Stardate 2017.507

HAPPY INDEPENDENCE DAY!!!
A Snowcatcher Photo


PLAY'N HOOKY
Ride the Rockies is Snowcatcher's gig! She got me into it — I've done 6 now — and it's something you need to check out if you're a cyclist. I think you'll find yourself wanting more. Sadly, orthopedic conditions sidelined Snowcatcher from this year's ride. However, she did SaG (Support and Gear) and escort me around host communities and lodging, which was nice.

Day 4 of the Tour had been a huge day. It tossed me 84 miles of mountain riding over three passes. Much of the route was above 9,000 feet in elevation. Consequently, Coal Bank Pass (10,640 ft), Molas Pass (10,910 ft), and Red Mountain Pass (11,018 ft) took their toll on my aging legs. I just wanted to enjoy the awesome B&B Snowcatcher secured for us in advance. The following pic is looking south from our B&B toward the Sneffels Range, San Juan Mountains, Colorado. As a side note, I grew up about 1.5 hours to the north of here, and the locale made me a tad homesick.



Day 5 was a short "rest ride" along a scary, high-use roadway (State Highway 550). So we played hooky instead and journeyed to one of our favorite areas — the East, Middle, and West Forks of the Cimarron River. Twelve years ago I proposed to Snowcatcher high in the Middle Fork Basin, and as they say, "the rest is history."

Following are more pics from the area. All three basins were still snowed in. They should open up for access in early July. The Cimarron Forks begin high in the Uncompahgre Wilderness Area. This area initially was called the Big Blue Wilderness, which I liked much better. Uncompahgre, loosely translated, means dirty water. Oh well... Enjoy!

The next pic is from Owl Creek Pass (11,120 ft) and the access road to lower West Fork Cimarron.




Precipice Peak (13,144 ft, rank 529) is framed in the background. My marriage proposal occurred on its backside, high up the Middle Fork of the Cimarron.




Snow temporarily marked the end of the West Fork road. There's still jeep road before reaching a trailhead.




The airy summit of Chimney Rock rises to 11,781 feet.




Numerous volcanic rock formations line the West Fork. The volcanism in this area is often beyond spectacular.




A member of the Lily family — Veratrum tenuipetalum
Also known as False Hellebore, Skunk Cabbage, and Corn Lily; it will average 4 feet in height.




The East Fork Cimarron is on the left, and the Middle Fork is on the right.




I love how dandelions enhance high Montane meadows. Do you?




That's it for a while. Thanks for reading.

Adios

Stardate 2014.400

Rose of Cimarron

Well, here I be, in front of a screen on a three-day weekend. What's this all about? So far, it's been a wet, windy, muddy and lightning-infested weekend. I'm a bit bored, reminiscing about fun stuff. Sooooo..., how about a climb? Coxcomb Peak? It's one of my favorites. The climbing is lower 5th-class in a spectacular location. I've climbed it only once. On the other hand, I've spent a lot of time in the Cimarron area and have enjoyed Coxcomb's diverse seasonal moods.



Coxcomb is a stately mountain at the head of the ridge separating the West and Middle Forks of the Cimarron River in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Rising to 13,656 feet, Coxcomb makes Colorado's high 200 list at number 171. Several miles to the east, Colorado's sixth highest, Uncompahgre Peak, pierces the sky at 14,309 feet. Wetterhorn Peak, a little over a mile to the southeast, rises to 14,015 feet and is Colorado's 49th highest peak.



The San Juan Mountains, often referred to as the American Alps, tickle the belly of southwest Colorado's wide open sky. The range consumes a large area and in my opinion is Colorado's eminent range. It's a mountain utopia where the tundra blanketing the alpine appears to have its own shade of green. Myriad wildflowers grace the landscape throughout the lush monsoon season of July and August. The rusty brown, red and yellow earth tones of fading fall tundra provide yet another patchwork of color as well.



Geologically, exposed strata of Precambrian granites can be found as well as sedimentary Paleozoic, Mesozoic and Cenozoic Era rock. Topping things off are glacial till deposits of the Pleistocene Epoch. As stated by geologist Donald Baars, "the San Juan Mountains are, then, the antithesis of the Grand Canyon in that a greater section is exposed in a mountainous rather than canyon setting. Both are magnificent."




Coxcomb's first known climbers summited in 1929. In that year, San Juan mountaineers Dwight Lavender and Forrest Greenfield made it to the large cleft along the summit ridge. Two days later, Henry Buchtel and party, armed with a rope, cleared the crux cleft and cruised to the actual summit. In August of 1965, Dick Yeatts, Mike Stults, Dick Guadagno and Martin Etter set a route on the north face of Coxcomb. There are two (probably more) routes — the north face and the southwest chimney. I have not found any record of a first winter ascent, although, by now, there's a good chance it's been pulled off. Throughout the year, climbing problems may include wet, icy, snow-covered rock, thunderstorms (almost daily during the monsoon season), climbing exposure, loose rock and avalanche.



Easiest access is via either the West or Middle Fork of the Cimarron River. The West Fork makes for a delightful day trip. The Middle Fork is longer and the climb could be done in a day. However, backpacking in to take in all the upper Middle Fork has to offer may be better. It's a magnificent area even if you don't climb.

Adios!