Mount Ida, Chief Cheley Peak, UN 12820 and Sheep Rock 9/8
11.8mi RT, 3750' EVG, ~8hrs
Joe, Jim and I set out to climb these three peaks via the standard route from Milner Pass. I'd climbed Ida, Chief Cheley and Cracktop in 2010 but walked right past 12820 since I had yet to be versed in the identification of ranked peaks. Joe had climbed Terra Tomah, Julian and Cracktop on his Gorge Lake backpacking trip a few weeks earlier, but had to skip the final three peaks due to weather. So, we set out to settle some unfinished peak bagging business.
It was rather cold at Milner Pass, and a decent layer of mist was clinging to the forested slopes around the lakes. As we crested treeline we saw that the mist was actually quite substantial, forming a huge cloud bank over Lake Granby that extended up the Kawuneeche Valley to Poudre Lake. At treeline we also encountered the relentless cold wind that we'd rarely escape for the rest of the day. The hike to Mount Ida is straightforward on the 'unmaintained' trail that leads to the summit. The trail was faint on the final climb up to Ida, but still much more pronounced than five years before when I'd last followed it. At the summit the wind surprisingly died down and we enjoyed the views down to the Gorge Lakes.
To descend to the Ida-Chief Cheley saddle, we walked west from the summit and entered a loose gully near the summit and carefully picked our way to the saddle. Since it was pretty cold and still early in the morning we encountered lots of verglas on the shaded rocks on the way up to Ida, and we were concerned there would be more ice on the much steeper climb up to Chief Cheley. Fortunately there wasn't as much as we'd expected, and the climb to the white summit block went quickly. After a quick break at the summit, we scampered around the large boulders on the ridge and walked over to UN 12820.
We pretty much retraced our steps to get back to the Ida saddle, but decided to contour around the side of Chief Cheley. At the saddle, we took the direct climb to Ida's summit instead of funneling back into the gully. This proved to be a more solid route, despite the steepness of the climb. Back on the trail we made quick time of the final miles, passing several groups along the way. Back in the trees, we made a sidetrip by following the old Ute Trail to the base of Sheep Rock, an unranked Grand County summit that overlooks Poudre Lake. The summit is a nice rounded knob that does somewhat resemble a round sheep. We returned back at the trailhead about 8 hours after we'd started the hike.
Additional photos of the adventure at joeandfrede.com and Jim's Picasa.
Joe, Jim and I set out to climb these three peaks via the standard route from Milner Pass. I'd climbed Ida, Chief Cheley and Cracktop in 2010 but walked right past 12820 since I had yet to be versed in the identification of ranked peaks. Joe had climbed Terra Tomah, Julian and Cracktop on his Gorge Lake backpacking trip a few weeks earlier, but had to skip the final three peaks due to weather. So, we set out to settle some unfinished peak bagging business.
It was rather cold at Milner Pass, and a decent layer of mist was clinging to the forested slopes around the lakes. As we crested treeline we saw that the mist was actually quite substantial, forming a huge cloud bank over Lake Granby that extended up the Kawuneeche Valley to Poudre Lake. At treeline we also encountered the relentless cold wind that we'd rarely escape for the rest of the day. The hike to Mount Ida is straightforward on the 'unmaintained' trail that leads to the summit. The trail was faint on the final climb up to Ida, but still much more pronounced than five years before when I'd last followed it. At the summit the wind surprisingly died down and we enjoyed the views down to the Gorge Lakes.
To descend to the Ida-Chief Cheley saddle, we walked west from the summit and entered a loose gully near the summit and carefully picked our way to the saddle. Since it was pretty cold and still early in the morning we encountered lots of verglas on the shaded rocks on the way up to Ida, and we were concerned there would be more ice on the much steeper climb up to Chief Cheley. Fortunately there wasn't as much as we'd expected, and the climb to the white summit block went quickly. After a quick break at the summit, we scampered around the large boulders on the ridge and walked over to UN 12820.
We pretty much retraced our steps to get back to the Ida saddle, but decided to contour around the side of Chief Cheley. At the saddle, we took the direct climb to Ida's summit instead of funneling back into the gully. This proved to be a more solid route, despite the steepness of the climb. Back on the trail we made quick time of the final miles, passing several groups along the way. Back in the trees, we made a sidetrip by following the old Ute Trail to the base of Sheep Rock, an unranked Grand County summit that overlooks Poudre Lake. The summit is a nice rounded knob that does somewhat resemble a round sheep. We returned back at the trailhead about 8 hours after we'd started the hike.
Additional photos of the adventure at joeandfrede.com and Jim's Picasa.
