Laura M Clark

Huerfanito – 13,083

RT Length: 9.66 miles

Elevation Gain: 3008’

I moved my truck. Just a little bit. I noticed as I was sitting around during the day there was a rather large tree poised to fall directly on my truck if the wind blew too hard, which it was currently doing. I moved it about 50 feet away, but still in the same area.

I slept much better that night. I woke up and was on the trail at 4:30am, following the road south to the Lily Lake Trailhead.

The road was clearer than it was 2 days ago, which I thought was suspicious, because I’d been in the area and hadn’t heard any chainsaws. The road was cleared almost right up to the trailhead, but the path was tiny. It looked like it was made just for ATVs, so imagine my surprise when I made it to the trailhead and saw a 4Runner and several trucks parked there (sporting Colorado pinstripes, of course).

I headed south on the Lily Lake Trail

I signed the trail register and was on my way

While the road in was almost completely free of deadfall, the trail was not. There were still several large, downed trees lining the trail.

The trail was still easy to follow, with a few minor creek crossings.

After hiking for 1.85 miles, I came to a junction and continued south, going around this downed tree to find the trail

I came to the Huerfano River Crossing, and cursed myself for not bringing my creek crossing shoes. Luckily, the water only went up to my knees.

I crossed the river and followed the trail to the right.

The trail picked up again at the other side, and I had no problem following it south…

Until I had a problem following it south. This is where the fun route finding begins. Right where these trees cross the trail, turn left and go up the little waterfall trickling down. I was at 10720’ of elevation

There was a trail here, and I was able to pick it up at times, but there are also tons of social trails. The area hasn’t had much use since the Lindsey closure, and it’s apparent. It would be a good idea to have a GPX file for this area.

It helps if you follow the boulder field southeast, and keep the stream to your right

Eventually the trail will cross the creek

This trail will bring you to the upper basin

Here’s the route to took to the summit of Huerfanito from the upper basin. I took the dotted route up, the solid route down. If I had to do this again, I’d take the solid route up and back.

I left the trail at 11995’, and headed south. When I reached the bottom of the slope I put on my microspikes and headed straight up, following the line of snow. The scree here was rotten, definitely 2+

Here are pictures of the route up. This is definitely choose your own adventure, and I’m sure the conditions change from year to year, so stay safe and have fun!

Once at the saddle, I turned and headed left

There are a lot of places that look like the summit, but this is the summit block

I rounded the summit block to the south and headed east. This was class 2 to the summit

I summited Huerfanito at 7:45am. There was no place to set the camera, so I took a selfie with my phone.

Huerfanito:

While there was a cairn there, I spent a lot of time making sure I was at the true summit of Huerfanito, since I had a lot of conflicting information. I went back and forth on the ridge, took pictures from every angle, and was certain I was on the true summit.

Now to head back down. I retraced my steps back to the small saddle

From the saddle I had a great view of my route in, which I would follow back

I scree-surfed down the scree. The route I took on the way down had scree that made for the best scree-surfing I’ve ever done. I was back down to the tundra in no time.

At the bottom I took off my microspikes, and headed north to find the trail.

I then followed the trail back to the river crossing

I crossed the river, once again taking off my shoes, and then followed the trail back to the trailhead

I signed out of the register, and followed the 4WD road back to my truck

I made it back to my truck at 10:15am, making this a 9.66 mile hike with 3008’ of elevation gain in 5 hours, 45 minutes.

On to the next trailhead!

13557

RT Length: 8.88 miles

Elevation Gain: 3538’

I was I this area two days ago, but had a commitment back in Colorado Springs, so I went back home for a day. The event ended at 8pm, and I drove back up to the Lily Lake trailhead that evening. It was a Thursday night, but I was surprised to see a lot of the dispersed campsites already taken. I ended up taking the last space, at 10350’, just before the downed trees started along the road. I’d wanted to camp lower, but this would be a good place to set off for my next hike in a few days. I was on the trail at 5am.

