Bierstadt and a Fun Bail-Out Route 7/6/12
I woke up at 4, picked up my friend Colton at 5 and finally made it to Guanellla Pass around 6:30am intending to hit Bierstadt and Evans via Sawtooth Ridge. Still feeling some resistance in my left leg from muscle pull on a prior mountain, I had to simply bite the bullet as to not let down my friend and hey, I haven't been turned back on a 14er yet. So we set off enjoying the luxurious boardwalks over the willow marsh(until you make the loop from The Sawtooth, you don't know how good you have it) and on to the gentle west slopes.
There were plenty of people, but being a Friday this is to be expected. Making quick progress to the tundra to avoid leapfrogging with other climbers, we felt pretty good about the remaining route and the sunny, benevolent weather. In the end, both the route and weather would get the upper hand. Of the other 14ers I'd hit, I'd never encountered such a straight uphill section like on Bierstadt, maybe it was due to a lack of conditioning but boy it felt endlessly steep. Upon reaching the summit at 9:30, a worrisome dark cloud bank had formed beyond Grays and Torreys while the north Sawach range was in the clouds. And it was very, very cold on the crowded summit. Colton signed in the(pointless) register as C-Orenthal James-lton and I planked the summit rock. Easiest 14er my ass.
Feeling notably tired and fearing the clouds swirling around Evans, we decided to skip it for next time but still have some fun descending via Sawtooth Ridge. Dropping down the sandy, loose climbers trails went quicker than I'd planned, but by the time we reached the notch beneath the gendarme it was beginning to lightly rain. Climbing up the gendarme gave us a some wet Class 3 fun, and though my partner wasn't experienced in that caliber of climbing he did pretty well under my guidance. Topping out at the small saddle, we had our first close up view of the ledge system I'd been so excited for. Though short, I did have a few worries about the sandy, wet ledge leading up to the gentle slopes of The Sawtooth, it looked a lot more tilted towards the 1000+ foot free fall than pictures showed. In the end, it was no trouble at all and I even walked along the edge of the chasm for fun. The most difficult part of the route was by far climbing the gendarme, the ledge system is nothing to worry about if you've been doing Class 3/4 stuff for years like me.
Upon topping out, the rain turned into small hail as we looked towards the descent gully. Scanning the route I noticed a climber at the top of the gully heading down and a group of five stubbornly heading towards Evans(they'd later turn around). Heading down the gully was pretty easy, as there was a nice sandy path leading down the north side of it. I'd watched another climber wade through the willows along Scott Gomer Creek below, and within thirty minutes we were doing the same. There's a pretty good trail to the left of the creek, and though at both ends it peters out, it's obvious in the middle parts. Some distant thunder hastened our traverse, and we reached the car just before the main downpour started.
There were plenty of people, but being a Friday this is to be expected. Making quick progress to the tundra to avoid leapfrogging with other climbers, we felt pretty good about the remaining route and the sunny, benevolent weather. In the end, both the route and weather would get the upper hand. Of the other 14ers I'd hit, I'd never encountered such a straight uphill section like on Bierstadt, maybe it was due to a lack of conditioning but boy it felt endlessly steep. Upon reaching the summit at 9:30, a worrisome dark cloud bank had formed beyond Grays and Torreys while the north Sawach range was in the clouds. And it was very, very cold on the crowded summit. Colton signed in the(pointless) register as C-Orenthal James-lton and I planked the summit rock. Easiest 14er my ass.
Feeling notably tired and fearing the clouds swirling around Evans, we decided to skip it for next time but still have some fun descending via Sawtooth Ridge. Dropping down the sandy, loose climbers trails went quicker than I'd planned, but by the time we reached the notch beneath the gendarme it was beginning to lightly rain. Climbing up the gendarme gave us a some wet Class 3 fun, and though my partner wasn't experienced in that caliber of climbing he did pretty well under my guidance. Topping out at the small saddle, we had our first close up view of the ledge system I'd been so excited for. Though short, I did have a few worries about the sandy, wet ledge leading up to the gentle slopes of The Sawtooth, it looked a lot more tilted towards the 1000+ foot free fall than pictures showed. In the end, it was no trouble at all and I even walked along the edge of the chasm for fun. The most difficult part of the route was by far climbing the gendarme, the ledge system is nothing to worry about if you've been doing Class 3/4 stuff for years like me.
Upon topping out, the rain turned into small hail as we looked towards the descent gully. Scanning the route I noticed a climber at the top of the gully heading down and a group of five stubbornly heading towards Evans(they'd later turn around). Heading down the gully was pretty easy, as there was a nice sandy path leading down the north side of it. I'd watched another climber wade through the willows along Scott Gomer Creek below, and within thirty minutes we were doing the same. There's a pretty good trail to the left of the creek, and though at both ends it peters out, it's obvious in the middle parts. Some distant thunder hastened our traverse, and we reached the car just before the main downpour started.
