Grays and Torreys - Travis and Clara

Date of Trip: 27 August 2022
Climbers: Travis & Clara 
Location: Front Range, CO, USA
Trailhead: Grays Peak
Summit Objectives: Grays and Torreys
Total Time: 8.0 hours
Summit: Grays at 14270 feet, Torreys at 14267 feet
Starting Ele: 11280 feet)
Ele. Gain: 3667 feet
Distance: 8.5 mile

Written by Travis

With little more than an hour of planning, Clara and I headed out Friday night for a Daddy-Daughter backpacking-mountainering trip.  We decided we would pack-in for about a mile Friday night, camp, and then attempt to summit two 14,000' peaks on Saturday, Gray's and Torrey's (which are generally considered two of Colorado's easiest 14ers, out of the 58). Amy and the boys were staying home to rest and recover, as the middle school transition, in particular, has not been easy.  

We arrived at the trailhead at 630pm Friday evening in a driving rain. It's been a crazy monsoon summer in the mountains, and there was water flowing everywhere. Worse, it looked like it could keep it up all night. I was considering bailing completely, or at least camping in the Tahoe at the trailhead. But after about 45 mins, it did stop. And the forecast was for great weather today, so we set out. 

We made it past the willows and took about the first flattish spot we could find so as to get the tent up before dark.  Few really pack-in on these mountains (easily done in a day) so nobody was around, but there also aren't really any established sites. It was in the 40s and damp (very un-Colorado!) Clara was cold so we got her in the tent and into a sleeping bag while I cooked dinner just outside the vestibule.  I then filled her Nalgene bottle with boiling water to take to bed, a trick which she thought was amazing.  

The GPS said we were at 12,000'.  I remembered that I never sleep well at 12,000'. This trip was no exception.  We were about 100' off the trail, so we had people walking by shining headlamps at us, and talking, starting at 330am.  I cancelled the alarm I had set for 6, but at 645a, I figured we should get up. Clara said she didn't really feel like climbing a mountain, because of the bad night of sleep. I said, yeah, that's kind of how mountaineering goes. I never sleep well the night before a climb.  Amy and I have a saying, "the best days on the mountain often follow the worst nights".  

Well, she decided she'd give it a go. But only if we had some ramen for breakfast. Deal! I cooked it without leaving my sleeping bag. (It was 30s outside, ice on the tent fly, and the light rain that fell on us was apparently snow up on the mountain).  

We joined the conga line marching past us on the trail at 715am.  We stopped to filter water at the first stream access around 745 (we could hear the water at our hastily chosen campsite, but it was maybe a couple hundred yards away, so we used what I packed in).  

We headed on up to Gray's Peak.  I always do Gray's first for some reason -- maybe because it's Gray's and Torrey's, not Torrey's and Gray's? Clara kept saying she didn't think she wanted to do Torrey's too, so I kept reminding her to focus on the goal of Gray's and that we'd worry about Torrey's later.  We passed the mountain goats in their usual spot on the shoulder toward Edwards. It was a mamma and a kid. Clara also counted 7 pikas on the day. 

Eventually we summited Gray's. The trace of snow and ice had mostly turned to slush by now, so no big deal.  The weather was great as forecast, just some typical wind.  

Gray's was Clara's 2nd 14er, having done Sherman with Amy in 2020. (I had taken the boys back to the car as we feared Nate might be literally blown off the mountain that day.) Anyway, Clara was amazing. She was not the youngest on the summit though as there was a 9 year old girl tagging her 3rd 14er (she had just come over from Torrey's). 

We took some pics (including with the provided signs and brick, lol) and headed down to the saddle between the peaks.  I was pretty sure a little downhill would have Clara ready to go up again and indeed that was the case.  I told it her it always looks harder than it really is. She actually thought Torrey's was easier, because there are less switchbacks, just UP. More pics with provided signs and brick. (I'm so old that I remember when you had to try to remember what mountain you were on in each summit pic!)

