Trip Report

Bagging Some Peaks
Hiking in the San Juan Mountains Near Creede, Colorado

September 17 – 20, 2001

By Denise Prendergast

Crew: Denise Prendergast, Dale Barnard

Dale and I did a 4-day, 3-night backpacking trip in the San Juan mountains near Creede, Colorado. We hiked about 25 miles total, including side trips to two 13,000-foot peaks. Dale was intrigued by two landmarks which we would hike to: the Rio Grande Pyramid (a peak with guess-what-shape) and the Window (a dramatic square notch cut out of the mountainside adjacent to the Pyramid). It was a beautiful and relaxing trip in which we got to enjoy the peaking fall colors of the area.

The trip started on Sunday night with a 3-hour packing ordeal. This part is always painful because we both agonize about keeping our pack weights as low as possible. This is important to avoid injury and keep the hiking pleasant instead of tortuous. Our only luxuries were a slim softcover book and one babywipe per person for each day. I did decide to bring an extra piece of clothing, a fleece jacket, in anticipation of cold fall nights. Including 2 liters of water each and enough food for 4 days, our packs weighed about 26 pounds (mine) and 34 pounds (Dale’s). Since Dale is quite a bit stronger than I am, he gets the honor of carrying extra weight including the tent, stove, and first-aid kit. I wouldn‘t be able to do such trips if he didn’t!

On Monday, we drove to Creede, catching substantial delays due to construction on Wolf Creek Pass. The drive was lovely—the mountains were colored yellow due to the changing aspens. In Creede, a picturesque town with quite a few touristy shops, we enjoyed a hearty meal around noon. We drove west for about 40 minutes to a public campground and parked near the trailhead. The trail is used mostly by people on horseback, so we got to enjoy lots of mud holes and horse poop.

We didn’t have to pay any fees or get any permits to backpack. It amazes me that Colorado consists of so much public land (about half the state), and that these beautiful areas can be accessed with so little bureaucracy. It makes one feel rich, especially compared to Texas where there is VERY little public land (and these generally have access fees), and the best places are owned by the wealthy. In Colorado, it’s like owning your own mountains.

Our first day was a short hike of about 4.5 miles through a valley. We wanted our first day to be easy since we were getting a late start and in order to acclimate to elevations higher than we were used to, the valley being about 10,600 feet above sea level. The nice thing about hiking in the Colorado mountains is that there are so many streams to replenish our drinking water supplies. Otherwise, we’d have to carry enough water for the whole trip, which would be a nightmare considering that water weighs over 8 pounds per gallon. Dale carries a filter to screen out the potential nasties such as giardia. So, we camped near a stream, cooked our usual dinner of ramen noodles (it was now raining and hailing/sleeting), and went to bed early. We did our usual ritual of reading aloud to each other, this time the book The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. It was a cold night, and we awoke to a tent encased in ice. It’s hard to get out of bed in such weather, but the thought of a cup of hot coffee and a hot breakfast of oatmeal helps.

We headed up toward the Rio Grande Pyramid, shedding layers of clothing as the day turned sunny and warmed up to about 70oF. Dale consulted his guide maps and convinced me to try to climb an unnamed 13,278-foot peak in the area. I have never attempted such a high elevation climb because they tend to be associated with bad weather and steep slopes. However, this looked pretty easy, and the fair weather convinced me to give it a try. It took about 40 minutes to climb up the slope to the top. The views were wonderful, and I enjoyed the sight of a raven and a hawk flying right by us. Climbing down was more difficult (it always is for me), especially since we lost the trail and got out on a steep part. It took quite a bit longer to climb down than it had taken to ascend. I was excited to have achieved my highest elevation ever. We rested for about 5 minutes before continuing our hike. We needed to go quite a ways before dark to find a camping spot in the trees, for refuge from potential lightening storms. You do not want to be above tree line in bad weather—lightning is scary!

We got our first views of the Pyramid and the Window—very nice—and took lots of pictures. It ended up being a very long day, and I was getting pretty grumpy by the time we reached the first possible camping spot. If Dale had insisted on continuing to a better place, it might have gotten ugly! Dale filtered our water while I cooked dinner, then we set up the tent. We camped in a spot that looked pretty established as there was a big muddy place where horses must be kept and some litter. Also, the critters in the area (chipmunks and birds) were pretty much unafraid of us, hanging around for dropped pieces of food. We never feed such animals - keep the wildlife wild!

