Memorial Day weekend was one of those rare weekends where there is a little extra time available to pull off a mountain overnight trip. As it worked out, everything lined up just right. The plan: to drive up to Buena Vista Colorado for a late Sunday Night arrival at Delaney Creek trailhead, hike in the dark to camp about halfway in still below tree line, summit Mt Yale the next morning, leaving Monday late afternoon and Tuesday for some random hiking and fishing. The hardest part was trying to explain to my sweet 7yr old daughter Anna that this camping trip wouldn’t be all that fun for her to come along with. That the conditions up that high can get cold and depending on your personality and your equipment, somewhat miserable. She very reluctantly went to bed and as I was ready to go I heard a soft whisper of “Daddy?” from the top of the stairs where my sweet daughter was standing in three somewhat random layers of clothes (to be prepared for the conditions I had described — soo cute!) determined to come along. Only with some cuddle help from Mom was I able to get out and hit the road as planned. I can’t wait to bring her along on one of these mountaineering trips, but a little later in the year and a shorter route will be best.

Everything worked out just so, and it was a great trip. A three quarter waxing moon was setting when we arrived around midnight. Jay and I had packed in advance and we were quick to go after checking out our backpacks one last time. Jay had a fishing weight scale he pulled out to see who managed a lighter pack once we had our water and were all set. He had 47lbs I had 41 which I got a kick out of because he had been bragging on how light his pack was going to end up. We both ended up with a good bit of extra food in the end and talked a bit about what both of us wouldn’t bring next time.

The walk through the woods was the perfect dreamlike night-time experience, calm with only slight breezes, cool, crisp and a clear starlit sky. Delaney creek was always at our side as we hiked in a short ways to the fork in the trail. We knew there was a fork in the trail where one route leads up to Mt Yale and the other route leads up to Hartenstein lake, and that there was a sign there. Just as we had heard the sign was right there. We knew also knew there were two good camping options at this point, we could either go up the Yale path and look for some flat camping spots another half mile or so, or we could go take the Lake Hartenstein trail and camp along side Delaney Creek. We went up the Yale trail and sure enough, a half mile in, found lots of sites to choose from. Pitched camp fast and got a few hours sleep. We didn’t do the crack-o-dawn climb mostly because of the late night hike in, we stayed in camp and left about 7:30 so it was sunny and warming already.

The weather looked great, stable conditions and almost totally clear. We packed small hip packs each with our choices of equip for the way up, I took crampons which I didn’t need, the snow was warmed up enough already we never saw any ice slopes. We passed one mountain runner who was on his way back down, not sure if he went all the way up but it was gratifying to see him eye us over with our Gore shells, Koflach boots and trekking poles and say “You guys are equipped right for this”.
Once treeline ended we started up the broad south-western shoulder of the mountain which provides a fairly direct line to the summit ridge. The actual trail was obscured by the snow and a few weathered paths from previous visitors. We picked a line up and made our way post-holing occasionally. Without snowshoes route finding was a little more interesting looking for either cold hard show to kickstep up in places or exposed scree to step from rock to rock. We separated in our route taking as we worked our relative ways up the slope I ended up staying more to the left than Jay who was going up a slightly steeper couloir. We yelled back and forth and planned to meet up on the ridge top. Weather was stating to build, but conditions were still fairly stable. We could spot some Thunder heads in places off in the distance, but they were clearly not in our path, we had good visibility to the west – southwest where the weather was coming in from.

Gaining the summit ridge was most excellent for you get awesome views on the other side of Columbia and Harvard, both climbed last year, and other high ranges all around. I had heard that you can see the most 14ers from the top of Yale than any other CO peak.
I followed the ridge trail to the summit, and peered over the various couloir exits until I saw Jay making his way up. We hung out at the summit and took a meal enjoying the incredible views and our success. More weather was building but we stayed up on top across that ridge till at least 1pm when we decided that it was time to go down. Lots of glissading made the trip down take ¼ the time and we were back in camp that afternoon.
The climb was the best part of the trip, but the low key hanging around camp and just taking it easy in the wilderness through the night till the next day made this an awesome memorial day trip.

Date:
02.20.2007
Elevation:
14,265 feet (13th highest in CO)
Maps:
USGS Quad: Breckenridge
Trails Illustrated® – TOPO Map # 109.

