Longs Peak Trip Report 09/23/2007

Peak(s):	Longs Peak - 14,259 feet
Date Posted:	09/23/2007
Date Climbed:	09/22/2007
Author:	Kzar

Longs Peak - Keyhole
Trailhead: Longs Peak Trailhead Elevation: 5,000 ft Distance: 14 miles Hike time: ~8.75 hours round trip; 4.75 hours up and 4 hours down Overall Impression: This climb is long and has a little bit of everything. After climbing Longs you can understand why it is the most popular 14er to climb, just surprised there are so many newbies climbing it. This trail has had so many trip reports written that is hard to write anything new. There are descriptive trip reports, trip reports where people have had a life changing moment, people overcoming their fears, and people accomplishing something they never thought possible. All in all this mountain seems to have affected more people than any other mountain I have climbed to date. Also, there is no problem following the trail since there are enough people on the trail that it is hard to get lost. Every trail has a well marked sign indicating the mileage to the summit and mileage back to the ranger stations. In addition, once you get past the keyhole there are bullseyes peppering the mountainside to mark the trail. And even on a late summer day, early fall in the mountains, there were still enough people on the trail that I occasionally had to wait behind several people to continue on the trail. I can't imagine what this trail is like in the summer. That being said, here is my trip report. I intended to meet Glen, of 14ers.com, at the trailhead at 5am but I got lost. I took Bill's directions from 14ers.com but didn't look at a map which was a big mistake. The directions say go south for 9.3 miles from the junction of Hwy 36 and 7. Well in Lyons there is a junction of Hwy 36 and 7, but the directions are referring to the junction in Estes Park. So after wandering around in the dark for awhile I finally figured out the error of my ways. I hit the trail at 6:45 and Glen was long gone by then. I saw that he had signed in at the register at 6am and I felt awful for him waiting an hour for me. Oh well, what can you do. I figured if I hustled up the trail maybe I could catch up with him. The trail has a very steady gradual climb all the way through the boulder field until you get to the keyhole. The trail is well marked and has many steps built into the trail. At 3.5 miles you reach Chasm Lake which is a beautiful setting. The Lake sits at the foot of the Longs Peak as shown in the picture below. Longs Peak from Chasm Lake There is a privy set on the mountainside about 50 yards from the trail. The privy walls are about 5 feet tall so everyone can see you standing up, and the wall have alternating slats that keep a good breeze flowing through. If they turned the privy around so you faced the downhill side it would be a must see. Mountainside privy at Chasm Lake From Chasm Lake to the Boulder Field you traverse a hillside above timberline. There are several long switch backs with a gradual grade. Once you get above the knoll you can see the keyhole in the distance. There is a trail all the way to the keyhole but at times it easy to stray from the trail. In the Boulder Field there are several campsites that are flat and surprisingly have dirt. All the boulders have been stacked around the camp sites to form a wind break. The trail goes right past the camp sites providing no privacy. The camp sites have metal containers chained to the rocks which I assume are there for campers to stash their food. Again, there is a privy about 50 yards from the camp sites. Barrenness of the boulder field The climb from the camp sites to the keyhole involves boulder hopping for the most part. As you get close to the keyhole the trail gets steeper and you occasionally need to use your hands. On this side of the keyhole there is a very cool shelter. It looks like a Tibetan stone hut, but since I've never been to Tibet or studied Tibet, this is pure conjecture. It has two windows and an open doorway. The hut is a perfect place to hide during foul weather with the Mongolian hordes climbing Longs on a summer day. Keyhole Tibet stone hut at Keyhole Once you cross through the keyhole the real climbing begins. To me this part of the climb was like putting pieces of many other mountains together. The ledges remind me of Wetterhorn or the north ridge on Lindsey, where the trough reminded me of the Red Gulley on Crestone, and the homestretch was like the East Gulley on Crestone Needle. All this on one mountain! The ledges I found were over rated. There is significant exposure but plenty of room to walk and navigate. The Trough for me was the worst part. It was long and steep and portions were filled with snow and ice. Not enough snow or ice to warrant technical climbing but enough to make it slippery and dangerous. In the gulley I got tired. Tired of the climb, tired of climbing straight up, and just wishing for an extra pair of lungs. The bullseyes mark a trail up the trough but I'm not sure that is the best way. I occasionally found my own route to avoid snow and find the path of least resistance. At the top of the trough there is a short class 3 climb to get to the narrows. This was not a difficult climb and there were people above helping others up with a friendly hand. The trough, the long trough The narrows was a welcome relief to the slog up the trough. You can tell I'm comfortable with exposure but oddly enough I have a fear of heights. My motto, don't look down, at least not very often. There is one spot on the narrows that requires a class 3 move and again it was clogged with a few people but no big deal. Everyone is friendly and glad to be out on a great mountain. The weather was great all day, no clouds, and warm weather with occasional winds. In fact here is where I met up with Glen. He was coming down as I was coming up. I apologized profusely and we talked about hooking up for another climb sometime in the future. The homestretch is a great end to the climb. The climb is steeper than the trough but it is also shorter. Most of the time you can climb standing straight up but occasionally it is nice to use your hands. My calves are sore today and I think it is from this part of the climb. You are leaning forward and straining your calves going up this rock. The homestretch, picture exaggerates the pitch The summit is large and flat giving everyone enough room to stake out a place of their own. There are beautiful views of Estes Park. The weather was great up here; I was in shorts and a light shirt. Occassionaly during the climb I put on a jacket to keep warm in the wind. I stayed on the summit for just a short time before heading down. I was tired at this point but feeling pretty good. I found going down fairly easy but the trough is long and brutal on the knees. Also, you have 7 miles to go. It seems like it will never end on the way down. This is a long hike but well worth it. Getting back to the Denver area I went through Allens Park and Nederland for a more scenic tour. The aspens were changing providing gorgeous vistas. There were a few elk out in Allens Park causing a minor traffic jam. Aspens changing along Highway 72? Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Longs Peak - Keyhole