I followed the 4WD dirt road north for XXXX miles, to the Raspberry Trail (1307). This had been where I’d wanted to stop for the night, but there were vehicles already camped there.

I followed the Raspberry Trail to a register, signed my name, and navigated around the downed tree blocking the path

I followed the trail down to the Huerfano River, and crossed it on downed logs

From here, I followed the class 1 trail as it switchbacked up the hillside. There were several large downed trees obscuring the trail, but the trail was always easy to find.

The trail leveled off, and I came across some fire rings. Here I left the trail and headed south until I hit treeline. There was no path, and there were a lot of downed trees, but navigation wasn’t very difficult.

Once at treeline, the ground changed to tundra. I continued following the tundra south.

Quickly, 13577 came into view

Here’s my route to the summit

This was a simple, but long, tundra walk, with some rocks thrown in. The ridge was 1.5 miles from treeline to summit. Here are a few pictures of the route

I summited 13577 ay 7:45am

13577:

Check out the views of Lindsey

I turned and retraced my steps back to the trail

Here’s the overall route I took back to the trail

One in the trees it was difficult to navigate because I didn’t have any visuals. I continued heading north until I crossed the Raspberry Trail. There will be a lot of deadfall in this area.

Once back on Raspberry Trail, I followed it back to the 4WD road

I then followed the road back to my truck

This gave me a great view of PT 13577 from below

I made it back to my truck at 10am, making this an 8.88 mile hike with 3538’ of elevation gain in 5 hours. I’ll be staying at this trailhead…

PT 13656

RT Length: 16 miles

Elevation Gain: 4031’

Please note, my stats are off. This summit took some route finding, and additional miles/elevation gain. Your numbers should be lower.

I’ve been going crazy for about a month. It was May 21, while we were getting 2 feet of snow during a spring storm, when I went online to check some summits for an upcoming trip. It was then I noticed I no longer had 200 bicentennials, but 199. I panicked! And of course, did some research. It was then I noticed we now had a new bicentennial, PT 13656. I’d summited what I’d thought were all the Bicentennials last September, and spent the next 7 months writing a book about my journey, which was published May 8^th. I knew my completion date still stood because I’d completed the Bicentennials as listed at the time, but it didn’t feel right marketing my book so soon after the change without completing this peak as well. So I didn’t. Instead, I planned.

I couldn’t find much information about this peak, so I pulled up my previous trip reports from other peaks in the area, and came up with 3 possibilities of summit options from the Upper Huerfano/Lily Lake trailhead, and upper Lily Lake:

1: Take a line in south to the ridge, which looked like it ‘went’ (It didn’t)

2: Take the gully

3: Summit 13577 and take the ridge to 13656 (I’m glad I didn’t end up needing to do this, as the ridge looked rotten).

I was in Minnesota, hiking its highest point, Eagle Mountain. (Side note: If you’ve ever wanted to experience mosquito swarms of biblical plague proportions, along with questionable foot bridges through swamps teeming with water snakes, this hike is for you!) I was only there because of Charles Mound, the highest point in Illinois. For those of you who know about state high pointing, you know the highest point of Illinois is located on private property, and only open a few days a year. Long story short, I decided to hit this high point instead of PT 13656 because of accessibility issues, but, when I was in Minnesota I checked the weather and did the math, and realized if I drove with a purpose, I’d be able to make it to the Upper Huerfano/Lily Lake trailhead the next day, and could attempt a summit.

I made it to the trailhead at 4:15am, parking a little lower than necessary because I’d heard there were blowdowns across the road. There were, so this was a great idea. I parked at about 10,200’.

I was on the trail at 4:30am, and followed the 4WD road to the Lily Lake Trailhead. Crews have done a great job clearing downed trees, but there were very few places to pass other vehicles, and honestly, there are still a lot of trees to be cleared.

