Wetterhorn Peak & Wilson Peak Trip Report
Day 1
Wetterhorn Peak
Trail: East Ridge II, Class 4, 8 miles, 3600 ft elevation gain
The fourth of July weekend had finally arrived and the thought of three days to climb had me grinning from ear to ear. I toyed around with all sorts of scenarios but finally settled on climbing some of the San Juans. I figured that many nearby peaks would be overwhelmed by people and I had never visited this part of the state. I was also looking forward to trying out my all new four door 4WD Tacoma.
Jen, myself, and Brian headed out on Friday, July 2nd towards our first destination, the Matterhorn trailhead. The drive took about six hours and brought us to that lonely stretch of road between Gunnison and Lake City. One day I will have to go back during daylight because the little hints of its beauty during the evening hours has left me intrigued.
We arrived at the 2WD trailhead at about 12:30 in the morning and quickly set up camp. I should note that this meant plugging in the self-inflating air mattress Jen and I had purchased seven hours before. We threw a down comforter on it and slept blissfully (car camping is the way to go).
At five in the morning we awoke and started out. If you have never been to the San Juans before then I suggest you go as quickly as possible. This area is the most heavily wooded I have seen in Colorado and is breathtaking to behold. The trail started out quite easily and afforded us a beautiful view of Uncompahgre and many wildflowers which blanketed the ground.
One of these days I am going to get a better camera and start a page devoted to Colorado's wildflowers. The flowers here come in all colors and sizes and are magnificent to walk among.
After a couple miles you head off of the main trail and descend into a basin between Matterhorn and Wetterhorn. We made our way across a stream (actually I missed a rock and sunk well into the stream) and headed up a steep slope towards Wetterhorn's ridge. On the way I choose to cross a snowfield for fun but Brian and Jen stuck to the main trail.
Once on the ridge the walking stops and the climbing begins. On the ridge our little group joined a much larger group of ten or so ranging in age from mid 20's to early 60's. The one thing I love about the mountains is the almost instant camaraderie experienced by people. It's true that I have meet the occasional jerk but they tend to be the exception. Anyway, we all started up the ridge climbing every obstacle in our way.
The route finding was never tricky as the peak was usually in full view.
For the most part the difficulty totally depended on the route chosen, you could do this as a class 2+ or a class 4. I choose to do some class 4 as it was allot of fun. Once the ridge was past the real climbing fun began. Right before the summit of Wetterhorn you are faced with about 150 ft of vertical climbing. Fortunately the hand and foot holds are so plentiful it is no big deal to make the ascent. There are some narrower and trickier places but a little patience and calm will get you by them easily. The exposure is also no big deal as you can't usually see the drop off during the climb.
Brian
At the top we had a few sandwiches and stared at the gorgeous views and the happy marmots.
Pretty soon allot of people started showing up. A few of them strutted around a bit too much for my liking. I can't quite figure out why people need to be cocky on mountains, it dampens the experience and, in all honesty, is kind of silly when a 20 year old is showing off in front of a group of 50+ year olds who just did the same thing. Soon we decided to head down and back for the car because we knew there were two more days of climbing ahead. We started down around 11:00 and made very good time.
The walk back was quick and we spent time appreciating all of the views around us.
On the way back to the car I spent some time talking to a fellow 14erWorld member. We arrived back at the car before 1:00. I have to say this ranks as my favorite hike to date. Is was beautiful with a good bit of climbing and unbelievable scenery. I heartily recommend it to anyone.
After Wetterhorn we set out across Engineers Pass, I wish I had pictures to share with people but my poor old digital camera uses an expensive storage type so I was limited in storage space. This road is allot like the Mt. Evans auto road just three times the length and all dirt and rock. The scenery on this pass is not to be missed. I really recommend this road to anyone with high a clearance 4WD vehicle as it is allot of fun. Just look out for the tourists in rented Jeeps who try to force you over a cliff. For the most part people were very considerate and polite. I even helped, along with four strangers, a teenage girl to get her car into 4WD so she could make it up a hill.
Once over the pass we entered Silverton where I grabbed a quick cup of coffee and headed out on the San Juan Skyway (South) towards Telluride. Just as an aside, there is almost nowhere to eat outside of Silverton and Durango and we ended up spending 70 dollars at a luxury hotel restaurant. I got into a kind of mental frenzy and wanted to drive all over this part of Colorado and see everything ( I think I owe Jen and Brian for putting up with the additional five hours of post-climb driving). This was great until it got dark and the roads got twisty. At some point I realized I had pushed myself too far and pulled over to sleep for an hour. When I awoke I headed on to the Silver Pick trailhead. I should point out that the number of moths and mosquitoes down there so coated my truck that I spent two hours cleaning it when I got home. My grill and windshield looked like some great metallic flypaper.
Day 2
Wilson Peak
Trail: West Ridge II, Class 3, 7 miles, 3650 ft elevation gain
We reached the trailhead around midnight and set up camp. The mosquitoes were annoying enough that we all slept with blankets pulled over our heads (we were sleeping sans tents). At 5:00 A.M. we woke up and set out. I think I have some weird ability to function on no sleep because I felt great but Jen and Brian were tired and lagging. The road up towards the rock of ages saddle was easy enough but pretty steep. There were some great views of a waterfall in a gorge along the way.