Trailhead: Longs Peak Trailhead

Elevation: 5,000 ft

Distance: 14 miles

Hike time: ~8.75 hours round trip; 4.75 hours up and 4 hours down

Overall Impression: This climb is long and has a little bit of everything. After climbing Longs you can understand why it is the most popular 14er to climb, just surprised there are so many newbies climbing it.

This trail has had so many trip reports written that is hard to write anything new. There are descriptive trip reports, trip reports where people have had a life changing moment, people overcoming their fears, and people accomplishing something they never thought possible. All in all this mountain seems to have affected more people than any other mountain I have climbed to date.

Also, there is no problem following the trail since there are enough people on the trail that it is hard to get lost. Every trail has a well marked sign indicating the mileage to the summit and mileage back to the ranger stations. In addition, once you get past the keyhole there are bullseyes peppering the mountainside to mark the trail. And even on a late summer day, early fall in the mountains, there were still enough people on the trail that I occasionally had to wait behind several people to continue on the trail. I can't imagine what this trail is like in the summer.

That being said, here is my trip report. I intended to meet Glen, of 14ers.com, at the trailhead at 5am but I got lost. I took Bill's directions from 14ers.com but didn't look at a map which was a big mistake. The directions say go south for 9.3 miles from the junction of Hwy 36 and 7. Well in Lyons there is a junction of Hwy 36 and 7, but the directions are referring to the junction in Estes Park. So after wandering around in the dark for awhile I finally figured out the error of my ways. I hit the trail at 6:45 and Glen was long gone by then. I saw that he had signed in at the register at 6am and I felt awful for him waiting an hour for me. Oh well, what can you do.

I figured if I hustled up the trail maybe I could catch up with him. The trail has a very steady gradual climb all the way through the boulder field until you get to the keyhole. The trail is well marked and has many steps built into the trail. At 3.5 miles you reach Chasm Lake which is a beautiful setting. The Lake sits at the foot of the Longs Peak as shown in the picture below.

Longs Peak from Chasm Lake

There is a privy set on the mountainside about 50 yards from the trail. The privy walls are about 5 feet tall so everyone can see you standing up, and the wall have alternating slats that keep a good breeze flowing through. If they turned the privy around so you faced the downhill side it would be a must see.

