Bear Peak and Bighorn in Guanella Pass [catching up]

On May 19 Ryan and I decided to hike to the highest point in Boulder to help us get acclimated to elevations we were hoping to exceed by climbing some 14ers. The highest point in Boulder is Bear Peak, at 8,461 ft above where the ocean stops and the terra firma starts. It's the tallest point on the left side of the *very* attractive photo below, taken several miles east of Boulder:

We started in the early afternoon from the NCAR parking lot. I wish we would have read this (see Astertiki for full description) before our journey began:

Fern Canyon is a very steep climb and as such is much shorter. The climb is goes up 2100 vertical feet in 1.4 miles. It goes almost straight up Fern Canyon and then straight up the a ridge to get to the peak.

Another account of this hike can be found at http://www.thedenverchannel.com/discovercolorado/13404382/detail.html. Having not read either of the above and simply looking at a map with a slight concern that it was already mid-afternoon, we decided to take the shortest route to the top. I'll cut right to the chase and tell you the middle section of this hike is probably the steepest hiking I've ever done... as in steep steps carved out of the rock to gain at least a foot of elevation with each step.

The trail starts with a very mild ascent and then dips down through a quaint valley to cross Bear Creek. The trail then heads up moderately towards Fern Canyon. When we got to the Fern Canyon trail split most of the other people around us decided the afternoon rain was not going to hold off and advised us to turn around. We made the correct assumption that the lightning was far enough away (and moving further away), so we pressed on. That was when the fun began. If you do decide to follow this trail and you're winded before you get to Fern Canyon, you should either turn around or make sure you have more water than you probably assumed you needed. I kept thinking I could see the top of Bear Peak only to find out that we had another switchback and hillside to get around. You're almost home when you can see Boulder to the east and Flatirons 1 and 2 below. Beyond that point, the trees slowly thin out until you're scrambling to reach the tallest rock. Here are our summit photos:


In both of these pics, we're looking north towards Longs Peak (the highest point in the background, northernmost 14er in the Rockies, to be climbed next summer, etc) and the Continental Divide in Rocky Mountain National Park. Bear Peak offers a great view of Denver (and probably Pikes Peak on a clear day) to the southest, the Indian Peak area to the west, and the Continental Divide and Front Range to the north-northwest... not to mention Boulder and the Flatirons below to the east.It took about 3 hours (I think... it's been a while now) from start to finish, so this takes up most of a free afternoon but I highly recommend it to those with strong knees!

[
update: This hike is one of 4 hikes mentioned in the current (Sept 07) issue of Backpacker magazine for being particularly "green" due to the fact that you can take a bus to the trailhead. I just got this in the mail today (it's like a Christmas present every time I get the new Backpacker) and the whole issue is about the effects of climate change. Here is the description of this hike from the magazine:

You'll skirt the base of the Flatirons, the massive slabs that serve as the backdrop to the city of Boulder, to reach one of the best views in the Front Range on this 6 mile out-and-back. Although the trail is extremely steep in places, well-placed steps, switchbacks, and a stunning 360-degree view from the summit of Bear Peak make it all worthwhile. From the NCAR parking lot, follow the trail as it drops down the north edge of a mesa. Continue west across a minor saddle, then descend and turn left onto the Mesa Trail to parallel the base of the Flatirons toward Bear Canyon. Wind through ponderosa pine, then join an old road just past the mouth of Bear Canyon. You'll cross a field, then switchback up to join the Fern Canyon Trail on the right. Your quads may rebel as you climb several steep sections up a ridge, but by the time you take in the view from the top, it'll all be forgotten.

]

The next day we headed up to Guanella Pass, where the trail for Mt. Bierstadt starts from. The road is dirt almost immediately (once you find it... it's at the southwest corner of town a few blocks from the main square) when you get above Georgetown. It was only open towards the pass for 8 miles, but we did make it far enough to see several Bighorn that still had their winter coats (compare the white to a "normal" summer coat of brown). They had come down to the road to lick the snow salt from the road. Here are a few photos:


All in all, one of the first weekends in town and plenty of adventure.

