13130 – Wild Wanderer

Pika Peak – 13,130 and Gold Dust Peak – 13,398

Stats:

Trailhead to Negro Basin: 6.03 miles, 2403’ elevation gain
Negro Basin to Pika Peak and back to basin: 2.49 miles, 1441’ elevation gain
Negro Basin to Gold Dust Peak and back to basin: 2.64 miles, 1659’ elevation gain
Negro Basin to trailhead: 6.03 miles, 124’ elevation gain

I started from the Fulford Campground/Lake Charles Trailhead. The road to get there is 2WD but clearance is recommended. There were spaces for about 20 vehicles in the lot with overflow parking on the side of the road. I got there on a Thursday and there were already several vehicles overflowing onto the road. There are a few (5?) first-come paid campsites but no one was utilizing them while I was there. There’s a clean bathroom that actually didn’t smell too bad. Help to keep it clean people 😊

The trailhead is easily identifiable but be aware this is also the trailhead for Fulford Cave. Make sure to start on the trail that goes behind the gate.

I followed the road for a very short distance and then turned left onto Lake Charles Trail 1899

Lake Charles Trail is a class 1, easy to follow trail and well maintained without any trail crossings. I followed it all the way to Lake Charles. This trail follows East Brush Creek… east.

After hiking for about 4.5 miles I made it to Lake Charles.

This is where I made a “mistake”. I’d heard after making it to the lake to turn left and look for a headwall to ascend. The problem with this is I don’t tend to do well with written directions. I need pictures. I tried it anyway. I turned left and then wandered aimlessly looking for a headwall I couldn’t see due to the trees blocking my view and ended up back on the normal route and took the gully up. To be fair, the gully wasn’t all that bad. There was even a trail for a while. Yes, there were willows, but I found if I stuck to the right and did a little class 3 rock hopping I could avoid all the willows. I ascended this gully into Negro Basin.

As you can see by my topo map I was able to find the other gully on the way down. My advice is to turn left BEFORE the lake, when you see this sign: “Ironedge 1873”. The sign is to your right but turn left there.

You will have a visual of the rock wall and route to ascend. This was indeed easier. There was some rock hopping in the beginning, then by staying to the left of the gully you’re basically on grass the entire way up.

If taking this route head north to the headwall, then ascend towards Negro Basin.

At the top continue skirting the rocks NNE to Negro Basin.

Both routes now combined, whichever one you chose you’re in Negro Basin.

I found a place to camp, set up my tent, and waited for the storm to roll in. With a 30% chance of rain that day it rained from 5pm-9pm, and probably off and on throughout the night.

The next morning I was up and hiking at about 6:30am. I was headed for Pika Peak first. I first needed to gain the ridge via a gully. I took a different route up and down this gully. Both were class 2+, neither better than the other. It started out with large boulders then gradually the rocks got smaller and smaller. Everything was loose. I wore a helmet. Here’s an overall view of my route to the ridge:

Once at the top of the gully I turned left and followed the ridge east to the summit. It was about a mile of hiking with 1200’ of elevation gain once on the ridge. There was a lot of rock hopping. All class 2.

I summited Pika Peak at 7:45am

Pika Peak:

I turned and headed back down the ridge

Then headed down the gully back to my campsite

I got back to my campsite, filtered some water, and then relaxed for the rest of the day. I even read an entire book. I needed an off day to catch up and relax, and while I had plenty of time to do Gold Dust Peak as well I wanted to enjoy my time in the basin. I waited for the rain that was supposed to come but never came. I did however get to watch some mountain goats come down from the ridge.

Mountain Goats:

Also, pro tip: Don’t camp too close to the waterfall. While I wasn’t very close I was close enough to hear it and hearing the running water made me feel like I had to pee all night. The next morning I was on the trail at 5:30am, heading for Gold Dust Peak. From my campsite I headed northwest and ascended a gully to the ridge. Here’s my overall route:

The access gully was easy to find. I worked my way over grassy slopes, opting to skip most of the rock hopping. This gully was much easier to ascend than the one for Pika Peak. It was solid and the ascent was mostly on tundra.

You can take this gully all the way to the ridge, where it becomes class 3 for a short distance once you’ve gained the ridge, or keep it class 2 by following game trails on the right to the ridge. I followed the game trails up, the ridge down.

Once on the ridge I turned right and followed the class 2 rocky ridge northeast for a mile to the summit. This ridge was comparable to the ridge for Pika Peak. Lots of rock and lots of elevation gain.

I summited Gold Dust Peak at 8:30am

Gold Dust Peak:

I had cell service on the peak so I made a few calls and hung out for a while, then headed back down the ridge

I decided to take the class 3 section on the ridge proper to the gully. It was quick, only about 50 feet or so, and easy class 3. It saved me a lot of time route finding and was very straightforward.

Then it was down the gully and back to my campsite.

Back at my campsite I took down my tent, packed up my gear, and drank a beer. Then I headed southwest out of the basin to look for that headwall I’d heard about.

It was easier to find from above, but I did need to do a little route finding to figure it out. From exiting the basin stay to the left hugging the mountain until you come to the gully.

The rocky gully will become obvious. I rock-hopped down a bit, then went to the right and followed the grassy slope that paralleled the rocks down. It’s important to note where Lake Charles is in the distance as a frame of reference for when you can no longer see the lake.

Once down the gully I headed south towards Lake Charles and the trail.