Dale wanted to climb the Pyramid the next day, and I had to decide if I would join him. I said yes, but I really wanted to leave at 7 am instead of 6 am like he wanted, and I might bail if I felt too scared.

I had a rough night, sleeping little. It was quite cold, and I was glad I had brought the extra fleece jacket. The sleeping pads we use are very lightweight, but not very comfortable. All night I tossed and turned, trying to find the least painful position. Laying on my side, my hand would fall asleep, so I’d turn on my back, and then my backside would go numb. What a pain! I was worried that I’d be too tired for the difficult day ahead.

We got up just as the sunlight hit our tent. We’d packed the night before, so left quickly, without our usual hot breakfast. This would prove to be problematic since I had no coffee, and ended up with a terrible caffeine-deprivation headache. Thirteen years of daily coffee is a hard habit to break—I don’t recommend even trying!

We hiked a few miles, escorted by a bitterly cold wind, to the base of the Pyramid, then started a steep climb up a trail. I began to get nervous about having to later climb down such steep terrain. When we got to a shoulder (flat part), looking up at the remaining 600 feet of the peak, I lost my nerve. The upper part of the peak was like a huge pile of loose rock—it looked very treacherous and scary. Plus, there had been very strong winds all morning, and I was afraid of the weather up at the top—at 13,821 feet. Dale would go on without me, while I waited for him. We weren’t sure how long it’d take, possibly 2 - 3 hours. Waiting for Dale, reading and relaxing in a sheltered spot, I was glad I hadn’t gone. I enjoyed seeing the whistling pikas (small rodents like guinea pigs), but was convinced they were circling me for attack. When I realized Dale hadn’t taken his hat, I got worried – the sun can be quite harsh at high elevations. I got it and went to look for him climbing up the peak, but didn’t see him. I went back to my reading and was very surprised when Dale appeared after less than an hour after he’d first left. “Did you come back for your hat?” I asked. He laughed, and said he’d already summitted and had come back to get me. He said it wasn’t that bad, and I would enjoy the spectacular 360o views. He’d go at least halfway with me so I wouldn’t be nervous. Also, he’d carry everything, so I wouldn’t have to. What a guy! What an offer! Who could refuse?

We started up the loose rock, me tentative and slow. I’ve twisted my right ankle quite a few times in the past, so was especially careful on the loose rock. The rocks were volcanic in nature and ranged from really small to huge. You had to be careful not to dislodge them as you stepped. There wasn’t much life around—just yellow, black, and green lichens on the rocks. The views kept getting better as I ascended, and I convinced Dale to continue with me to the top. It took about an hour to get there, winding up and around the peak, looking for the least steep route possible. I couldn’t believe the views, just lovely. To the east and north, the fall colors were amazing. Elsewhere, there were less fall colors because of the higher elevations where aspen can’t grow, but mountains on every side. Dale pointed out all the areas where we had previously hiked, and we took many pictures. Starting down, my head hurt a bit, and I was a little nervous about descending. All in all, it wasn’t too bad, although I did go slowly. It took about an hour for me to descend, making this trip twice as long as Dale’s solo trip. I figured that was about par for the course - he had done twice as much as me in half the time.

We hiked back to camp, and my headache got unbearable. Dale had wanted to break camp and hike a few miles to make the next day consist of fewer miles, but I felt too bad. He had to do everything, while I ate food and drank water. I think the headache was due more to lack of caffeine, water, and food, than the high elevations I had been exposed to. After coffee and dinner, I laid down in the tent, and the headache was completely gone after a few hours. We read more Huck Finn and went to sleep around 8. Early to bed and rise, I say! Well, only when backpacking.

The next day was my longest backpacking hike ever - about 10 miles. I had a hard time relaxing since I was nervous about being able to complete such a hike without injury. Also, we needed to be at Wolf Creek Pass before 7 pm as it closes at night for road construction. We booked it, resting little. Coming back into lower elevations, we again got to enjoy the fall colors of the aspens (only evergreens such as pines/firs grow at the higher elevations). We began seeing people again (we had seen only 1 person during the previous 3 days). After about six hours, we were finished. I was very tired - my feet were killing me. Dale’s knees were bothering him a bit. