with the water coming up to just above my knees. I exited the stream, changed back into my socks and hiking boots, and was on my way.

This is the route I took up the avalanche drainage

And some step-by-step photos. This ended up being about 2000’ of elevation gain in 1 mile.

Eventually, the terrain gave way to tundra

Once I made it to the ridge, I turned right, and followed it southeast to the summit. The terrain here was still all class 2, starting out as tundra and then changing to rocky.

I summited 13,026 at 7:45am

13026:

And now, to head back down. I just retraced my steps back to the avalanche runout, heading northeast

And then made my way back down to the creek

I crossed the creek again, and headed back to the Colorado Trail

I then took the Colorado Trail northwest back to the trailhead. I’d been on this trail 3 times in the past 3 days, and this afternoon I noticed bear tracks along the trail. A bear must have come through last night, as these tracks hadn’t been there before.

Here are some pictures of the trail back to the trailhead

I made it back to my truck at 10:45am, making this a 12.96 mile hike with 2979’ of elevation gain in 6.5 hours.

On to the next trailhead!