Mt. Elbert from the Arkansas River Valley, Late Fall. Near Leadville, Colorado, 2014
It’s always farther than it looks, taller than it looks, and harder than it looks. (The three rules of climbing mountains. In the case of Elbert, the first two definitely apply.)
Full-on winter is around the next bend waiting to pounce on us like a sneaky snow leopard, bringing with it the end of the standard 14er climbing season (yes, many still climb them in winter–it’s just a bit more complicated). We have already had two small, autumn, storms that powdered the high country recently which surely are making the trails and routes a bit snowy, icy, and sketchy for the average bear. So, with a number of sunny days gone by since the last snow, and a great forecast from NOAA, I thought I’d take advantage of a window of opportunity and check out a relatively easy 14er–Mt. Elbert and her little sister, South Elbert.
“Interminable”. That was the operative word for me for the day (yesterday, Friday, October 17). Elbert is the highest point in Colorado and it aims to emphasize that fact, using that very long and unending adjective, in a number of ways.
First, the trail through the forest never seems to end–in fact, at one point it takes you downhill. Aaack! Why am I going down, when I need to go up!
Then, once you get above treeline, the trail seems to switchback its way, forever and constantly, up an interminable stack of scree and boulders. Then you get a good lesson on the exasperating nature of false summits. On Elbert, there are at least two and they are a good distance apart.
The same issue of false summits applies to little sister, South Elbert. Although, from main Elbert you can look down and see the entire ridge you will be hiking, it still will surprise you when you are actually on it. Summit? Oops, nope, maybe the next one…summit?…oops, maybe the next one. And so on.
So, set your cruise control on “trudge” and just walk upward. You’ll eventually get there. Just don’t get too jazzed when you look up and see that the top appears to be a short five or ten minutes away. Only let yourself get puppy-tail excited when your next step takes you downhill to the west (or south, in the case of South Elbert).
Trip Report: Mt. Elbert (14,433′) and South Elbert (14,134′)
Route:
The Northeast Ridge Route from North Mount Elbert Trailhead. For South Elbert, out and back from main Elbert’s summit.
Timeline:
Left Boulder at midnight and on the trail at 3:05a.m. Definitively above treeline by 5:05a.m. and on the summit at 7:45a.m. I thought I was just minutes from the summit for the sunrise at 7:18a.m. (my goal), but it was merely the effect of false summit syndrome. I eventually found out I was still 30 minutes away from the top.
At 8:10a.m. I left for South Elbert (a mile away). It took about 55 minutes to get there, and about an hour and ten minutes to come back, with some 15 minutes spent on that high point admiring the views, especially of La Plata and Ellingwood Ridge.
Started the descent from main Elbert at 10:55a.m. and was back at the trailhead at 2:05p.m. I can’t run down the slope like I did 30 years ago…trying to keep the feet and knees intact, ya know.
So: 11 hours total, 4 hours 40 minutes to summit Mt. Elbert, 3 hours 10 minutes to come down. If you subtract out the South Elbert excursion and my photography stops, an average time for Mt. Elbert alone might be 7 1/2 to 9 hours or so in summer conditions.
Weather Conditions:
At the trailhead: clear, 28 degrees, calm winds. Once above tree line at about 12,000′, the winds picked up to 5-15mph or so–very cold when you are trying to sit still and set up the tripod on an icy rock for a star shot.
Once the sun came up, the wind died to near zero and stayed that way the rest of the day–clear, calm and beautiful with a few cirrus clouds stirring up the blue.
Trail Conditions:
With the next snowfall, this will surely change dramatically as winter moves in…
The road in to the trailhead was washboardy and potholed, with a few puddles of water (frozen in the morning?), but easily passible in a low-slung Cadi.
The trail up to treeline was almost completely clear of snow. The only exception were some icy sections on the first few switchbacks up from the trailhead (a north-facing slope). Above tree line, the wind had filled in the trail with snow, but it was pretty well packed in by hikers from the previous few days. Even the steeper snow sections had steps kicked in them. I never did any post holing unless I strayed from the freeway. Traction might be a good idea in these conditions if you don’t like how your boots grip. My winter boots did just fine (if too warm for the temperatures) and I never did feel compelled to put on the MICROspikes I had lugged up and down the mountain.
