Mountaineering Ethics

[seannunn]

I have often wondered about that. I still "need" to climb Little Bear, and I would much prefer to go with someone who had been up before. I would even be willing to foot the bill for things related to the trip, but I am concerned that this might make the more experienced person believe that I was counting of them as a guide of some sort and that it would somehow expose them to liability. Heck I have even worried about the opposite situation occurring if I took someone with me on a climb who was less experienced than I am.

I haven't done any of the class 4 peaks yet, and I've been considering ways for an old guy like me to get it done. Everything from hiring a guide to joining the CMC and going through their courses so I can get on one of their trips. One thing I've looked at regarding Little Bear is the ranch that owns the land south of it - https://trincheraranch.com/. I've looked over their page up and down, and while it doesn't specifically say they provide trips up the peak, it does hint at it. And their side of Little Bear is actually the easiest route documented in very old guidebooks. They have a 3-night minimum stay at $350 a night, so it would cost over $1000. Grabbing a few other peaks from the ranch may make it worth the money, though most people here would laugh at that. I don't really care, I'm 60-something and have never been up a dangerous class 4, so it could be worth it to me. Something to consider.

My all means let us know if you have any luck with that. I am certainly above not risking my life in the hourglass and also be not above avoiding that dreadful approach (and descent) on the baby head rocks of Lake Como Road.
I have already done Blanca & Ellingwood, but certainly if I go 6/7 this coming summer and have only Little Bear left, I would consider it. Who knows? Maybe Little Bear ends up being somewhat like Culebra as a pay to play (safely) mountain. You can argue good or bad on that, but it would keep more people out of harm's way in the hourglass.

West Ridge indirect avoids the hourglass, but not the Lake Como Road. From what I understand it involves more exposure but less rockfall danger. Something else to consider.

Sean Nunn
Peculiar, MO

[greenonion]

I have often wondered about that. I still "need" to climb Little Bear, and I would much prefer to go with someone who had been up before. I would even be willing to foot the bill for things related to the trip, but I am concerned that this might make the more experienced person believe that I was counting of them as a guide of some sort and that it would somehow expose them to liability. Heck I have even worried about the opposite situation occurring if I took someone with me on a climb who was less experienced than I am.

I haven't done any of the class 4 peaks yet, and I've been considering ways for an old guy like me to get it done. Everything from hiring a guide to joining the CMC and going through their courses so I can get on one of their trips. One thing I've looked at regarding Little Bear is the ranch that owns the land south of it - https://trincheraranch.com/. I've looked over their page up and down, and while it doesn't specifically say they provide trips up the peak, it does hint at it. And their side of Little Bear is actually the easiest route documented in very old guidebooks. They have a 3-night minimum stay at $350 a night, so it would cost over $1000. Grabbing a few other peaks from the ranch may make it worth the money, though most people here would laugh at that. I don't really care, I'm 60-something and have never been up a dangerous class 4, so it could be worth it to me. Something to consider.

My all means let us know if you have any luck with that. I am certainly above not risking my life in the hourglass and also be not above avoiding that dreadful approach (and descent) on the baby head rocks of Lake Como Road.
I have already done Blanca & Ellingwood, but certainly if I go 6/7 this coming summer and have only Little Bear left, I would consider it. Who knows? Maybe Little Bear ends up being somewhat like Culebra as a pay to play (safely) mountain. You can argue good or bad on that, but it would keep more people out of harm's way in the hourglass.

West Ridge indirect avoids the hourglass, but not the Lake Como Road. From what I understand it involves more exposure but less rockfall danger. Something else to consider.

Sean Nunn
Peculiar, MO

Can anyone point us to a reliable route/description/track from the Trinchera ranch side? Just chewing cud over here…

[rijaca]

Can anyone point us to a reliable route/description/track from the Trinchera ranch side? Just chewing cud over here…

Ormes "Guide to the Colorado Mountains" (7th ed)..."Go only a short way up trail from the cabins and then left up S slopes and along rotten ridge to the summit. You can also get Little Bear from a camp maybe two miles farther up-near timberline in Blanca Creek drainage. By crossing a rock field WSW you come into a long couloir Mathews says "slashes right up the mountain toward South Little Bear"

[justiner]

Ormes "Guide to the Colorado Mountains" (7th ed)..."Go only a short way up trail from the cabins and then left up S slopes and along rotten ridge to the summit. You can also get Little Bear from a camp maybe two miles farther up-near timberline in Blanca Creek drainage. By crossing a rock field WSW you come into a long couloir Mathews says "slashes right up the mountain toward South Little Bear"

The terrain to the east before south little bear is very, very steep -- the east face as it is looks steeper than the Hourglass side. And even if this couloir goes to South Little Bear, the traverse from SLB to Little Bear is not cruiser.

I'm not sure where that couloir is though -- I'm guessing one of these three?