Quandary Peak located just south of Breckenridge will provide an exhilarating experience for all who conquer its summit. Considered one of the easier 14ers in Colorado, the route up still comprises about 3 miles distance as it gains over 3,100 feet in elevation. I had two days set aside to go for a winter ascent. Monday the 19th it was snowing hard so instead of heading up into the blizzard I went snowboarding with my friend Jay in Breck, we had a blast and after the lifts closed the snow stopped. Over a few pints at the DAM in Dillon, it was decided; he had to head back to the ‘ol grindstone and I was going to try out my new 1man 4season shelter at the Quandry trailhead and see if the weather would allow me up in the morning.

Getting There
Directions: From Breckenridge, you drive south on highway 9 about 7.5 miles from the last traffic light in Breckenridge to Blue Lakes Road on your right. After turning right onto Blue Lakes Road (No.850) you turn right again onto No. 851. The Old Quandry trail is approximately 1.1 miles down this road, but when I got there in the dark there was a closure sign with instructions on where the new Forest Service trailhead is which is really at the first immediate right hand turn off on 851. It was a road that wasn’t plowed but is probably accessible spring-fall. I parked there and hiked in to check it out, the Quandry trailhead is just a few hundred yards in. A perfect spot to bivouac for the night!

The Route
The powder was waist deep so I stamped out a footprint for my newly aquired Sierra Designs Assailant 1 man shelter and pitched it for the night. I knew I could pack it up and toss it back in the jeep in the AM so I set my alarm for 5AM and hunkered down wondering how warm this dealio would be and what the condensation would be like. The wind was howling around and even being tired from the day of snowboarding I was kind of excited and woke up several times thinking “is it time to go yet?” Maybe it was just the altitude. I could see some snow laying on top and wondered how much had accumulated, but when the alarm actually did go off I found just a couple of inches piled on top. The condensation wasn’t bad inside and I was real happy with how this shelter held up, I’m sure I’ll be taking it up more, hopefully this winter.

It was clear, moonless sky so I decided to snap a shot of the shelter site but was super disappointed to find the cannon sure shot digital camera complained that the battery needed charging. I had just charged it up fully the day before. I knew it was just the cold, that seems to make the camera think the battery is dead, or the cold actually somehow does drain the battery. I put the battery down close to my skin to warm it up hoping I could squeeze off a few snaps on my way, and packed her up back to the jeep and put together a bag to take to the top. I brought the shelter, down bag, crampons, trek poles, GPS, some food, snowshoes, camera, the usual small odds and ends, and 2 liters of water spiked with Gatorade to keep it from freezing right away. I decided to start out with no snowshoes on, there was a relatively stomped trail at this point, and I was on my way around 6:30am!

The trail starts up the long eastern shoulder of Quandry and at this point is in some lodgepole pine. It was packed down with just a few inches of new show so I was able to go a half mile or so until I starting post holing up to my waist. Time for the snow shoes!
That kept me up on top, but now there were multiple tracks from folks who had skied down through the trees and I had to pick my own line, I wasn’t skiing down I was going up. I knew by GPS and map that I needed to stay to the south side of the shoulder while always going up and picked a good line to follow where the tree line ended. I was breaking trail now for there was none visible. The winds above tree line were such that all former tracks were obscured. A great feeling knowing no one was on the route I was taking. I wondered if I would see anyone on the mountain at all.

The shoulder route provided a few glimpses of the summit ridge along the way, and at about 13k’ the snow was so windblown it was hard and crusty. The route flattens out for a piece here and provided dramatic views down the south edge to the frozen lake below. I could catch glimpses of the Christo Couloir which looked like it would be a great early summer snow climb and a direct route up from the lake to the summit. I stashed my snow shoes at a cairn and put on crampons for the final stretch.

The wind was gusting so hard it knocked me over a few times. I could see these snow devils come swirling down and I would just stop and lean into them with my head down. The wind with the blowing snow was biting but not impossible to deal with. One issue with this route is that the weather generally comes from the west, but you can’t see the western horizon at all on your way up, that view is blocked by the mountain itself. The summit came into view but I was only stealing peaks to the west for the wind was mean.
Up on the summit at about 11am the views were incredible. I could see a ground blizzard from the wind on the ridge just to the west with some weather behind it so I didn’t hang out too long, the camera worked, the body-heat warm-up method brought life back. But I think what I am bringing next time for cold, I mean freezing, temps and photos is a $10 disposable film camera that doesn’t depend on a battery.

