Stardate 2016.236

After one-night of snow and freeze, yellow aspen leaves become history.


A Few Elk Summits
It could be argued that much of my life has been lived in a cyclic fashion; especially extracurricular activities. I enjoy high mountain adventure, road and mountain biking and canyoneering. I'm currently at a crossroad of leaning more toward mountaineering once again. Thinking about Colorado's high mountain thin, cool-air gives me warm fuzzies all over. Go ahead — roll your eyes.

Colorado's sprawling San Juan Mountains are my favorite range of sub-ranges. Double fuzzies are doled out for the San Juans. I'll leave the San Juans for down the road. Arguably my second favorite range is the Elk Range. The Elks are home to seven Fourteeners (six if you're adamant about the 300-foot rule; i.e., there must be at least 300 feet of elevation difference between adjacent peaks to be an "official' 14er). I'm not quite that anal.

I climbed the Elk 14ers in the 1990s and wouldn't mind revisiting some of the more isolated areas of the Maroon Bells — Snowmass Wilderness. Exquisitely beautiful landscapes and often horribly terrifying loose rock is to be found here.

A north-to-south stretching range, the Elk 14ers north to south are:
Capitol Peak (14,130 ft, rank 29)
Snowmass Mountain (14,092 ft, rank 31)
North Maroon Peak (14,014 ft, soft rank — it doesn't meet 300-foot rule)
Maroon Peak (South Maroon, 14,156 ft, rank 24)
Pyramid Peak (14,018 ft, rank 47)
Castle Peak (14,265 ft, rank 12)
Conundrum Peak (14,060 ft, rank 47 — doesn't meet 300-ft rule)

Below is a northerly view of Snowmass and Capitol from the summit of North Maroon.




The next pic is looking down the south ridge of South Maroon from the summit.




The view of Snowmass and Capitol from the summit of South Maroon is magical.




Yes, there is a loose, intricate, and time-consuming route up the South Ridge to South Maroon's summit.




In the next pic, the view is of Pyramid's intricate northwest face.



Below, we were watching morning sun-hit on the Bells, Snowmass and Capitol from Pyramid's summit.




That's it for now. Sorry I don't appear to have summit shots from Snowmass, Capitol, Castle or Conundrum in a digital format. Yet.

Adios

Stardate 2016.595

The Maroon Bells
Recently I've spent a fair amount of time riding the Waterton area. So, I took a little break from blogging about Waterton, or any other locale for that matter. In short, I took a blog holiday.

For a bit of variety, Snowcatcher and I donned road bikes and headed west to the Elk Mountains. The high alpine areas we like to visit are enjoying their lush monsoonal summer. These areas will start to enter winter dormancy by mid-August; so we decided to enjoy the lush, mountain green by tackling one of the most striking road rides in Colorado – the Maroon Creek Road outside of Aspen.

Arriving mid-morning, we secured public parking at the Aspen Highlands Ski Area for $5 per day. Believe me, in this little neck of the woods, that's a bargain. This was posh Aspen; I was expecting at least $25. Maroon Creek Road closes with the snow. However, in the summer it's so popular that access during the day is by shuttle bus only. Thankfully, bikes are allowed on the road, and it's very nice not to have to worry about too many 5,000-pound behemoths piloted by looky loos taking you out. If you need an early start for climbing, or a long hike, the road is open throughout the night. This also is an access point into the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness.

The ride up was scenic and refreshing. The first 14er to pop into view was a rain-splattered Pyramid Peak rising to 14,018 feet. At one point or another, I've summited all 7 peaks of the Elk Range that rise above 14,000 feet of elevation (many climbers count 6). Number 7, Conundrum (14,022 ft), is an easy summit to reach while climbing 14,265-foot Castle Peak, the Elks' highest peak. I include Conundrum Peak in my Elk Range 14er count, even though it is not an "official" 14er, because it's close and warrants a visit.



Continued huffing and puffing quickly brought us to the next turn in the road where we came to a halt as the exotic Maroon Bells came into view. The Maroon Bells are said to be the most photographed peaks in Colorado, if not the United States. I've viewed them in all seasons and can't tire of them. There's nothing more relaxing than sipping a cold beverage (you know the type) after a summit of one of these peaks. Sadly, many climbers have been hurt or killed here. The peaks are known as the "perilous slag heap," or the Deadly Bells. Looking back on my climbs of these peaks, I found them to be not difficult climbing, but very dangerous due to loose rock. I also found route-finding on Maroon to be interesting at times. Bad weather can turn any of the Elk Range peaks into a nightmare.