Photography Issues:
–Same problem with the Black Rapid strap–the camera swings around too much when doing anything other than normal walking. A problem in need of a solution.
–The small MeFOTO DayTrip mini-tripod I am using is OK, but it is fairly heavy for such a small thing (I did replace the ballhead with one that had a large plate)…think I’ll keep up the search for something better.
–I seem to fall into a pattern on these 14ers. I do most of my photographing from first light through about an hour after sunrise. (If the clouds are more interesting than in today’s case, though–say, a high cirrus and low cumulus combination, or fog–you could be hitting the shutter all day long.)
Unusual Events/Comments:
–I was totally alone on the mountain all day until I had descended back to near tree line where I saw my first homo sapiens. First a male version from Denver then, a bit later, a female version from Wisconsin. I also learned that two other folks had already summited and gone down–they were probably at the summit when I was off on my jaunt over to South Elbert. So, only four people–five, with me–on this big peak. Not bad at all. Don’t expect the same if you climb Elbert in July or August, though–especially on a weekend!
–The Moon was at about 36%, a waning crescent, but it was still sufficient to follow the white-snow trail above tree line without using the headlamp–dancin’ in the moonlight, everybody!
–Since you have a good view of Leadville most of the day, cell phone reception (Verizon) was good almost the entire way…so you can do your Facebook post from the summit if you like. Nothing like a true wilderness experience!
—Colorado 14er Senior Challenge summit count: 20 of the basic list of 58 (p. xxiii in Gerry Roach’s 14er “Bible”, Colorado Fourteeners, 3rd Ed.); 26 of the long list of 73 (pp. 347-348, with South Wilson added, also in Roach’s “Bible”.
Selected Images:
A moonlit Mt. Elbert (actual summit not yet in view, of course!). Note Orion’s sword and belt as well as the Pleiades, the latter an open star cluster a mere 444 light years away:
Stars Above Elbert. Mt. Elbert, Colorado, 2014
This is why I go through all the effort:
The Moment. Mt. Elbert, Colorado, 2014
Sunrise on 13er Mount Oklahoma and the various summits of massive Mount Massive. You can also see Mount of the Holy Cross far back on the right:
Oklahoma, Massive and Holy Cross. From Mt. Elbert, Colorado, 2014
Yet another falsie:
NOT the Summit. Mt. Elbert, Colorado, 2014
The top of Colorado!
Mt. Elbert Summit, Late Fall. Colorado, 2014
Some beta on the traverse from Mt. Elbert to South Elbert. Season, weather and snow pack will cause your mileage to vary considerably:
Mt. Elbert Panorama. South Elbert, Colorado, 2014
The view of Leadville, an easy, no-lift, hang-glide sled-ride away. In the background you can see Mt. Sherman, the Democrat-Cameron-Lincoln-Bross group, and Quandary Peak (right to left). At least, I think so. I have been up all of them but have a hard time picking them out from this direction:
Leadville View. From Mt. Elbert, Colorado, 2014
Spectacular La Plata Peak. The awesome ridge going left, then curving right to the summit is Ellingwood Ridge, a long and classic Class 3 route on my 14er bucket list:
La Plata and Ellingwood Ridge, Late Fall. From South Elbert, Colorado, 2014
In the distance, the Elk Range near Aspen. From left to right, Pyramid Peak, South and North Maroon Peaks, and Snowmass Mountain–all objectives for next August-September, when the snow melts away again:
Pyramid, Maroon Bells, and Snowmass Peaks, Late Fall. From South Elbert, Colorado, 2014
Preparing for yet another elegant glissade…slip-slidin’ away. Watch where the fall line takes you. I found myself heading toward the big northeast-facing bowl below, well to the right of the normal descent route. It’s fun, but make sure it takes you where you want to go! (Note the near 40-year-old gaiters hand made at home from a Frostline kit.)
“The nearer your destination, the more you’re slip-slidin’ away.” -Simon and Garfunkle
The Butt Slide Technique. Mt. Elbert, Colorado, 2014
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