On Saturday, August 27, I did something that I haven’t done in a few years. I climbed a 14er. I summited Castle Peak which has an elevation of 14,279 feet. I got on the trail early for this one. I started a little after 3:30 a.m. I had to park at the lower trailhead due to my car not being able to handle the road. So I had a starting elevation of 9,800 feet. The first part of the hike was easy because all I was doing was following a road in the dark. I made good time until I got to Montezuma Basin (12,800 ft.) The road ended there and the trail got steep. There was also the added addition of fresh snow at this elevation. It was a bit cold. I actually had to zip up my jacket while going uphill. I don’t do that often when climbing.
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| Dawn from Montezuma Basin |
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| Fresh snow and start of steep climb. |
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| Castle Peak |
The final ascent of Castle Peak followed the northeast ridge to the top. The route wasn’t well marked in places. I was following tracks in the snow of a person that didn’t choose the best route. I had to back track a little to get around a hairy spot. I made it to the top after 9:00 a.m. The view at the top was incredible.
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| Conundrum Peak from the northeast ridge of Castle Peak |
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| Looking back on the trail that gains the northeast ridge |
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| The final climb to the summit of Castle Peak |
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| Conundrum Peak before the final ascent of Castle Peak |
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| View from the top of Castle Peak |
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| View to the south from Castle Peak |
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| Looking back on the northeast ridge from the top of Castle |
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| A picture of me from the top |
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| Me on the top of Castle Peak |
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| Maroon Bells, Snowmass, etc. |
There is an option to hike over to Conundrum Peak (14,060 ft), but I decided against it. Conundrum Peak is not an official 14er. It lacks the 300 foot prominence for it to be a separate peak. Conundrum Peak is considered a sub-peak of Castle Peak. I would have liked to have done it, but I was tired and worried about the route down from Conundrum which is steep through loose rocks. So I returned the way I came which was tough enough. I made it down without issue. I even got a ride back to my car for the last couple of miles. So a 13.5 mile hike was shorten to about 11.5 miles.
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| Conundrum Peak from the top of Castle Peak |
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| From Montezuma Basin: the fresh snow has melted. |
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| The road is the trail here. |
3 comments:
Checking off another 14'er you are. Congratulations.
Congratulations on another fourteener. Beautiful views. I liked the photos of Conundrum with the large fissure on its side. koh, Mom
COOL. I just did McRae Peak!!
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