At about 9:00 we all arrived at the abandon mining cabin. There were all sorts of pikas, marmots, and chipmunks running about and having a grand old time. One marmot kept popping up to look at us. It was here that Jen and Brian said they were too tired for an ascent. They both said they would be happy heading down and going back to sleep. I figured that might be for the best and continued on alone. From the mining cabin I headed across a snowfield towards the saddle (I have to add that I LOVE my ice axe).
Once across the snow I gained the ridge where I came across two guys from Utah who were doing Wilson Peak as their first 14er. We headed over the ridge and around to the point where the real ascent began. I have always figured safety in numbers is the way to go so I was happy to be with people.
After the ridge the climbing tends towards class 2+ and class 3 climbing. Fortunately the path was well marked by cairns. I guess there was some exposure here but at this point it didn't bother me. I have done a ton of free hand 4th and 5th class climbing in PA so now that my fear of heights is less I am pretty confident and move quite quickly. The route was tiring but I made good progress.
Near the crux of the route I met with a man named Brad and we decided to summit together while the two guys from Utah followed behind. Right before the peak there is a point where you have to down climb to the top of a couloir before ascending towards the summit. Initially I was looking towards the right of the down climb which led to a serious amount of exposure. I am ashamed to admit that if I had to climb to the right I would have turned back. Luckily another climber was coming down off the summit and directed Brad and myself to the proper route on the left. I normally carry about 45 pounds on my back because I like to be prepared for any event and on this summit approach I dropped my bag before the climb.
Here are some views of the crux.
Brad and I quickly climbed down and up to the peak. This climb is a bit over blown. If you are comfortable climbing with a bit of exposure then it is easy. The rock is solid and the holds plentiful. We reached the summit just before 10:30 A.M. giving me a travel time of under one and a half hours from the cabin.
Once on the peak I noticed that the clouds were looking pretty ominous and decided to snap a quick picture and head off.
Here is me on the peak with Lizard Head in the background.
Below is a picture of the crux viewed from the peak (you can just make out people on the other side).
Brad and I headed back down and made very good time. We passed allot of climbers on the way up. Several of them seemed uncomfortable on the approach and I was tempted to tell them that if they were uncomfortable on the way up they would hate the peak. I also wanted to warn them of the weather but it has been my experience that most people resent advice from a 28 year old so I wished them good luck and headed on.
Brad and I headed back across the mountain, over the snowfield, and to the cabin. I was back at the cabin before 11:30. This put my round trip time from the cabin and back at about two and a half hours. At this point Brad jogged back down and I stayed to photograph the animals. I went around behind the cabin to use the facilities and when I came back this pika was busily foraging for food and three chipmunks had found their way into my bag.
After half an hour or so I headed back to the trailhead. It took me just under 30 minutes to get back and I found Jen asleep in the truck and Brian in his tent. I noticed that it had begun snowing and hoped the people on the peak were safe. We packed up the truck and set out for Ouray to try Mt. Sneffels. In Ouray we stopped for burgers and beer. The whole town was celebrating the fourth and I was happy to see an unending parade of motorcycles. One day I will take Jen on the bike ( http://home.comcast.net/~jaredjen/motorcycle.htm ) down there.
Day 3
Oh well, two mountains was to be the number I climbed on this vacation. After Wilson Peak we headed to Mt. Sneffels. The road up to Yankee Boy Basin has to be driven to understand how beautiful this place was. We drove up to the Basin (where the Tacoma proved itself ten times over) only to find camping was prohibited. After driving down we drove around for awhile until we found a nice campsite. We set up camp (sans tents again) and had a nice dinner of gourmet soup, bread, and cheese. I have to recommend the MSR Whisperlite cook strove, it performs admirably and is very compact. After dinner we settled down to sleep. I spent an hour or so looking at the stars and marveling at the beauty of our surroundings.
In the morning we woke up, had a quick breakfast and drove to the basin. The hike up the road went quickly and we took one hour to reach the turn off for the blue lakes trail. We quickly left the trail and headed for the ridge to attempt Mt. Sneffels SW ridge. This had to be the prettiest scenery I have ever seen on any mountain.
I went up to the ridge only to discover I had gained it too quickly and there was no easy way to continue. I down climbed and regained the ridge at a safer point. From here I yelled to Jen and Brian to let them know where to climb to.
I climbed on until a point where the snow began and waited for them to join me. Here is a picture from where I waited.
It is hard to get a good idea of the route from this picture. The rock was horrid and the snow was icy and steep. Jen and Brian took one look at it and immediately decided not to try it. I figured I would go on ahead.
I donned my crampons while my companions headed back down. I quickly traversed below some rotten towers to the steep approach. I approached the steep part of the slope and started up. After a short time one of my crampons popped off. I couldn't find a place to put it back on and found myself on hard snow with only one crampon. I can honestly say this is the first time in my life I experienced genuine and prolonged fear. I turned back and very cautiously measured every step planting my axe each time with great care. At one point I slipped but the leash on my axe held and I was able to pull myself up. When I finally returned to the ridge I was so spent that trying again wasn't an option. Sad and wasted I headed back down to the car. I think I will try some snow climbs with more experienced partners before I try this again.
Fortunately I still love climbing and hope to go to Pyramid next week. The traffic back to Denver was horrible and it took 2 hours to go over the Eisenhower tunnel. We arrived back home and went to sleep.
Despite the mishap on Sneffels this was a great weekend and I loved the experience. I can't wait to get back to the San Juans.