We headed down, collecting my cached backpack at the saddle, then the water filter at the stream, before arriving at the tent. The crowds had mostly dissipated by now, but the weather was still perfect. Probably 50's at the tent, with an intense sun. Clara asked for a post-climb snack of mashed potatoes, so I whipped them up before packing up camp. Then we headed out the final 1 mile, getting to the truck at about 3 I think. Did I mention I was exhausted? Maybe this is how I always felt at the end of a day of 14ers, hard to say. Overall, it was a fantastic trip. Clara did her first overnight mountaineering trip and got her 2nd and 3rd fourteeners, and her first "two-fer". I can't be more proud of her. She's learning what it's like to carry a pack, be cold, sleep like crap, and yet that climbing mountains mostly boils down to putting one foot in front of the other, over and over again. I think I got my third climb of G-T (first with my buddy Terry in 2000 then with Amy in 2008 when we missed the turn to 13er Mt Edward's and "settled" for G-T. Maybe more, but that's what I remember at least.) And my first 14er summit in 7 years, my first fourteener post ACL tear #2, and first 14er in my 40's. Still at 42 of 58 overall I think but it's not really about me these days and that's just fine. 8.5 miles round trip. 3667' of elevation gain Clara's wildlife count: 7 pikas 2 mountain goats 2 chipmunks Couple dozen dogs, some of which were even on a leash One injured dog being carried down in a backpack Too many humans to count

Mt. Silverheels and Little Baldy

Dates of Trip: 3-4 July 2010
Climbers: hobo and tortoise
Location: Mosquito Range, CO, USA
Trailhead: Gold Dust
Summit Objectives: Mt. Silverheels and Little Baldy
Summits: Little Baldy at 12142 ft, Mt. Silverheels at 13882 ft
Starting Ele: 10330 ft
Ele. Gain: 4500 ft
Distance: 12.6 mile

We were planning to head to Jasper for a 3 night backpack of the Skyline Trail on 8 July.  Problem was, we hadn't packed into anything in quite some time.  So we decided to take a shakedown trip over the holiday weekend, and bag some summits we'd been meaning to get, besides.  (Silverheels has been on our list for a loooong time, since we met.)

So on the morning of July 3rd, just as it was starting to get hot at the lower elevations, we headed up past Como to the Gold Dust Trailhead.  We had opted for winter mountaineering pants, anticipating snow and cold temperatures at elevation... but this turned out to be a poor choice.  It was HOT.  Ah well, this is the reason you do a shakedown trip, right?

HOT.

We packed in about two miles to the saddle between Little Baldy and Silverheels and set up camp in a small stand of trees on the breezy saddle at approximately 11,200ft.  That done, and a lunch of beef jerky had, and we were ready to tackle Little Baldy.  This involved a scamper through the shadowy, mosquito-y forest that covered the base of the mountain, and then seemingly straight up the side to the summit.  All of the elevation gain in about a half a mile (this turned out to be excellent training for The Notch on the Skyline Trail the following weekend).  The summit was a rocky pile of talus, and we sat in the wind and surveyed Como and Fairplay.

Summit photo.  Where we lost the cap to the Nalgene, may it rest in peace

Before too long, dayhikers were coming up the standard route in their jeans and sneakers, so we skedaddled down the steep slope and ran the mosquito gauntlet back to camp.

Sleeping at 11,200 went much much better this week than sleeping at 12,000 ft had the previous week.  This was likely a combination of factors.  (1) We had attempted to sleep at 12,000ft the previous week.  (2) We had obeyed the "climb high, sleep low" adage.  (3) We had worked hard that day, instead of just driving up from our desk jobs.  We slept like logs.

We got an early start (with the sunrise) up the East Ridge of Mt. Silverheels, a gorgeous class 1 walk up with spectacular views.  We ran into 3 mountain goats on the way up, who sort of looked like they were going to approach us.  I said, "I know how to deal with bears and mountain lions... but how does one fend off a goat?!"  Luckily (?) they kept their distance.

Skeleton trees and the Silverheels summit

Goats

From the broad, beautiful Silverheels summit, we had spectacular views of Hoosier Ridge, and many of our favorite Front Range, Mosquito Range, and Ten Mile Range summits, which are too numerous to list here.  It was a superbly clear day, and we could see to the southern Sawatch range, and on Independence Day, we had a patriotic view of Pike's Peak (the inspiration for "purple mountain majesty" in America the Beautiful).  We enjoyed a long 20 minute stay on the summit (long by our standards - it's usually freezing), signed the summit register, and descended to the saddle.  We packed up camp and hiked out, feeling thoroughly ready for Skyline and Jasper.  Bring it on.

Signing the summit register.

"For purple mountain majesty..."

Mt. Hope via Hopeful Couloir

Dates of Trip: 16-17 May 2009
Climbers: hobo and tortoise
Location: Sawatch Range, CO, USA
Trailhead: Willis Gulch
Summit Objectives: Hope and Quail
Summit: Hope at 13933 ft
Starting Ele: 9200 ft
Ele. Gain: 4700 ft
Distance: 10.0 mile

Packed in via the Willis Gulch TH, Little Willis Gulch trail on Saturday, 16 May. Trail was dry and hot until past the Big/Little Willis trail junction. Knee- to hip-high drifts of soft, wet, sugar snow covered the trail at times beginning around 10,600ft (around the switchbacks in the trail) and increased in frequency and annoyingness to the lake at 11,800. The final 500-700 ft is a real slog.

