Download Agreement, Release, and Acknowledgement of Risk:
You (the person requesting this file download) fully understand mountain climbing ("Activity") involves risks and dangers of serious bodily injury, including permanent disability, paralysis, and death ("Risks") and you fully accept and assume all such risks and all responsibility for losses, costs, and damages you incur as a result of your participation in this Activity.
You acknowledge that information in the file you have chosen to download may not be accurate and may contain errors. You agree to assume all risks when using this information and agree to release and discharge 14ers.com, 14ers Inc. and the author(s) of such information (collectively, the "Released Parties").
You hereby discharge the Released Parties from all damages, actions, claims and liabilities of any nature, specifically including, but not limited to, damages, actions, claims and liabilities arising from or related to the negligence of the Released Parties. You further agree to indemnify, hold harmless and defend 14ers.com, 14ers Inc. and each of the other Released Parties from and against any loss, damage, liability and expense, including costs and attorney fees, incurred by 14ers.com, 14ers Inc. or any of the other Released Parties as a result of you using information provided on the 14ers.com or 14ers Inc. websites.
You have read this agreement, fully understand its terms and intend it to be a complete and unconditional release of all liability to the greatest extent allowed by law and agree that if any portion of this agreement is held to be invalid the balance, notwithstanding, shall continue in full force and effect.
By clicking "OK" you agree to these terms. If you DO NOT agree, click "Cancel"...
Hello again my fellow 14ers.com members. It has been a long 24 hours and my quads are still toasting from this bad boy. My neck is fried and frankly I don't think I could have applied more sunscreen.
In our classic fashion, we left Boulder at 10 PM, don't ask me why, but we did. It was a pretty easy drive to Aspen, arriving in around 4 hours. At this point it was nearly 3AM and we were in need of some sleep. Unfortunately i had ran over a dead skunk shortly before so the car was smelling quite tasty. This prevented me from sleeping like I would desire. On top of this, many groups were arriving periodically after us beginning their day - also putting a damper on my sleep. After about 3 hours, @6:30 AM, we departed (later realizing we should have started earlier).
1
^^The trail literally begins at Maroon Lake. Never seen anything like this, well I have been to a lake before but not like this one. Can see all the way to the bottom throughout. I mean look at this pic! Bells in the back. If I was a cowboy, I woulda set up shop right here! The trail heads past the lake about a mile. This part is very mellow and provides a nice warm up for the steep inclines to come.
yes
^^The early morning sun peeping through the blinds.
yes
^^You want to hike until you reach this Cairn on your LEFT side. It is easy to miss so be sure to not!
2
^^If you encounter this lake, you are wrong!!!! STOP STOP TURN BACK! We arrived here not knowing what was going on, and thankfully there was a FS guy there to tell us to turn back and look for the pyramid cairn. Lets be honest though, this lake it pretty cool and is worth a little extra work to check out. Going off route ended up costing us about 30 minutes.
so once you find the pyramid cairn, begin your first real ascent
yes yes yes
^^Views of the surroundings
yes
^^Some great steps built in. At this point the path was very well marked. yes
^^Looking back down at Maroon lake, what a cite i must say. Picture this with a little dusting of snow. oooooo yes
^^A couple switch backs ahead before breaking treeline yes
^^Almost there. Stopping to apply some sunscreen. yes
^^OHHHH you can almost taste it!
yes
^^AHHH finally you have broken treeline to arrive at this. THe best looking cairn you have ever seen. Oh the things i would do to it if it were alive. Forget crop circles, aliens are transitioning to the cairn building! What a work of art.
CAN ANYONE SAY JENGA???
yes
^^After the welcoming cairn, you encounter a snowfield, which i think is a glacier, to the amphitheater. There were no signs of post holing and the snow was extremely soft, leading me to conclude it is a glacier. yes
^^A view of the snowfield from above
yes
^^Once in the amphitheater, you will want to make sure all your cameras are functioning properly, as this is really the last good flat spot to have a cup of tea. As you can see here, we are thrilled for what is to come!
yes yes
^^THe beginning of the 1000 feet of uphill to reach 13,000. boy was this section tiring yes
^^Pretty steep segment.
yes yes
^^Looking down at the amphitheater, this thing is huge!
yes
^^At the top of the 1000 foot section. This was such a relief. Gathered here to enjoy some homemade ham sandwiches, intact 4 of them. yummy. For we knew the next segment of the hike would be something very new to the both of us.
yes
^^THis was our first class 4 and to be honest, we were a bit nervous. Everyone on here was quite blunt about the risk of death climbing these rocks in the elks. We brought helmets and decided to start wearing them here. (even though hers isn't on. i promise we put them on). This picture is taken shortly after the 1k straight up ascent. It is looking down opposite to the side of the amphitheater.