The way back took half as long and the wind was at my back. I did not see a single other person going up or coming down. All in all a wonderful night/day on the mountain!

Mount Bierstadt is Mount Even’s 14060’ neighbor. Mount Bierstadt is one of the easier 14´ers with the route being mostly a hike and just a little bit of scrambling up top provided you stick to the trail. Sometimes Bierstadt is climbed in combination with Evens, though the Sawtooth route between the two is easily a class 3 climb not to be taken lightly. Bierstadt sits in the Mount Evens Wilderness and therefore provides access to thousands of unspoiled acres. The trailhead at Guanella Pass is off a well maintained dirt road that has been recently improved (10.14.2006). I heard there were winds up there over 100mph the following weekend.

Getting There

The hike begins from the crest of Guanella Pass eleven miles south of Georgetown. This trailhead is at 11,669 feet and provides access to the west sides of Evans and Bierstadt. Take Exit 228 off Interstate 70 at Georgetown work you way to the south west side of town where you will find Guanella Pass Road heading up and south for 10.0 miles. An alternate route is to leave U.S. 285 at Grant and follow Guanella Pass Road north for 12.2 miles. Guanella Pass Road is mostly dirt but is passable for passenger cars. Guanella Pass Road is open in winter but is the last priority for the snowplow crew. You can see Bierstadt’s rounded mass east of Guanella Pass.

The Route
I had read some beta on the trail and noted how perhaps one third of the posts talked about “getting lost in the willows” that the lower part of the trail winds through. Even Gerry Roach states in his guide to Colorado’s Fourteeners, “You must cross this sea of willows to reach Bierstadt, and they are no joke….the willows are even bad in winter. Snow appears to cover them, but it is generally not consolidated and sets you up for a big letdown.”

I arrived at night before about 8pm and started to consider my options. The weather was perfect, hardly any wind to measure, not a cloud in the sky, and a half moon to rise at 11pm I considered going up in the night. At least I thought to be on the summit for dawn which could be spectacular. So I scouted around the parking area and found a few unclear trails headed into the scrub-willows. I could see the summit beyond the high valley full of willows, but I could not tell which trailhead was the one. Even with my GPS in hand I felt it would be wise to wait for the dawn light and made my camp in my Jeep back down the road a piece to sleep at 10k. It was still “Friday the thirteenth” after all.

I woke up before dawn and chewed down some breakfast grub as I drove back. At the Guanella Pass parking lot I could now clearly see the actual trail and only one other car! I also noticed some distant headlamp lights that were clearly way off the trail, unless they were going for a direct approach to the sawtooth. After packing up and heading out I also realized that you need to (the forest service wants you to to get a handle on usage) get a wilderness tag at the actual trailhead which is something else you’d miss if you try to bushwack your way across the willows. The predawn light was torching the peaks in pink, the landscape incredible to behold. Reaching for my camera I found out also that the little Cannon SureShot really doesn’t like the cold. The battery had been freshly charged, but in the cold it acted completely dead. Grrrrrrrrrrr! I took the battery back out and continued on with it down next to my skin to warm up. I was hoping I could regain some juice for a few shots from the top and take a few route picts on my way back. That actually worked!

Just before crossing Scott Gomer Creek I noticed a small fresh carcass on top of a large granite boulder. It was the fur remains of a rabbit, I couldn’t tell what had eaten it, but it sure looked like a nice spot to stop and take a snack. The trail was always clear and I found it simple to stay on it. It made me realize the folks who reported “getting lost in the willows” did not start out on the actual trail, that would be a mistake. Once the trail works back up onto Bierstadts broad western slope you find yourself coming out of the willows. It was about a mile and a half up this slope which had a little snow on it well marked by others from the previous day. From here it’s a nice hike up to a shoulder south of the summit. The route is cairned along the way to the shoulder that requires the final .25 scrambling mile to the top. The summit provides awesome views of the craggy sawtooth ridge between Bierstadt and Evens, as well as the stunning view south down inviting but sheer slabs down to Frozen Lake 1,000’ below. All in all, a great half/day hiking 14er!