Back on the trail I turned left and followed it 4.5 miles northeast back to the trailhead.

I made it back to the trailhead at 2:30pm.

On to the next trailhead!

Cotton King Peak – 13,490 and PT 13,130

RT Length: 18.96 miles

Elevation Gain: 6296’

It’s that wonderful time of year when I start and end hikes in the dark. I’d slept at this trailhead, quite comfortable, and didn’t want to get up. That’s the only downside to loving your sleep set-up: you don’t want to get out from under the covers. Eventually I got up, and was on the trail at 5:30am.

The Wild Cherry Trail is at the end of a fun 4WD road. There’s plenty of parking, and I had the whole place to myself the entire night (and the next day/night as well, odd since it was a Friday/Saturday/Sunday).

I followed this class 1 trail as it meandered and switchbacked alongside Wild Cherry Creek (no creek crossings this time)

The creek was running, but still kind of frozen

I was slowing down as I made it to a meadow with some nice camping spots at 11000’

So. Many. Switchbacks. I was not feeling it. I was hiking slow, my knee still hurt from yesterday, and for some reason, I felt unmotivated. I looked at my tracker: I’d gone (almost) 5 miles. I’m good at playing mental games to keep myself motivated. I decided to hike to 5 miles, then turn back. A 10 mile day is pretty good, right? When I hit 5 miles, I told myself I’d just go to the lake, and kept hiking.

Just after the meadow with the camping area I switchbacked a few times, then entered a rocky area. There was still a trail here (there’s as trail all the way to Peanut and Cherry Lakes). It was here I encountered snow. Mine were the first tracks since it snowed last (a few weeks ago?)

I knew I was getting close to the lake when I saw the sign warning me not to camp or bring livestock within 300 feet of the lakes

I continued following the trail, just wanting to see the lakes before turning back…

Once I made it to the lakes I had a visual of the rest of the route, and there was no stopping me now (visuals help my mood tremendously). Also, the sun had come up, which made everything better: I’m not a fan of gloomy days (which this one started out to be).

With my newfound energy, I was now aiming for this saddle

I could see a sort of plateau hugging the south side of Mt Owen, and that’s where I wanted to be

Here’s an overall look at my path to the Mt Owen/Cotton King saddle

First, at around 11830, before making it to Peanut Lake, I found a grassy hillside and ascended it north

This brought me to 12000’, and a boulder field. I stayed high (left), and followed the boulder field southeast towards the Mt Owen/Cotton King saddle

There are some willows to navigate, but if you stay high, you can avoid them. There’s also a game trail that picks up in the tundra. It goes as a trail about 75 percent of the time, and is easily seen from below

Once on the saddle, I didn’t follow the obvious, snow-covered trail (for obvious reasons), but instead took the class 2 ridge south.

This is a good time to get a visual of where the summit of Cotton King Peak actually lies: It’s at the end of the ridge to your left. Looks can be deceiving: There will be false summits.

Ok, so I continued up the class 2 ridge

Just before topping out there was a trail that went left. There is currently a small cornice forming, but I was able to navigate the terrain with just my trekking pole (I had microspikes and didn’t feel the need to put them on)

Now I just needed to follow the ridge. This is all class 2. Here’s an overview:

And some step-by-step photos. Up the first ridge

Then I skirted the next false summit to the left, through a gully

I was convinced this was the summit, but alas, no.

I followed the talus and rocky ridge east to the summit of Cotton King

I summited Cotton King Peak at 11:30am

Cotton King Peak:

Earlier this morning I’d made a mental deal with myself that if I summited Cotton King, I’d come back for PT 13122 another day. Well, I’d changed my mind: I was getting both in today. I turned and re-traced my steps back down the ridge.

The route up 13122 looked easy enough

But as I got closer, I realized the normal, class 2 route up to the summit was full of snow (circled in red). I wouldn’t be able to summit that way. Instead, I kept mostly to the ridge, on class 2 terrain, until my final move was difficult class 3 up a chimney to the summit. Here’s the overall route.

And some step-by-step pictures

I kept this part class 2 by staying lower than I’d wanted to where the rock outcroppings were

For the final push to the summit, I aimed for the snow areas, just for a good visual, and then followed the tundra/rock gullies to the summit. This kind of reminded me of the gullies on the Maroon Peaks.

Here’s the route I took. You can clearly see the ‘summer’ route to the left, covered in snow just before the ledge.

I just looked for a break in the rocks, and followed those towards the ridge

Here’s the class 3+ chimney I used to ascend the ridge

I summited PT 13122 at 1:10pm

PT 13122:

It looked like the true summit was further west, but I can assure you, the true summit is just as you gain the ridge. I walked over to the other side to check it out.

I know some people make this a loop, and continue heading northwest down the ridge, but I’d taken a look at the ridge down earlier in the day, and with the current snow, it didn’t look fun: either snow or cliffs to navigate at the moment. It would have been faster, in better conditions.

From the summit I made my way back to the Cotton King/PT 13122 saddle.

Then I followed my tracks back to the trail staying high in the boulder field

And once on the trail I followed it back to the trailhead

I made it back to my truck at 5pm, making this a 18.96 mile hike with 6296’ of elevation gain in 11.5 hours.

I decided I’m giving myself a down day tomorrow, and I’m just going to stay tonight at this trailhead, then drive home and hit the treadmill tomorrow. I had some spaghetti for dinner, read a bit, and enjoyed having cell service.