2017.710

12,987-foot Peak 8

Seasons Be A Changing

High country leaves are beginning to change, and fall is in the air! I wanted a late season ride at altitude. Off I ventured to the Tenmile Range to prospect some colored, two-wheeled fun. I was a bit early; leaves in this area still have 1 to 2 weeks until peak color.



Initially I rode the Breckenridge Ski Area Peak 9 access road to hasten the climb to more than 12,000 feet in elevation. My plan was to ride the access road to the Wheeler Trail, hook up with the Colorado Trail on top, drop to Copper Mountain Ski Resort, then swing around the northern terminus of the Tenmile Range on a bike path, ultimately catching the Peaks/Gold Hill trails to my vehicle.

If that sounds like a haul, it is; I didn't quite make it. I needed another 2 to 3 hours of time. As you'll see below, I was close. Nonetheless, I had a 2 p.m. turnaround because I needed to be back in the Denver metro area by 5:30. The following pic portrays a diminishing 4x4 route reaching treeline on 13,195-foot Peak 9.




Breckenridge Ski Resort is huge. Adjacent to my north was the Ski Area's Peak 8.




Below is a juvenile stand of bristlecone pine. This species occupies the krummholz and can live thousands of years.



The following zoomed pic shows what I needed another hour or two to accomplish. After leaving the 4x4 track, the switchbacks of the Wheeler Trail top out at 12,400 feet, at which point I could light the afterburners and quickly drop into Copper Mountain. Nonetheless, the bewitching-hour had arrived, and I disappointingly aimed the Black Pearl down.




Breckenridge lies at the base of the lower slopes of Peak 9.




Hopefully there will be more leaves to come.

Adios!

Stardate 2017.178

Sunrise on 14,267-foot Torreys Peak and 14,270-foot Grays Peak; elevation ranks of 11 and 9, respectively.


I Wish I Lived In The High Country
Snowcatcher and I did some cross-country skiing recently. We celebrated a belated Valentine's Day and got in some cross-country skiing on Grand Mesa, Colorado. The Grand Mesa towers close to 11,000 feet above my home town. It often receives copious amounts of snow and is a delightful area to visit and play. The road up the north side by bike is often considered one of the top three most difficult climbs in the state. I can vouch that the climb does indeed hurt.

We left the Denver metro area around 5 a.m. and reached Frisco, Colorado, just in time for a beautiful sunrise. Touching the sky on the left is 13,370-foot Mount Guyot (rank 344). The peak on the right is the terminus, and northern summit, of 13,684-foot Bald Mountain's long ridge.



Cross-country skiing on the "Mesa" was primarily backcountry touring (i.e., you took turns breaking trail) in the early years. Portions of the area now are groomed for skate skiing (below pic) and classic Nordic skiing.




Mechanically formed furrows for classic kick-and-glide skiing are parallel to the skate ski routes.




The Grand Valley lies below the escarpment (Bookcliffs) in upper center to upper center right.




Grand Mesa is flat, undulating between 10,500- and 11,000-feet of elevation. The deciduous trees are aspens.




Still wild and wooly, the mesas, plateaus and canyons of northwest Colorado rise in the distance.




Glade skiing can be at its finest here. Today's snow ranged in depth from 4.5 feet to 5.5 feet.




Here's a snow-corralled parking area.




Thanks for reading.

Adios

Stardate 2015.805

Where's the Snow

The weather forecast was for sunny skies in the high country. Mountain snows have been minimal this autumn. Snowcatcher and I took advantage of the dry by taking the mountain bikes out for jaunt up, and possible summit of, 11,481-foot Boreas Pass (pronounced Bore-ays) from the Breckenridge side. Weather quickly changed as we started up the 133-year-old rail grade. Nonetheless, we got a little ride in before the wet hit.

In the 1860s, Boreas Pass was used by gold prospectors to travel from South Park to the Blue River area of Breckenridge. Around 1866, the road was widened to accommodate wagons and stagecoaches. The Denver South Park and Pacific Railroad began laying rail in 1882, and all that hard work was abandoned in 1937. The US Army Corps of Engineers designed the rail grade for auto traffic post World War II. Boreas Pass was named after Boreas, the Greek god of the north wind. I hope you enjoy the pics. I used the iPhone as a camera again.

Clouds were quickly brewing above Breckenridge and the northern Tenmile Range.




13,684-foot Bald Mountain (state elevation rank #156)




There were still some patches of color here and there.




The road cuts had some color too.




Next year's soil vitamin supply




14,265-foot Quandary Peak (rank #14) rises at the far left.




From Victorian-era mining to 21st-century mega-ski resort, Breckenridge can share some history.



We didn't get any snow, but we got some cooler temps and rain. I must admit, even though we need the snow to start piling up, I like being able to ride my bikes this far into the autumn.

Stay tuned...