It was about 2.3 miles from where I parked to the trailhead. The parking area as littered with branches, but once the downed trees along the way are cleared, it should be good to go. I signed the trail register, which is in need of more paper, and was on my way.

Did I mention the blowdowns? There were quite a few alone the trail as well. They weren’t difficult to navigate around, just a bit annoying. You can see a few here at the beginning

And here are a few more…

I followed the class 1 (minus the downed trees) trail to the Lily Lake cutoff, and turned right (the path to the left, that goes towards Lindsey, was blocked by a downed tree). This junction was 1.25 miles from the upper trailhead.

I then followed the trail to another junction, .2 miles away, which is where I made my first mistake of the day. The sign showed the Lily Lake trail as going straight, so that’s what I did, I continued hiking straight. But I should have turned off the trail and headed north at this point. You’d think, because I’ve been on this trail, I would have remembered this, but… I didn’t. I ended up hiking along a path that paralleled the Huerfano river for way too long before noticing my mistake. Here’s some advice: If you see yellow surveyors tape and are heading through avalanche debris but you’re on a trail… you’re on the wrong trail. The good news is they parallel each other, so if you head west, you’ll eventually connect with the correct trail. Here’s the junction and the way you should go:

This trail is easy to follow, and will lead you to Lily Lake

Here’s the final push. There is a trail here, it’s just overgrown.

After 4.1 miles of hiking from the upper trailhead I was at Lily Lake, where the trail ended.

Here’s the info you need. This is the route you want to take. Trust me.

Here are some pictures on the way to the upper lake. The rocks aren’t stable, and a lot of them roll, so make sure you watch your step while rock hopping.

Here’s where I made another mistake. I tried to take a route to the left first, by following a dry couloir and what looked like a line filled with tundra/dirt. This was a bad idea. It started out as class 3, then sustained class 4 (for about 300’). I quickly felt out of my depth as it increased to class 5. I had a helmet, but seriously felt I needed a rope. I got to a place where it was decision time, and decided to descend those 300’ and try a different route. I knew I was close to the ridge, but could not justify the exposure and class difficulty. I reminded myself I had 3 potential routes for this peak, and an event I was speaking at tomorrow talking about managing risk and being a positive mentor to Girl Scouts. I did not feel I could continue on and still remain truthful tomorrow, so I backtracked. Climbing down was much more difficult than climbing up: I had to face the mountain and take it one step at a time. This entire side was sketchy. Please don’t use this route, especially since the gully can be kept at 2+. Here are some pictures of the route you SHOULD NOT TAKE

Instead, here’s what you want to do:

Take the gully! It’s slippery due to the scree, but with microspikes, manageable

I aimed for the 13654/13656 saddle. Once again, slippery scree, but manageable

Here’s a view of that line I was trying to take earlier in the day. The red circle is where I retreated. Once again, don’t take this line!!!

I kept working my way towards the saddle

Here’s a view of PT 13656

Once at the saddle I turned and followed the ridge southeast. This was all class 3 scrambling. I was able to stick to the ridge the entire time. Here are some pictures of the ridge

I summited PT 13656 at 10:15am.

I spent a lot of time on that summit, making sure the true summit wasn’t further to the southeast. I pulled up Peakbagger (not yet updated), CalTopo, my Compass (which read 13660) and several other sites. In the end, I determined this was the true peak, and left a summit register.

PT 13656:

The route back was now very straightforward. I worked my back down the ridge towards the saddle

Oh, and the route up to 13654 looks sketchy…

And then scree surfed back to Lily Lake. Once again, this is very loose scree, and I wore microspikes. I consistently had 6 inches of scree sliding beneath me, and as long as I kept up with it, I kept a good pace.

Here’s my route back to the lake

This is where I picked back up with the trail

Following the route back was easy, except for all those blowdowns.

I made it back to my truck at 2:30pm, making this a 16 mile hike with 4031’ of elevation gain and a ton of route finding in 10 hours. I hope this trip report was helpful, and I’m sure you can do this route faster! It felt so good to check this one off the list!!!

