Summit Staycations

No ultra trail racing updates this year. Following a long, historically snowy winter in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, the desire not to have our recreational schedules dictated by my training regimen and refocusing on our passion of climbing mountains together, we chose to take 2019 off from any competitive racing. Choosing 2019 as the year to take a break from competition was serendipitous, as snow and the debris from countless avalanches have made getting into the back country and high up on big mountains difficult to impossible until the past few weeks. 

Historic 2019 Snowpack

Rather than travel to far-flung locations in Colorado and run the risk of running into impassable back-country roads and other inaccessible destinations, we've chosen to focus our exploring on places in our home county, of Summit.

Here are some Summit County Colorado highlights from July...

<Click on the photos for larger size>

Independence Mountain on Independence Day

We intended to summit Independence Mountain (12,614'), which we see from our house every day and do a loop to tie in Bear Mountain (12,582'). No circuit this day, as we were turned back 150' from the summit of Independence Mtn by a hard wind-loaded snowfield with a long run-out that we chose not to risk without crampons and ice axe. So, we had to resort to an out and back route. No regrets, it's just a 20 minute drive from home. 

Beautiful Start 

Convinced It'll Buff Out and Look Like New

Rugged, Steep Bushwhack to Gain the Ridge

More Work

Worth the Effort

So Close - Doesn't Look Bad, but Risky Runout Down to the Left 

Reversing the View Back to Home

Giving the Summit Old Man Fist...You Got Us this Time, We'll Be Back

Descending the Ridge - 14ers Torreys and Grays in the Distance

Mountain Magic

Independence Mountain from the Drive out Through Montezuma

Ten Mile Range with Bella

Bella's a few months away from 15 years old and we try to get her out on an adventure at least once per week. She took us up to 12,000' on the Ten Mile Range between Breckenridge and Copper to the saddle between Peaks 6 & 7.

Hiking Through one of the Massive Avalanche Runouts

This Girl is Always Fun

Snowfield Crossing

Enjoying the Views Down to Breckenridge

Love Every Moment with This Lady

Joy on the Downhills

Mountain Flowers

Williams Fork Range Traverse

The Williams Fork is the mountain range directly across the valley from our home and we've been eyeballing the line across the ridge from Ute Peak in the north to Ptarmigan Peak in the south for years. It's a big day at about 20 miles, so we needed a solid weather window with no chance of storms, as we'd by up high on the ridge at 11,000'+ all day. We got the perfect forecast this past Thursday we took off from work. 

The Rig at Sunrise at the Ute Pass Starting Point. Gore Range Behind.

Approaching Ute Peak (12,303')

Perfect Columbines

Impressive Year-Round Snow Drifts

Colorado

Words Don't Suffice

Home Behind

Touching Ptarmigan Peak (12,498'), Pointing Ute Peak

Six Mile Descent

The Final Stretch

Mt Guyot (13,370')

Mt Guyot has been calling us since 2012. It's the prominent peak we see to the south (and from most everywhere in the County) and I've imagined the commanding views of most of Summit County from its summit. This relatively short, but intense hike payed back with views that exceeded expectations.

Dawn Light on Mt Guyot

Steep Approach to Gain the Ridge Got the Blood Flowing

Snow Over Talus

Traipsing the Summit Ridge

9am on Top

Back on Easier Terrain Below

Talus Hopping, but Not the Bad Kind

Quick, Steep Descent into Little French Gulch

Hope you enjoyed coming along with us, it's been a great summer season in the mountains so far...'till the next adventure!

As always our adventures are powered by Gnarly and UltrAspire. Awesome products that work.