Adios

Stardate 2015.792

On Borrowed Time

Autumn greetings! I managed to play hooky several days ago to savor the beautiful fall weather that had settled in. The Black Pearl and I decided to go to Frisco, Colorado, to visit a difficult portion of the Colorado Trail (CT) that we have not been on. The aspen leaves in Frisco are at peak color and leaves of most of the aspen groves at higher elevations are gone. Nonetheless, a few holdouts may be found.



Segment 7 of the CT is only 12.8 miles in length. However, the route is rocky and loose and tops out in the clouds at 12,500 feet. In a nutshell, Segment 7 of the CT shares real estate with Gold Hill, Miners Creek and Wheeler trails.

From Frisco, my goal was to ride up the Peaks Trail to the Gold Hill Trail. Then I planned to continue up Gold Hill (I'm on the CT now) to an old, isolated, Miners Creek trailhead where I planned to ascend Miners Creek to high alpine riding along the ridgecrest of the northern Tenmile Range. After several miles of tundra riding, a westerly descent down the Wheeler Trail would deposit me at the Copper Mountain Ski Station, and I'd return to my car via the Tenmile Range bike path. Confused? So am I. Following are a handful of pics.

The ride up the Peaks Trail was not difficult, albeit loose in places. Views of 12,933-foot Tenmile Peak (left) and 12,805-foot Peak 1 seized my attention at every clearing. Yes, there are a lot of dead trees. This particular region has been hammered by beetle kill. I'll leave beetle kill alone for now, as I'm a bit opinionated on this infestation.



I only made about 4 of the 6.5 miles to the Wheeler Trail. The rumor mill had ground out information that this horrible (for bikes) portion of the CT was extremely steep, rocky and loose and not too enjoyable. QUITE CORRECT! Although, in hindsight, I enjoyed the day. This also may have been the most difficult day I've had on a mountain bike. I'm confident I pushed the Black Pearl as much as I rode, literally. Coming down was difficult as well, but somewhat ridable. The trail ascends the fall line – straight up! Oh well, it means I get to go back. However, I'll likely start in Copper Mountain when I do.




Entering the subalpine ecosystem of spruce forest




Nights are getting cool




Treeline and the east shoulder of 12,866-foot Peak 4




Note the small trees on Peak 3's eastern ramparts; they're small because they're trying to make a living in an avalanche run-out zone.



I had to be back in the Denver metro area by 6:00. Once I figured how slow the riding would be, I picked 2:00 as my turn around time. I missed my overall goal by about an hour. Although the trail was becoming more ridable, the altitude would begin take a toll on climbing. My altitude at turn-around was about 11,500 feet, 1,000 feet lower than my planned high point. An uneventful drive home put me back in town on time.




That's it for now. Thanks for perusing...

Adios

Stardate 2014.553

Another Day Up High

Hi, girls and boys! Snowcatcher and I put in another ride up Vail Pass Saturday. Little did we know the Courage Classic was taking place as well. In a roundabout way, we were part of another sanctioned ride, which was kind of fun. The Courage Classic is a 3-day, 155-mile charity ride through mountainous Summit, Lake and Eagle Counties, Colorado. The event benefits Children's Hospital in Denver.



The ride up the west side of Vail Pass into the hazy atmosphere was a grind as usual. I felt kind of guilty riding by riders who had 80 miles on their legs whilst I had a whopping 5. Nonetheless, good spirits filled the mountains. I always enjoy pedaling on the Pacific side of the Continental Divide through the subalpine and montane life zones. In this area, the lodgepole pine of the Atlantic side have given way to the lush spruce forests of the wetter Pacific side; everything is bushy, large and green.



Many, many moons ago, I learned about dictionaries and how to thumb through them for word info. For many, many moons, I've wondered if Vail had a definition. Well, after many, many moons, I finally opened a dictionary (it was tough at first) and perused the meaning of Vail. As it turns out, the former sheep ranch turned mega ski area and year-round resort has a meaning after all, "to be of use or profit." World War II skiers from the 10th Mountain Division brought lift skiing to Vail and Aspen. Hmmmm... in all honesty, I don't think these famed skiers of the 10th Mountain Division ever dreamed Vail and Aspen would become what they've become.

Close to the summit of Vail Pass, Snowcatcher and I parted ways and I continued on over the pass and down to Copper Mountain Resort, sharing the bike path with numerous bikes.



At Copper, I picked up a bike path and headed north toward Frisco. The day's haze never did lift and I think perhaps fire smoke from somewhere in the west was visiting us.



On a side note, along the way the path dissected an avalanche chute (actually a handful of them) that hadn't completely melted out. It was a good example of the dangers of backcountry ski travel and slides. Buried within it are rock and woody debris. People caught in slides often not only suffocate, but are beat to death by wood and rock debris picked up by the slide, as well as being bounced over undulating topography and tree stumps. As a backcountry skier, it's kind of spooky to think about.





Rounding the northern apex of the Tenmile Range, I headed east along the bike path that leads to Breckenridge Ski Resort. The path is lined with purple and red flowers while 12,933-foot Tenmile Peak and 12,805-foot Peak 1 loom above. My ride too quickly ends when I make the turn south and meet Snowcatcher at the Summit County High School.

Adios