On to the next trailhead!

Whitecross Mountain – 13,542

RT Length: 7.45 miles

Elevation Gain: 3288’

Once again, just like with Sundog, I was staying near the Cooper Creek trailhead, to both give me added miles and also more peace and quiet. I waved to my neighbors camping across the way, but they didn’t seem up for conversation. No worries: I put together a trip report and made it an early night. I was on the trail at 4:30am.

I made it to the Redcloud/Sunshine trailhead before 5am, and once again, it was bustling with hikers getting ready for their day. Surprisingly, none of them made their way over to Handies Peak. I turned right, and took the Grizzly Gulch trail up into the basin.

There was an information board, a bridge to cross, and a register to sign.

If you’re reading this, I’m assuming you’ve already hiked Handies Peak and know the approach. If not, it’s an easy, well maintained, class 1 trail to the basin.

At around 11860’ of elevation, I turned and left the trail. It was just over a runnel crossing, and before a section of willows. I headed northwest, up to the ridge of Whitecross.

Here’s my overall route. Please note, the actual summit is hidden.

And some step-by-step photos. Initially, I skirted the willows to the right

Then I found a large boulder, and skirted it to the left. (It was the only boulder in a sea of tundra, and difficult to miss).

In times without snow, I’d just aim for the ridge. However, there was a cornice lining the ridge, so I stayed under the snow. This worked well.

The tundra was steep. On the way down I’d use microspikes for tractions, but none was needed on the way up. I kept aiming for the rock outcropping, careful to skirt the messy areas.

Once again, in a year without snow, it would be prudent to take the dotted line. Today, I took the solid line up a side gully.

I was aiming for these three spires

The gully was a mix of tundra and scree

When I got to the top I turned left, and realized this had been a false summit. The true summit is just a little bit to the northwest.

I cursed myself for leaving my ice axe in the car. I put on my microspikes, lowered my trekking pole to the size of an ice axe, and hoped the snow was solid. It was! I was able to easily make my way across. Here’s my route:

I was lucky the snow was in perfect conditions: A fall wouldn’t have been fun.

Once past this area, it was a quick walk to the summit

I summited Whitecross at 7:15am

Whitecross:

From the summit you could see Handies Peak, and the ridge. It was starting to snow lightly, and remembering the last time I was in the area, and got caught I several storms while climbing Handies Peak, I decided to head back.

Here’s my route off the summit

The area with snow was sketchier on the way down than it had been on the way up, as there was a bit of downclimbing and a trust move involved. Luckily, the snow was the perfect consistency. My main concern would have been to have fallen through/postholed, but that didn’t happen this early in the morning.

And now to head back down the gully

I kept my microspikes on for this part, and all the way until I made it back to the trail. It was pretty straightforward. Here’s my route:

When I made it to the trail I took off my microspikes as it started to snow a little harder. I followed the trail back to the trailhead

I made it back to the trailhead, and followed the road back to my truck.

I made it back to my camping spot at 9am, making this a 7.45 mile hike with 3288’ of elevation gain in 4.5 hours.

On to the next trailhead!

Sundog – 13,437

RT Length: 8.1 miles

Elevation Gain: 3219’

Normally you’d start this hike from the Silver Creek/Grizzly Gulch trailhead, the same one as used for Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks, but it’s Memorial Day weekend, and I knew that trailhead would be crowded. Also, I’ve had porcupines visit me there in the middle of the night, interested in the wires underneath my truck. Instead, I parked a little over half a mile further up the road, near Cooper Creek. Not only did I have the site to myself, but I got to hear the creek rushing by as I slept.

After an early night, I was still hesitant to get out of bed at 4:15am. It took willpower, but I was on the trail by 4:30am. As I passed the Silver Creek trailhead there were dozens of headlamps indicating busy activity. I cruised by, and started up the trail.