Many accidents happen in the Bell Cord Couloir. In the pic below, the Bell Cord is the thin snow gully-splitting 14,156-foot Maroon Peak (left) from 14,014-foot North Maroon Peak. The couloir faces east and catches early sun, which may quickly soften the snow to dangerous conditions. It's also a garbage chute of loose rock and ice. Avalanche potential exists as well.



To avoid the mass of people using the shuttle system at Maroon Lake, we turned around at a moose crossing sign about 0.5-mile below the parking areas. No moose were available. As a note, enough people come in the after-hours that the parking lots are always fairly full.



The ride down was fast and fun! We had hoped to ride up Castle Creek toward the Castle Peak trailhead; however, weather moved in, and we started our adventure home via Independence Pass.

That's it for the Bells. Next on the docket is Independence Pass. Stay tuned...


North Maroon summit July 2002

Adios

Stardate 2015.575

Ohio Pass – Crested Butte's Back Door

Ohio Pass connects the Gunnison and Ohio Creek Valleys with Kebler Pass and Crested Butte. It's very scenic. During the fall colors, it's simply on fire. Moreover, on any given fall day, you may inch your way through a herd of cattle being driven down to winter pasture. It's like being in the old west for several hours. It's especially fun to watch the cow dogs work; they're amazing.

Rollin' Rollin' Rollin'
Though the streams are swollen
Keep them doggies rollin',
Rawhide...


We're starting our ride up Ohio Pass, with the Anthracite Range in the background.



The mountain gods be a brewin' something.



If you were to wade out into the quakie jungle, which I highly recommend, the understory would be waist- to chest-high.



Ohio Pass road is not difficult. The average car usually has enough clearance. Nonetheless, there are some rock and drainage surprises to clear; this can change from storm to storm. The pass is narrow, steep and exposed (don't drive off the edge) in places. Long vehicles and trailers are not allowed.



An enchanting waterfall adorns the eastern terminous of the Antracite Range.



After riding Ohio Pass, we began the five-hour journey home (Yes, we take the long scenic route.). While driving down Ohio Valley, afternoon storms rapidly gathered over The Castles, eastern ramparts of the West Elk Mountains.




Parry Clover
Trifolium parryi
Pea family
The clover was getting after it at the confluence of the Ohio Creek and Gunnison Valleys.






Lupine
Lupinus argenteus
Pea family
Reminiscent to Ride the Rockies, our route home took us up the Taylor River Valley to Taylor Park and 12,126-foot Cottonwood Pass. Much of the montane forest ecosystem was quilted together with Lupine.


I think my next blog will be a foray into the colorful Elk Mountains. Stay tuned...

Adios

Stardate 2015.559

Wildflower Season is Here!

Snowcatcher and I took a jaunt to one of our favorite haunts recently. We spent two days in the Crested Butte, Colorado area. Early monsoonal rain has helped to yield a spectacular crop of wildflowers. During our foray, we encountered a bit of everything, from rain and sun to washing bicycle wheels off in the creek before riding because the 4Runner's tire spray had entombed them in mud. The mountain gods are keeping things fresh and exciting.



In the distance, Avery Peak (12,366 ft) rises above the headwaters of the East River.



Flowers were dancing in the breeze all over the place.



12,625-foot Gothic Mountain



Mount Bellview reaches 12,519 feet. The left and right sub-peaks are 12,473 and 12,445 feet in elevation, respectively.



The west face of Avery Peak watches over the beautiful lush subalpine forest beneath.



The alpine basin in the upper right background is Rustler Gulch. This probably is a fitting title, considering the past 100-plus years of ranching in this region.



Mount Bellview (12,519 ft)



The East Brush Creek jeep trail looks a bit ordinary. However, not far beyond this spot, after a major stream crossing, the road turns into a real 4x4 jeep track that meanders all the way up to 12,705-foot Pearl Pass. From Pearl Pass, the jeep route continues down Castle Creek to posh Aspen.



It's day's end along East Brush Creek. The peak to the left is Teocalli Mountain (13,208 ft, state rank #478). The high peak in the far background is Castle Peak (14,265 ft, state rank #12).

Thanks for reading. There's more Crested Butte coming.

Adios