Mt. Bierstadt & Mt. Evans

This was another 14er weekend; 14,060' Mt. Bierstadt and 14,264' Mt. Evans. [Technically, I'm only counting Bierstadt because we drove up Mt. Evans, but that still doubles the percent complete to 2/53 and means 3 times above 14,000 ft in 8 days.] As we drove up Guanella Pass (the Georgetown exit on 70) Friday night I was relieved that we

• started from 1000 ft higher than last weekend,
• had a more gradual ascent, and
• had already been to 14,000 before;

all of which seemed to make this experience much easier than last weekend. We setup the tent in a nearly vacant lot under a perfect half moon and vivid milky way with the alarm set for 7:00am... only to be woken up at 5:19 by the van parked next to us. I was a bit frustrated by this but took a minute to mentally applaud their enthusiasm (... and went back to sleep). At 6:00 one of two things happened; either we travelled back in time to Shea Stadium on August 15, 1965 and tried to sleep during the Beatles' concert, or half of Denver decided to summit Bierstadt along with us. [Those playing along at home should add one point for guessing option B.] For a minute I honestly thought I was on candid camera and viewers at home were laughing at my pathetic attempt to sleep through the Rose Bowl parade. Realizing 7:00 was a pipe dream (I am NOT a morning person), Ryan and I tossed the tent in the Jeep and ate breakfast.

Overall, the hike up Bierstadt was an enjoyable 7 mile round trip adventure on a cloudless day. The boardwalk across the willows mud-swamp was greatly appreciated. There was still a fair amount of ice on the trail but not much snow on top of the ice for traction (I fell once). It took under 3 hours to get to the top (Ryan beat me by 15 minutes but I was pleased with my time), and about half that to get down.

On the summit we could see several other 14ers including Pikes Peak, Longs Peak, and in this panoramic looking West (sorry, the photos didn't stitch perfectly) you can see Grays Peak (left) and Torreys Peak, about 15% in from the right.

The image below shows the Sawtooth, which is a bridge between Bierstadt and Evans, and Longs Peak in the distance.

Panning to the right from the Sawtooth, you can see Mt. Evans.

Here is a shot of both Bierstadt (right) and Evans (left) from the trailhead:

To be honest, I had a great time but a few things affected my enjoyment of this hike:

1. The crowd (am I a solitude snob or just a jerk?). When we drove away after our descent there were cars parked on either side of the parking lot for several hundred yards.
   
   


2. The lack of preparation (ignorance?) by the crowd. Folks, a 14er is a 14er. I don't think shorts and tennis shoes is a good idea... Neither is forgetting (or deliberately abstaining from?) water. I couldn't hike a flat 7 miles round trip at sea level without getting a little thirsty, and nobody could hike that at 11,500 ft (don't forget 2,500 ft of elevation gain for good measure) without getting parched. And clean up after yourselves. When I got back to the parking lot I had a true fist full of granola/Power Bar/Clif Bar wrappers, twisty ties (bagels or a loaf of bread?), kleenex (if you're going to be rude why not just tear up some 20 year old tundra grass and sneeze into it while you're at it?), etc collected from the trail. That's ridiculous.
3. The view. It was quite impressive, but I think I was spoiled last weekend.
4. I might also attribute the degree of difficulty as well. On a 1-10 scale for difficulty, if Huron Peak was a 7 or 8 then Bierstadt would be a 3. [If, however, you threw in the Sawtooth and Mt. Evans, that number would go way up for time pressure (add on maybe 4 hours?) and technical savvy for the Sawtooth... stay tuned for that one.]

After we made it back to 70 we drove east for about 10 minutes for Mt. Evans and the highest road in the US. This picture shows Bierstadt (above center) from the Evans summit.

We stopped on the way down to see the famous Mt. Evans mountain goats and then headed to Idaho Springs for Beau Jo's pizza and Tommyknocker beer.

Look how small the youngest one was!

It was another great Fri night > Saturday combo for me. I think this day would be an easy introduction to the 14er club for anyone acclimated to at least 5,000 ft. Next weekend is anybody's guess at this point, but I'm pretty sure you can count on mountains :)