At the top of the hill was a trail register I need of repair: The top isn’t fastened to the base. As per usual, I didn’t see the register on the way in, as it was off to the side and didn’t have anything reflective indicating it was there.

So, I didn’t sign the register, and instead followed the trail as it paralleled Silver Creek. The trail was very well maintained, with just a few downed trees here and there.

At around 11300’ of elevation, I left the trail to head down towards the creek. I left the trail where an obvious, and massive, avalanche had occurred a few years earlier. There was a faint trail closer to the creek.

My goal was to cross the creek and head up Sundog’s north ridge. I crossed the creek near some willows, on a few logs that seemed to have been placed for just that purpose. On my way in, and on my way out, these logs were coated in ice, which made the crossing interesting.

Safely across the creek, it was time to follow the ridge by heading south. The ridge was easy to follow, but there was some initial avalanche debris to navigate.

I noticed all the trees seemed to be leaning up, not down, which I thought was odd, until I looked behind me. It was obvious a large avalanche had occurred on the opposite mountain, which crossed the creek, and knocked over trees several hundred feet up the ridge I was now on.

I continued following the ridge to treeline.

Just before treeline I came to an outcropping, which I maneuvered by going to the right, staying at its base.

Now at treeline, I continued to follow the ridge

As soon as the talus and scree started, it didn’t quit. There were a lot of game trails all the way to the summit, none of which were consistent.

Now is a good time to note the false summit

I followed the ridge to the summit. The ridge was straightforward, the only surprise coming at the end.

Just before the summit, I climbed up a class 2+ gully. The rocks were loose, and microspikes helped. I left behind my trekking pole and started climbing up.

At the top of the gully was more ridge (this is a false summit)

That led to the real summit

I summited Sundog at 7:15am

Sundog:

And now to head back. It was a nice day, but windy, so I didn’t stay too long on the summit. I turned and headed back the way I’d came:

It was a long ridge!

The scree filled gully was easier to navigate on the way down

Then I followed the ridge to treeline

Once at treeline, I continued to follow the ridge, aiming for the avalanche runout, and Silver Creek below

I went left this time around the rock formation

And navigated the avalanche debris to the creek

I crossed the creek on the same logs, interested to find they were still covered in a layer of ice.

I easily picked up the trail on the other side, and followed it back to the trailhead.

I then walked up the road to my truck, parked about half a mile away. I made it back to my truck at 9:30am, making this a 8.1 mile hike with 3219’ of elevation gain in 5 hours.

Oh, and I found a stash of 8 track tapes near an old, abandoned mine. I wonder if they’re still good?

On to the next trailhead!

Grand Turk – 13,167, Sultan Mountain – 13368, Spencer Peak – 13,080

RT Length: 10.36

Elevation Gain: 3539’

I spent the night dispersed camping at the Molas Trailhead, because the views there are amazing. Added bonus: I was able to talk with trail runners who had been along the trail to the Vestal Basin, and learned (at least to the Beaver Ponds) it’s all melted out and there aren’t any new downed trees.

I woke up at 4:30 am and drove to the Little Molas Lake Trailhead. The gate to the campground was still locked.

It was still ark when I started out. I followed the road through the campground, staying right on the one- way loop.

After hiking along the road for 1 mile, when I saw this sign to my left, I headed north through the trees (I turned right)

I came to a low and large outcropping of boulders, and turned right again

I then followed the ridge northeast

I crossed a small creek, and continued heading northeast.

There were game trails in the area, and I followed them when I could, but mostly, I kept heading northeast, towards a large creek (crossing a smaller one in the process).

As I was hiking, I could see the gully I’d eventually need to ascend. I kept heading towards it.

I came to a larger creek, and crossed it on a snow bridge. Then I stayed right and walked along a willow-lined plateau

Here’s the overall route

Once in the basin, I made my way toward the gully

Today the gully was dry where I ascended, I was even able to pick up a trail towards the top.

At the top of the gully the snow started, and I began heading northeast.

