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5431 Hits
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72.08% Score
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2 Votes
Page Type:
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Trip Report |
|---|---|
Lat/Lon:
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39.58806°N / 105.64329°W |
Date Climbed/Hiked:
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Jun 30, 2007 |
Activities:
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Hiking, Mountaineering, Mixed, Scrambling |
Season:
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Summer |
?yad ysae nA
Tis true, after the previous two weeks of 20+ hour days, it seemed rather backwards that we should even contemplate an easy day. It was appropriate then that we chose the backwards (or "backdoor") route to the summit of Mt. Evans - The Snave.
Andy, Chris, Jamie, Wes and I all met up at Summit lake at 0700hrs that morning and trotted up the easy scree scramble to the base of the climb. The traditional route up this route follows a zig-zag path along a ledge system to a couloir/notch just north of the summit block. We opted for a more aesthetic line of mixed/ice/snow. The slope progressed to a decent 42 degrees as we approached underneath a short rock crux. It took me a while to clear out the manky vegetation and loose rock/ice to make the footholds suitable.
We topped out on the diagonal ledge system and shuffled over and down a tad to the base of the Snave couloir. A few quick hops and we were to the final class 3+ scramble to just below the summit. It was rather a shock to poke your head up and see a U-Haul, but sure enough we were on Mt Evans, home to the highest paved road in North America. We unobtrusively blended with the hordes of tourists and ate lunch. Chris took of for his car while Wes went for the loo.
The rest of the day was an easy scramble over to Spaulding, a hump of a hill to the NW of Mt Evans. We couldn't find Wes, so Andy, Jamie and I started on our way through the alpine trek. We found Wes already over on Spaulding. He took off again to get some more mileage on another ridge and we agreed to meet him alongside the road down the way.
The weather held out thanks to a "big-H" hovering over our state for the weekend. We tromped on down to the car and had the celebratory beer before driving down to pick up Wes. He wasn't done yet so we parked and waited by the side of the road. I became inspired and broke out the tools for a first ascent of the roadside snowbank. A fun, relaxing day and a great way to close out a month of hard climbing in June.
Cheers!