Mountainside privy at Chasm Lake

From Chasm Lake to the Boulder Field you traverse a hillside above timberline. There are several long switch backs with a gradual grade. Once you get above the knoll you can see the keyhole in the distance. There is a trail all the way to the keyhole but at times it easy to stray from the trail. In the Boulder Field there are several campsites that are flat and surprisingly have dirt. All the boulders have been stacked around the camp sites to form a wind break. The trail goes right past the camp sites providing no privacy. The camp sites have metal containers chained to the rocks which I assume are there for campers to stash their food. Again, there is a privy about 50 yards from the camp sites.

Barrenness of the boulder field

The climb from the camp sites to the keyhole involves boulder hopping for the most part. As you get close to the keyhole the trail gets steeper and you occasionally need to use your hands. On this side of the keyhole there is a very cool shelter. It looks like a Tibetan stone hut, but since I've never been to Tibet or studied Tibet, this is pure conjecture. It has two windows and an open doorway. The hut is a perfect place to hide during foul weather with the Mongolian hordes climbing Longs on a summer day.

Keyhole

Tibet stone hut at Keyhole

Once you cross through the keyhole the real climbing begins. To me this part of the climb was like putting pieces of many other mountains together. The ledges remind me of Wetterhorn or the north ridge on Lindsey, where the trough reminded me of the Red Gulley on Crestone, and the homestretch was like the East Gulley on Crestone Needle. All this on one mountain! The ledges I found were over rated. There is significant exposure but plenty of room to walk and navigate. The Trough for me was the worst part. It was long and steep and portions were filled with snow and ice. Not enough snow or ice to warrant technical climbing but enough to make it slippery and dangerous. In the gulley I got tired. Tired of the climb, tired of climbing straight up, and just wishing for an extra pair of lungs. The bullseyes mark a trail up the trough but I'm not sure that is the best way. I occasionally found my own route to avoid snow and find the path of least resistance. At the top of the trough there is a short class 3 climb to get to the narrows. This was not a difficult climb and there were people above helping others up with a friendly hand.

The trough, the long trough

The narrows was a welcome relief to the slog up the trough. You can tell I'm comfortable with exposure but oddly enough I have a fear of heights. My motto, don't look down, at least not very often. There is one spot on the narrows that requires a class 3 move and again it was clogged with a few people but no big deal. Everyone is friendly and glad to be out on a great mountain. The weather was great all day, no clouds, and warm weather with occasional winds. In fact here is where I met up with Glen. He was coming down as I was coming up. I apologized profusely and we talked about hooking up for another climb sometime in the future.

The homestretch is a great end to the climb. The climb is steeper than the trough but it is also shorter. Most of the time you can climb standing straight up but occasionally it is nice to use your hands. My calves are sore today and I think it is from this part of the climb. You are leaning forward and straining your calves going up this rock.

The homestretch, picture exaggerates the pitch

The summit is large and flat giving everyone enough room to stake out a place of their own. There are beautiful views of Estes Park. The weather was great up here; I was in shorts and a light shirt. Occassionaly during the climb I put on a jacket to keep warm in the wind. I stayed on the summit for just a short time before heading down. I was tired at this point but feeling pretty good. I found going down fairly easy but the trough is long and brutal on the knees. Also, you have 7 miles to go. It seems like it will never end on the way down. This is a long hike but well worth it.

Getting back to the Denver area I went through Allens Park and Nederland for a more scenic tour. The aspens were changing providing gorgeous vistas. There were a few elk out in Allens Park causing a minor traffic jam.

Aspens changing along Highway 72?

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Comments or Questions

Kzar	conditions 9/26/2007 12:11am Should be good conditions to climb this weekend, enjoy the peak. I really like the web site to get weather conditions. They give you forecasts in 3 hr increments that includes, temp, could cover, precip and wind. Pretty helpful. BTW, when I went up the snow was not a factor. The only snow was in the trough and if you wanted you could avoid it almost entirely.
jmcgirr47	good one 11/30/2010 5:28pm as you say, tough to re-say what's been said so many times.. but I appreciate a recent TR - as I'm heading out this weekend.
shotgung	Long walk 2/5/2011 12:22am Nice write up. I've wanted to try this climb but always thought it was too hard. Maybe next year when the snow goes away we'll give it a try.

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