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Mt Bierstadt - Mt Evans
TR (6/26/99)
With no climbing partner and an open weekend coming, I decided that
a long hike/scramble was exactly what I needed. So, I started to peruse
my guide to Colorado 14’ers for a suitably easy peak to climb. With the
very wet spring, I was unsure of snow conditions throughout the state,
so I scanned the guide keeping the possibility of snow in the back of my
mind. Mt. Bierstadt popped out as a climb with super easy access, very
little elevation gain, and ease of climbing even if there were snow. Decision
made.
Wired from mucho espresso, I got a super early alpine start of 7:30am
:-) and hit the road from Colorado Springs. After a couple hours of easy
driving, I was at the trailhead and ready to hike. Looking at the mountain,
snowshoes looked superfluous, but I’d throw in my axe and crampons just
in case.
The crux of climbing Bierstadt is supposedly finding your way through
the maze of willows, which lie in the basin below the mountain. Dressed
in full pants and long sleeves, I was ready for a major bushwack through
the jungle. As soon as I hit the trail, I ran into about 20 people doing
trail maintenance. The further I got into the willows, the more I appreciated
their hard work. There is a clear path all the way through the willows!
Sure, you’ve got to trudge through some swampy areas, but the willows were
nothing.
After clearing the willows, I hit the real elevation gain and started
climbing. The trail is fairly obvious and I was making great time. As I
gained in altitude, I ran into more and more snow patches. Eventually,
the snow became fairly continuous and I lost the trail. I looked up and
saw other hikers skirting the snowfields to the right, but the summit was
to the left. I decided to take the direct route through the snowfields.
The "climbing" was easy. I just plodded uphill in my boots, using my hiking
poles for extra stability.
One hour and twenty five minutes after leaving my car, I was at the
summit. This was exactly the type of outing I had been looking for: easy,
fun hiking in a beautiful setting. Sitting on the summit, admiring the
scenery I gazed over towards Mt Evans. What’s this? Sawtooth Ridge has
a snowfield at the beginning of the traverse, but then clears up and looks
easy all the way to Mt Evans. Plus, I could see boot prints from a previous
climber crossing the snowfield. If someone else is dumb enough to have
done the traverse, I could certainly match their stupidity.
So, full of over-confidence from having summitted Bierstadt in less
than an hour and a half, I set off to conquer Mt Evans. Looking at the
distance between myself and Mt Evans, I figured that I would be back at
the car in no time. Oh, how deceptive distance can be in the mountains...
I proceeded to drop down from Bierstadt to the saddle, but managed to
go too high, ending up in no mans land. I broke out my ice axe to cross
a steep snow-filled gully. I found out the snow was much slicker than anticipated
as I almost slipped down the gully, where I would have continued my slide
for a few hundred feet. Luckily, I grabbed a rock as I started to slip
and arrested my fall. "I’m an ass," I thought to myself. This is not a
good way to start this 3rd class traverse.
I carefully traversed, then downclimbed some easy 4th class
rock and ended up in the snowfield. Up ahead, I ran into three other people.
They were a friendly group from Denver that had done the route before,
so I tagged along behind them. I got some beta from them and then decided
to move ahead when we hit the 3rd class rock section. The climbing
was easy and I was soon looking at the crux of the route.
This section is 3rd class climbing through a narrow scree
ledge which diagonals above an 800 foot (?) cliff. This is the type of
climbing that I absolutely hate. I would much rather be climbing 5.10 while
1000 feet up. Well, I basically hugged the wall to the right and got through
with no difficulty. As I popped out of a chute that I climbed in an attempt
to stay away from the edge, I ran into two people doing the route in reverse.
I stopped to chat with them and exchange beta. They proceeded to walk right
down the section that just spooked me. Oh well, I’m a wimp, but at least
I’m a living wimp.
The rest of the traverse to Mt Evans summit was just easy boulder walking
and hopping. As I passed the false summit and regained a view of Mt Evans,
I saw hordes of people who obviously have a higher IQ than myself. They
drove to the top! I summit, look at my watch and say to myself, "Shit,
4 hours!" It had taken me much longer than I expected to complete the peak
to peak traverse. I decided it was time to get moving.
My plan for descent was to go down the Western slopes of Mt Evans and
end up back at Guanella Pass. Well, I ran out of water (but eventually
refilled with my new Safewater filter), never found a trail on the descent,
and did some absolutely heinous bushwacking through willows at the bottom.
In my dehydrated, tired state, I chose swamp over willows and eventually
made it back to the car. After six hours and forty minutes I was totally
spent and had a wicked headache. Resisting the urge to just lay down and
barf, I hopped back in the car and headed home. My short little outing
to climb Mt Bierstadt had turned into a marathon ascent of two fourteeners.
By the time I was back in Colorado Springs, I was already forgetting the
suffering, and had started planning my next trip... |