Woke at 4:45am and climbing by 5:15am. The snow above the lake was nice and solid. We donned crampons above the rock bands and began our ascent of the couloir, which had great snow in it. We could see the remnants of the avy field referenced by a previous 14ers trip report, and the snow here seemed well consolidated. There wasn't much of a cornice above Hopeful. This was my first snow climb of this level of difficulty (rated "moderate" in most places I've seen) so I had a few moments of panic at the steepness. My wonderfully patient fiance helped me readjust my crampons and get into a rhythm with my ice axe technique to feel more comfortable. We decided to exit the main couloir above the first rock band and continue up the couloir just to the climber's left (NE), which seemed a bit less steep. By the time we gained the ridge at 8:30am, the snow was softening quite a bit. hobo on the ridge (with Belford and Oxford behind? Maybe?): Image #9 We then navigated a couple of talus blocks to gain Hope?s summit. The summit block is a surprisingly gentle walk up after all it took to get there! There is still a HUGE cornice hanging off of the main summit snow pack, with some awesomely scary icicles hanging down off of it.

We descended to Hope Pass, assessing each couloir for glissade-ability. Each one seemed a little too steep with not enough run out and a little too hard-packed snow for my (overdeveloped?) sense of safety. We got to the Pass at the saddle, and the snow field from there was great for a glissade, which we took all the way down to just above the lake. We then packed up camp and packed out. We were thinking of bagging Quail next door, but we had an appointment back in town we needed to be back for, and had run out of time. It gives us a great excuse to come back to this beautiful, pristine, quiet area!

Blanca Peak

Dates of Trip: 6-8 September 2008
Climbers: hobo and tortoise
Location: Sangre de Cristo Range, CO, USA
Trailhead: Lake Como Road
Summit Objectives: Blanca and Ellingwood
Summit: Blanca at 14345 feet
Starting Ele: 8100 feet
Ele. Gain: 6245 feet
Distance: 20.0 mile

Day 1: Arrived at Lake Como Road (worst road in Colorado!) around 330p on Saturday after picking Hobo up from COS. The Pontiac made it 2 miles up before having to be cached in a grove of pinons and prickly pears. Left the car and 8100 ft. el. at 4p. Were aiming for Lake Como (~5.0 miles, 11,700 ft el.), but lost the sun and had some fatigue going on, so stopped to pitch the tent at ~4.5 miles, 11,300 ft el.

Day 2: On the trail at 630a. Determined that even though we weren't all that far from Lake Como, we were glad we had stopped where we did the night before. Stopped at Blue Lakes to filter water. Made it over 13000ft (above the ledges, above the gully) before the sun reached us peeking over the east side ridge between Blanca and Ellingwood. All route descriptions say "difficult class 2", but I made several apparently class 3 moves on the ridge to the summit. Summitted around 11a, with a friendly group of Ohioans. Took a break on the descent in the valley with said Ohioans. Contemplated an ascent of Ellingwood, but decided against it due to lateness of hour (1p) and fatigue. Watched some others pick their way up the south face. Reached Lake Como again around 315p. Said goodbye to Ohioans and soaked feet in Lake Como. Back to camp by 530p, asleep by 8.

Day 3: Slept in til 7, packed up, and packed out - 3200ft down "worst road in Colo." At car by 1030a.

Distance and elevation are cumulative.

The Great Gulf

Dates of Trip: 11-13 July 2008
Climbers: hobo and tortoise
Location: Presidential Range, NH, USA
Trailhead: Six Husbands
Summit Objectives: Jefferson, Adams, Madison
Total Time: 10.0 hours
Summit: Adams at 5774 feet, Jefferson at 5712 ft, Madison at 5366 ft
Starting Ele: 1412 feet
Ele. Gain: 5300 feet
Distance: 10.0 mile

Packed in 4 miles up the Great Gulf trail to the Six Husbands/Wamsutta Junction and camped at an established site just beyond. Struck out along Six Husbands by 7:15, and scrambled up Jefferson's Knee to summit Mt. Jefferson. Then took Gulf Side trail across Edmund's Col to Mt. Adams and summitted. From there, a quick jaunt over to Madison Hut and the Mt. Madison summit. We then descended back to the Grest Gulf via The Buttress trail, arriving back in camp just after 5 pm. After one more night in camp, we packed out with very sore quads and soaked in the Peabody River before heading out. Distance/time listed is for summit day, not including pack-in.  Elevation gain is estimated cumulative, including pack in.