This is where I was headed, towards Spencer Peak

I gained the ridge, and picked up an obvious trail. I followed that trail east. I could have just gone up and over Spencer Peak at that time, but I chose to follow the trail and summit Grand Turk first, by skirting the north side of Spencer.

Here’s a look at the rest of the route. I did Grand Turk first, and then Sultan, but you could do it in reverse as well.

Here’s the route I took

And some closer images of the way to Grand Turk

I summited Grand Turk at 7:35am

Grand Turk:

Now to head over to Sultan Mountain

I re-traced my steps west, following the ridge

And then followed the ridge all the way to Sultan Mountain. This was all class 2 and very straightforward.

I summited Sultan Mountain at 8:40am. Check out those views!

There wasn’t any place to set my camera down on the snow to take a picture, so I took a selfie with my phone.

Sultan Mountain:

Now to turn and head back to Spencer Peak

Here’s the route I took (dotted line is the route I took in)

I retraced my steps, and then took the scree slope to the saddle

The scree slope had a well-defined trail, but it had been washed out in areas by sliding rock, so careful foot placement was a must.

Back on the saddle, I headed up Spencer Peak.

Just like the rest of the day, this was class 2

I summited Spencer Peak (unranked) at 9:30am

Spencer Peak:

Now to head back the way I came in. I followed the obvious trail west to the saddle

To descend, I looked for this obvious rock formation

Then I stayed as high as I could so as not to need to regain elevation

It should be noted, by this time in the morning, the snow was complete slush. Snowshoes wouldn’t have worked because the suncups were terrible. I was reduced to wading through the slush, with my socks and shoes sopping by the time I made it to the other side. I’m not sure gaiters would have helped. I now headed back down the gully and into the basin

Now is a good time to get a look at Little Molas Lake. That’s the direction you need to be headed to make it back to the dirt road, and the campground

Once at the far end of the basin I turned right, and headed southwest to cross the creek

And then continued heading southwest

Always heading towards Little Molas Lake

I eventually made it to the road, and followed that back to my truck

I made it back to my truck at 11:15pm, making this a 10.36 mile hike with 3539’ of elevation gain in 6 hours, 30 min.

On to the next trailhead!

Little Giant Peak – 13,417

RT Length: 9.03 miles

Elevation Gain: 3526’

From CR2 near Silverton I turned right on 52 (just about where the Mayflower Mill Mine is) and followed the road to 9950’. I could have continued on to a campsite at 10900’, but at this time I didn’t know it was there. I was glad I’d stopped at 9950’, because the road was narrow, and there weren’t any spots to turn around before the second site. Also, that’s the farthest you can drive at this point (10900’) as there are downed trees and snow blocking the road to the Big Giant Mine.

I made it to my campsite around noon, and didn’t see another person the entire time I was there. Not one car/OHV drove by me, and no hikers either.

I was parked near an abandoned aerial tramway, so I spent some time taking a look around. Old mining stuff is cool.

It was the quietest night I’d ever spent dispersed camping: I didn’t hear the wind rustle, or any animals make any noise until I got up at 4:30am. I was on the trail soon after. I started out following 52 south, then after .4 miles I turned left at a junction, and continued following the dirt road as it switchbacked up the hillside.

Moose scat. There was tons of it, but none looked fresh. I saw it around my campsite, and all along the road. I passed the campsite at 10900’ after hiking for 1.5 miles. This was the only place to park/turn around/pass another vehicle from where I parked my truck. (There’s a fire ring behind the snow at this site).

Just after passing the campsite snow began to line the road, and I came across some downed trees.

After hiking for just under 2.5 miles I came to the Big Giant Mine.

I continued following the road into the Little Giant Basin. The road was either dry, or covered in snow.

I saw more mining structures along the way.

Once in the basin, I was able to see a trail to my left. However, due to the snow, there was no start to the trail. So I put on my microspikes and aimed for the trail in the distance, which took me to a pass.

