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Peak(s):  Jagged Mountain  -  13,833 feet
Turret Peak  -  13,837 feet
Date Posted:  08/20/2012
Date Climbed:   08/06/2012
Author:  Wyoming Bob
 Double Finisher - 14'ers and a Season   

A few weeks ago I posted an inquiry as to the terrain on the far side of Twin thumbs Pass as a means to access Jagged. En route we planned to pick up Turret and Pigeon, but Jagged as the main target. Thank you to those who responded and I'll take a moment to post a link to our trip through a portion of that terrain.

Did the usual train ride to Needleton and the hike to Chicago Basin. Lots of people, more than I've seen before and even those sweet hidden gem spots were taken. We asked if we could share a spot and my eternal thanks go to T. and A. for letting us come aboard. You know who you are.

Day One called for a climb of Windom my my partner to score the last 14'er on his list. We made Twin Lakes a bit after dawn and within 2 1/2 hours G was finisher. Started at age 26, finished at 42, not a bad course.

We then packed the loads up and over Twin thumbs to drop into the basin on the far side. The idea was to minimize heavy load hiking for setting a camp and then day hiking Pigeon and Turret. Then we would drop down to the Jagged Meadow, and do the same again. The first camp would be at a gem of a lake halfway down the valley between Twin Thumbs and the Jagged Meadow.

Things got a bit complicated when I pulled the stunt of snapping my right fibula on the way down oh no more than ten minutes hobble from the camp site. Breaking bone is a weird sound, you don't really know if you hear it or you feel it, but it sure got my attention. Kind of hurts too.

We overnighted at the lake and debated the next move, PLB or walk out . . . a call to my wife by SARSAT or a more private experience sure to be remembered. The lake offered an icing source, the ace bandage offered a bit of stability and the hiking poles offered a bit of support.

The next day called for about 800 feet vertical over perhaps 3/4 mile of bushwhack to the Jagged Basin and another PLB open ground decision point. We opted to continue and at the Jagged Cabin made the last call as to go for it or push the button. We went for the river and ended up camping at river's edge that evening.

The next day offered on again and off again trail from the river camp to Needleton, may be 3 miles with the added joy of an up and over Water Tank Hill. The real reward was the chance to go to Silverton for a hot meal, if we could hustle the early train. A hot meal is a serious stimulus.

As dumb as it sounds, we had a great trip, we scouted the route over Twin thumbs, we saw the river trail and hike up to the end of the Jagged Meadow. We know where to go next time . . . And we got two finishers out of the debacle . . . G finished the 14'ers and I finished off any chance of scoring may last 5 Centennials this year. I even got this really neat brace and boot for the next 4 to 6 weeks and a snazzy X-ray for the scrap book. Climbing just don't get any more entertaining than this.

The usual Climbing with Bob narrative can be found here.



Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):
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Comments or Questions
lordhelmut
User
Hardcore
8/21/2012 12:16am
Hiking out of the heart of the Weminuche with a broken fibula is grizzled. I'm nauseous just thinking about your deproach. I'd say thats a bigger accomplishment than climbing a couple peaks.


Artvandalay
User
lol
8/21/2012 2:00am
Thanks to T and A? I too, am grateful for T and A!


JosephG
Uh...congrats?
8/21/2012 2:39am
Wow. Sorry to hear about your season's finisher, and congrats to your partner for his 14er finisher.

Way to persevere and gut it out. Hope to see you out there next summer!


pflegerc
User
Wow.
8/21/2012 4:24am
I broke my fibula playing football and walked off the field. I thought that was legit. What you did is simply awesome in the sense of toughness. Sorry to hear the season is over, but what lordhelmet said is right, walking out on the break is an amazing accomplishment. Your everyday person would have pressed that PLB button over and over until the cavalry arrived.


Summit Lounger
User
Delayed Gratification
8/21/2012 2:45pm
The Centennials will happen next year. It will be sweet for you. I am impressed by the way the group took care of itself, no crying wolf. They did what needed to be done.


Floyd
User
I'm with Helmut
8/21/2012 3:15pm
Way to keep things in perspective and do what was needed to be done. BTW, that lake is pretty sweet, huh? But Pigeon would have been a real beast from there, even with 2 legs.


SuperPolok
User
Hardcore indeed
8/21/2012 3:38pm
Tough way to finish the season. And by tough, I mean you personally are damn tough for fighting through that. Hats of to you and your partners for getting through that! And to think people in the past have called SAR for twisted ankles!


Monster5
User
Heck of a job, Bob
8/21/2012 4:06pm
Way to get yourself out of there and pick up some fine peaks. Congrats to G on finishing - he mentioned you waiting at the car but I thought it was a simple twisted ankle rather than a broken fib! I still feel bad about not being able to fit them in for a ride up Yankeee Boy.


BobbyFinn
User
Ouch...
8/21/2012 9:10pm
Nice self-rescue! Congrats to your partner and good luck for accomplishing your goals next year!


Wyoming Bob
User
Appreciate the thumbs up
8/22/2012 12:20am
Thanks for the many positive thoughts. You are dead on as it was a group effort, no grumbling as to missed peaks, no hesitation to reapportion the loads, a group discussion as to taking what time would be needed and then moving forward. G and I have climbed all 4 seasons for 14 straight years and the other Bob has been on for 4 of those . . . 32 climber years. Solid partners make unspoken and predictable decisions, accept the risk we all take in climbing and come together when the need arises. That's the moral of the story and the true reward for doing what we do with the folks we are privileged to climb with.


Mtnman200
User
Wow! You get the Ironman Award!
10/25/2012 2:14am
That brought back fond memories of breaking my arm about a week after I turned nine. I was spending the night at a friend's house on a Friday and we got the bright idea to use a ladder to climb onto the roof of the garage and jump onto a dirtpile on the driveway. After jumping onto the dirtpile about 50 times, it was packed down like concrete. That's when I landed on the dirtpile at a bit of an angle and my left arm hit the dirt hard and immediately I was in pain. I didn't know my arm was broken, just that it hurt a lot. I didn't get much sleep on Friday night because my arm hurt like crazy everytime I moved.

The next morning, my friend's dad made us shovel the dirtpile and spread the dirt on the lawn because we'd done such a nice job of packing the dirtpile down. As it turns out, it really hurts to shovel a load of dirt with a broken arm! I had another not very restful time sleeping on Saturday night.

On Sunday evening, I finally told my parents that I'd hurt my arm two days ago. We went to the hospital for x-rays and found out that I'd broken my arm. That was only two days with a broken bone, not six days like you did, and I wasn't hiking 8 miles with a broken leg over rough terrain. You definitely get the coveted Ironman Award.

BTW, I looked at the your peak list to see what centennials you have left and am confident that you can finish the centennials next summer. Good luck!


Wyoming Bob
User
Hopefully 2013 is the year
10/25/2012 12:58pm
Thankfully the ankle is coming around, class 1 and 2 so far and aiming for a finish this coming summer. Actually already rounding up the usual cast of characters.

I'll post, you read with a sharp eye, as I appreciate the catch.


12ersRule
User
Get well soon
7/29/2013 6:29pm
Congrats on your partner's finisher. Great job getting yourself out of there. You are seriously tough! I'm in awe!



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