Mt. of the Holy Cross Trip Report 09/02/2007

Peak(s):	Mt. of the Holy Cross - 14,007 feet
Date Posted:	09/02/2007
Modified:	08/20/2008
Date Climbed:	08/18/2007
Author:	ClimbinIrish

Holy Cross - East Cross Creek
(Long overdue report ...) Hit the top of the Tigiwon road around 5:15. (The lot was already overflowing, but things never became congested as I was worried about. Lots of people along the route, but not too crowded & it was kinda nice to have some company for a change.) Started out from the trailhead at 5:30 with my climbing partner for the day, my dad. The hike up to the Pass is fairly gentle, and the trail is easy to navigate even in the darkness without a headlamp. Once you cross the creek, follow the trail that leads uphill to the right, (remnants along the left side lead away to campsites, and it's easy to get lost if you aren't paying attention.) Above treeline, the ridge is definitely time-consuming, but several monumental cairns help out along the begining. There seemed to be numerous trail segments, but no true "right way," so just follow what appears to be the easiest path and keep an eye on your intended destination. (My dad was battling with the remnants of the flu and started to feel the altitude pretty badly about halfway up the ridge, and wisely decided to call it off there. While the final push is not necessarily too hard, it would not be easy to descend in less-that-ideal physical condition.) Once you hit the corner and turn left to begin the final summit push, try to take note of the path you are taking to get up there. For some reason it seems to be easy to get disoriented on the way down - nothing dangerous, but you can end up taking a much longer way down than is necessary. Hit the summit @ 10:15. The views from the summit are incredible, especially the drop-offs on the eastern face that towers over the Bowl of Tears and offers a great overview of the route you've taken to get up there. Scrambled down the ridge and rejoined my dad just below treeline as the storm clouds were starting to build. The march up from East Cross Creek was as just as painful as expected, but I guess that's the price you have to pay for such a great mountain. Back at the truck around 3:00 (for 9.5 hours round-trip.) Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Holy Cross - East Cross Creek

(Long overdue report ...)

Hit the top of the Tigiwon road around 5:15. (The lot was already overflowing, but things never became congested as I was worried about. Lots of people along the route, but not too crowded & it was kinda nice to have some company for a change.) Started out from the trailhead at 5:30 with my climbing partner for the day, my dad. The hike up to the Pass is fairly gentle, and the trail is easy to navigate even in the darkness without a headlamp. Once you cross the creek, follow the trail that leads uphill to the right, (remnants along the left side lead away to campsites, and it's easy to get lost if you aren't paying attention.)

Above treeline, the ridge is definitely time-consuming, but several monumental cairns help out along the begining. There seemed to be numerous trail segments, but no true "right way," so just follow what appears to be the easiest path and keep an eye on your intended destination. (My dad was battling with the remnants of the flu and started to feel the altitude pretty badly about halfway up the ridge, and wisely decided to call it off there. While the final push is not necessarily too hard, it would not be easy to descend in less-that-ideal physical condition.) Once you hit the corner and turn left to begin the final summit push, try to take note of the path you are taking to get up there. For some reason it seems to be easy to get disoriented on the way down - nothing dangerous, but you can end up taking a much longer way down than is necessary.

Hit the summit @ 10:15. The views from the summit are incredible, especially the drop-offs on the eastern face that towers over the Bowl of Tears and offers a great overview of the route you've taken to get up there.

Scrambled down the ridge and rejoined my dad just below treeline as the storm clouds were starting to build. The march up from East Cross Creek was as just as painful as expected, but I guess that's the price you have to pay for such a great mountain. Back at the truck around 3:00 (for 9.5 hours round-trip.)

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

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