Once on the trail, there was snow in several sections, all passable in the morning with microspikes. I aimed for the saddle.

At the saddle I turned right, and followed the trail southwest

The trail I was supposed to take around the side of the mountain was covered in more snow than I wanted to deal with, so I went up and over the ridge.

When I made it to the top of the scree, I came to a rocky area. I decided to go up and over the rocks, which was an easy class 3 scramble, but when I got to the end, I was met with snow and terrain I couldn’t downclimb, so I had to backtrack. Instead, go around the rock outcropping to the left. I was met with snow, but it was traversable.

By staying left, and skirting the outcropping, I got a good view of the rest of the route to the summit, which included ‘choose your own adventure’ route finding. I just kept aiming for the peak.

Towards the top I was met with snow. I followed it to the summit.

I summited Little Giant Peak at 8:15am

Little Giant:

The snow was quickly softening up, so I didn’t stay long. I re-traced my steps back to the saddle.

The snow was exceedingly soft behind the rock outcropping, even though it was not yet 9am.

I made my way back toward the saddle, and followed the trail back into the basin

When the trail gave out, I aimed for the mine in the distance, where the road picked up again

I then followed the road back to my truck

I made it back to my truck at 10:15am, making this a 9.03 mile hike with 3526’ of elevation gain in 5 hours, 30 minutes.

On to the next trailhead!

Kendall Mountain – 13,353

RT Length: 6.19 miles

Elevation Gain: 2742’

Let me begin by saying Kendall Mountain was not my first intended peak of the day, so my stats and topo map are a little off. I made it to the Kendall Gulch parking area the night before, and slept at 11460’.

The next morning I rose late, and was on the trail after the sun had risen, at 6am. The road was easy to follow, and clear of snow the first half of the way.

I was originally headed toward Kendall Peak; specifically, the gully

Here are some pictures of the way to the gully… I just followed the road to a mine

Once at the base, the route looked simple enough: I just needed to get up the gully to the ridge, and take the ridge to the summit

I’m really embarrassed to say this, but I wasn’t able to get up the gully. I made it about half way, and it became too steep. This was worse than kitty litter over rocks. It was talus that gave way to rockslides, and tiny pebbles over rock. Even with microspikes on, I couldn’t get traction, and kept slipping and falling down. It’s a lot steeper than it looks. I tried several different routes, but was unable to gain traction on any of them. After my fourth or fifth attempt, I started thinking to myself – who wasn’t wearing a helmet – “This isn’t the way I want to die.” While I might have been able to make it up (doubtful) going down was going to be worse. I made the decision to come back in the winter and try this as a snow climb, which should provide more traction. This was a difficult decision to make, but I knew it was the correct one.

So, I backtracked, and tackled Kendall Mountain. I hiked back to a junction in the road, at 12.265’.

From the junction, I headed up to PT 12660

From PT 12660 I turned right and followed the ridge northeast towards Kendall Mountain.

Here’s the route I took to the summit (solid line) and back down (dotted line). You could go up the way I descended, but it would be steep.

Here are some close-ups of the route to Kendall Mountain

The tundra gave way to small rocks toward the top

I summited Kendall Mountain at 9:20am

Kendall Mountain:

From the summit, when I looked southwest I could see my truck (circled)

I aimed for it, and the road below. It’s important to head southwest, because the terrain cliffs out if you head directly south or southeast. This was steep, but it was easy to gain traction.

I made it back to the road, and followed it to my truck.

Here’s a topo map of the haphazard route I took.

Wild Wanderer: Soloing Colorado’s 200 Highest Peaks

I know I’ve been silent for a few months, and I want to thank those of you who reached out to me asking how I was doing. Yes, I was still summiting peaks, but I was summiting repeat peaks, so I wouldn’t need to write up trip reports. Instead, I was spending my writing time… writing a book! I’m proud to say I’m officially a published author!!! I’m not going to promote the book for a couple of weeks, as I’d like some friends to read it and post reviews first. It takes 10 positive reviews to counter each negative one, so if you enjoy my book, please post a positive review on Amazon. If you notice a spelling error (etc.) please let me know: I can still fix it before the big launch. Please go easy on me: I’m more of a blogger than a writer. Thank you all for your continued support! Don’t buy the hard cover.