yes
^^Looking down opposite to the amphitheater side yes
^^What a range this is, beautiful all around
yes
^^IF you can tell, the rock in the middle has a bit of a green tint to it. This is where you begin to climb on all fours. It was quite fun and exhilarating. THe expose is quite large here and any slip would actually kill you. make sure to test every hand hold before you put your faith in it. Once this segment is done, you will see well marked cairns to the top (just another couple hundred feet). BUT be very cautious of other people above you! A member of another party above us had let loose a few rocks and came about a foot from hitting Mariel right in the side, i shit you not. If it hadn't have been for that foot between, she probably would have been knocked out by the gatorade bottle sized rock! PHEW it was intense! Cant blame the guy though, this hike was super loose!
and then. THE TOP!!!
yes
^^repping Naked Turtle at the top. Check out mynakedturtle.com for some gear for a great cause! yes
^^you know what that is? ITS THE BELLS! What a view, sometimes I'm amazed at the photos these go pros can capture. yes
^^What is that. Looks like a thunder storm. Well that is indeed what it was. After literally 5 minutes on the top, i was being rushed to leave. At the time it seemed unneccesary, i wanted to enjoy the top for a bit longer, you know, eat another ham sandwich. BUT, we left promptly, for a very good reason. It began raining seconds after we departed the summit. THen. BANG BOOM. we heard thunder. We were literally at 13,975 when we heard the first bolt. IT was extremely scary. I can vividly remember when I turned into survival mode to avoid getting hit by lightening. We even contemplated hiding out in a nearby cave, but diddnt end up doing so. We were frantically racing down the peak, some of the steepest stuff. But we diddnt even think about how dangerous the route was, we just needed to get away from that lightening that was approaching. I think we made it down to 13k feet in about 25 minutes. we were hauling. HEaring the thunder roar from that high up is pretty moving. Thankfully we made it down safely and the storm eventually passed.
This was a classic example of starting too late. We should have started around 530-6. Being unfamiliar with the area, I should have factored in some time for mistakes. Being at 14k feet during a thunderstorm is really intense. Each bolt sounds like a bomb going off. It was dangerous to be up there at that time and yahooooo we made it down!
^^Post thunderstorm, back (safely) at 13k feet. Goat came by to share some thoughts on the storm only to find out he was almost peeing his pants too. I think he actually came over for the chocolate I was eating, don't worry I diddnt give him any. I think he was plotting to drop some rocks on us after that!
Some pics of the way down:
^^The Bells when we got back, still looking real good. We ended up following a FS intern for a bit of the ways down. He told us all about the area and some cool routes to try in the future. He also mentioned the lake was just stocked with fish (little secret for you anglers out there) 1
^^Back near the car, doing a lil R n R, relaxing the legs and taking in our first class 4!!!
^^What I picture when they talk about stocking lakes. FF to 1:50.
Overall was a fantastic and tiring day. Probably my favorite 14er so far. The route always had us on our toes, it was super fun. We narrowly escaped death a few times and lived to tell about it, what could be better? Just remember to not miss that pyramid cairn on the main trail. Also, remember to test each hold before committing to it, you can die if you fall! Its scary to think about, but if you take it slow Im sure you will make it! One more thing...leave early! Storms roll in quick round here and you don't want to experience what we did at the top!
Hope the report is helpful!
One love
-Alex
Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):
You learned a lot from this climb and did a great job sharing your experience. It helped me and I am sure it will help others. Pictures were great and your description was with humor...despite the circumstances. Good Job!
Great work, Alex. You and Mariel cruised it. From doing loads of choss piles over the years, I’ve learned to find ways to avoid the crowds. One careless climber above you can take you out. So I start early on loose climbs and pick days where the peak isn’t crowded. If you are descending with climbers above you, find the spots that provide the best cover and recon the next part of the descent, then move efficiently to the next spot of cover.
Caution: The information contained in this report may not be accurate and should not be the only resource used in preparation for your climb. Failure to have the necessary experience, physical conditioning, supplies or equipment can result in injury or death. 14ers.com and the author(s) of this report provide no warranties, either express or implied, that the information provided is accurate or reliable. By using the information provided, you agree to indemnify and hold harmless 14ers.com and the report author(s) with respect to any claims and demands against them, including any attorney fees and expenses. Please read the 14ers.com Safety and Disclaimer pages for more information.
Please respect private property: 14ers.com supports the rights of private landowners to determine how and by whom their land will be used. In Colorado, it is your responsibility to determine if land is private and to obtain the appropriate permission before entering the property.