[JSFromKY]

Can anyone point us to a reliable route/description/track from the Trinchera ranch side? Just chewing cud over here…

I found a post on a website from a number of years ago, 1999 when I used to live in Colorado, by someone named Steve Bremner who climbed most or all the 14ers with his dog Sam. He poached Little Bear from what is now the Trinchera ranch side (perhaps always was, he didn't say). Here's the important parts:

By the time the sun took over dominance I was above the timberline. The ascent from here was on rotten talus. Not difficult at all, but quite tedious. No rock was stable. Even the largest rock could move, sending another in its wake to wreak havoc on your calve or worse send you pitching to the ground. Sam the Wolfdog hates climbing through talus. Finally we reached the east peak of Little Bear. Maybe a quarter of a mile to the west was the actual summit. How to get there?

I started off on the right side of the ridge. This course was certainly not inviting, even intimidating with a precipitous 2,000 foot plunge to Blanca Basin the consequence of a slip. I treaded my way cautiously along, Sam refusing to partake in this dangerous endeavour. Finally after a couple tricky moves I lost heart and decided to turn around and give up on Little Bear. After backtracking I had a look at the left side of the ridge and quickly realized that this was the way. With minor difficulties even Sam made his way to the true summit along this more gentle route.

Hope that helps.

[Eli Boardman]

Isn't this whole supposedly easy Trinchera approach just a way of avoiding the bushwhacking on the SW ridge? You still have to do the "Mama Bear Traverse" from S Little Bear to Little Bear, which I thought was definitely the crux of the SW ridge route. It's been a long time, but I would still definitely call it Colorado class 4 from my recollection. So, I guess you have to decide if paying $1000s is worth it just to avoid a couple miles of bushwhacking. The reluctance to bushwhack to the SW ridge is something I never understand, even though I've had the discussion on these forums several times. And yes, I know technically there might be an upper section of the SW ridge that is not on public lands, but in practice no one seems to care if you do SW ridge from Como Road.

[greenonion]

Isn't this whole supposedly easy Trinchera approach just a way of avoiding the bushwhacking on the SW ridge? You still have to do the "Mama Bear Traverse" from S Little Bear to Little Bear, which I thought was definitely the crux of the SW ridge route. It's been a long time, but I would still definitely call it Colorado class 4 from my recollection. So, I guess you have to decide if paying $1000s is worth it just to avoid a couple miles of bushwhacking. The reluctance to bushwhack to the SW ridge is something I never understand, even though I've had the discussion on these forums several times. And yes, I know technically there might be an upper section of the SW ridge that is not on public lands, but in practice no one seems to care if you do SW ridge from Como Road.

This makes sense. I've wondered how an approach from the south or east from Trinchera could be much "easier." Doesn't appear to be, and especially not for $1k +. Thanks to the others who have pointed to sources. If anyone else knows of a fairytale route that might exist, I'm all ears still, but...

[JSFromKY]

From Gerry Roach's 14er book:

This is the most frequently climbed route on Little Bear, but it is not Little Bear’s easiest route. The easiest route—from Arrowhead Ranch to the south— is not open to the public. The West Ridge Route is short and sweet, but it is also one of the most dangerous routes in this book.

I have yet to find a class rating for the route from the south, and no really good descriptions. All I know, and I have it on good authority, is that it's the "easiest" route and avoids Lake Como road. Sure, you can double up Ellingwood Point with Blanca from Zapata to avoid Lake Como, though that's quite long and you'd have to summit Ellingwood twice. Am I recommending staying at the ranch? Well, since I haven't done it myself, I'd have to say no. Just mentioning it as a possibility, especially for someone coming from out of state so you can hit Little Bear by its "easiest" route, Blanca, Lindsey, Hamilton Peak, and enjoy other amenities at the ranch like good food and a comfortable bed to sleep in. It's up to each individual how they want to handle it, it's only an option.

[planet54]

Ormes "Guide to the Colorado Mountains" (7th ed)..."Go only a short way up trail from the cabins and then left up S slopes and along rotten ridge to the summit. You can also get Little Bear from a camp maybe two miles farther up-near timberline in Blanca Creek drainage. By crossing a rock field WSW you come into a long couloir Mathews says "slashes right up the mountain toward South Little Bear"

The terrain to the east before south little bear is very, very steep -- the east face as it is looks steeper than the Hourglass side. And even if this couloir goes to South Little Bear, the traverse from SLB to Little Bear is not cruiser.

I'm not sure where that couloir is though -- I'm guessing one of these three?

Looking at this old Ormes sketch map , I would say the far right.It is the only route that starts above the cabin/mine site .

Blanca Basin.jpg

[justiner]

Steve Bremner was one of the first people to attempt and finish Nolan's 14, so what he would consider easy may not be "out of town tourist" easy. I've also used his trip reports when hashing plans in this area and it was... adventurous.

As far as "on good authority", there are many people on this forum well-versed with Little Bear, and I would take into consideration their opinions when hashing out a summit bid.

[justiner]

I'd be really careful with that map as it's not drawn with much accuracy.

[planet54]

I started doing 14ers in 1975 and all I used was the Ormes book ,sixth edition, until around 1990 when I got a copy of Borneman Lampert book, which i used for the last 6 or so climbs. Never saw the Roach book until after I finished. For us oldtimers the Ormes book was good enough when used with USGS paper maps and National Forest maps. Guys like me will never understand all of the new style of navigating. I can't say that Ormes ever led me totally astray.