You can purchase the book here on Amazon.

Menos Alto – 13,028

RT Length: 11.91 miles

Elevation Gain: 5143’

The San Isabel Creek Trailhead has a camping spot directly at the trailhead. I parked a few yards away I a pullout, and was on the trail by 5:15am (after taking a 20 minute nap: I was really tired this morning).

The San Isabel Trail (858) starts at the northeast side of the parking area (side note: the trail register could use a pencil)

I followed the San Isabel Trail as it headed northeast.

I crossed the creek quite a few times. Creek crossing shoes weren’t necessary, but in the early morning there was a layer of ice on the logs and rocks, calling for some careful footwork. In the afternoon the crossings were easy.

As I hiked, I came across a thin layer of snow on the ground, that eventually became a couple of inches deep. There had been a 20% chance of snow forecasted the night before, and into the afternoon today.

I hiked along the San Isabel Trail for just over 4 miles. At 10,440’ I left the trail when I saw this (what used to be a) sign on my right for Trail 881.

Here I turned left, crossed San Isabel Creek, and headed up the drainage. Here’s where I was headed. As you can see, the ridge cliffs out to the left and right, so it’s important to stick to the drainage.

There were a lot of aspen trees here. Since it’s almost winter there weren’t any leaves on the trees. I’m guessing this is a completely different hike with leaves on the trees. Today it was easy to stay in the drainage and hike up to the ridge. I put on microspikes, as the snow wasn’t that deep and the leaf-snow combination was slippery.

I made it to the ridge and turned right, following the ridge north. The actual summit is to the right.

The snow was intermittent as I was hiking. The clouds would clear a bit, and then race back in, swirling the snow around and adding to it. Luckily, following the ridge was easy. I headed towards the pine trees

Once past the pine trees the tundra turned rocky. I took this part carefully, as the thin layer of snow made the loose rocks slippery. This is steeper than it looks, but class 2.

It’s also a false summit (but you already knew that: I didn’t at the time). Here’s the actual summit

I just followed the ridge and its ups and downs. The route was simple, but the wind and snow today gave it some spice. Here are some pictures of the ridge hike

It was now time to head east and lose some elevation (not much, about 75 feet or so) and then gain the summit

The last bit to the summit was rocky. There was a large cairn at the summit with 2 summit registers. It was windy and cold, so I didn’t open them.

I summited Menos Alto at 10am. The clouds obstructed the views, but we need the snow!

Menos Alto:

When I started out on this hike snow hadn’t been anticipated. I’d planned on linking up a few other peaks (13060 and 13062) but it didn’t look like the weather was going to let up. I didn’t have a good visual of the conditions, and pictures wouldn’t have much context in a trip report: I’d have to come back for those peaks another day. I turned and re-traced my steps back down the ridge.

Here’s an overall view of the path I took from the ridge back to treeline. I descended exactly the way I ascended, to avoid cliffing out on the rocks. This was easy, as I just followed my tracks in the snow.

When it came time to descend, there wasn’t much of a visual. Just before entering the trees I noted where the trail was below me, and aimed southeast, following the drainage towards San Isabel Creek and the trail I knew was just beyond.

Here are some pictures of my way back down the drainage

I re-crossed San Isabel Creek, and headed towards the trail. I found the old wooden sign, turned right, and followed the trail 4 miles back to the trailhead.

There were still a ton of creek crossings.

Eventually the snow on the ground gave way to dirt, but it continued snowing until I made it back to the trailhead. Cutting this hike short had been a good idea.

I made it back to my truck at 1:15pm, making tis an 11.91 mile hike with 5143’ of elevation gain in 8 hours.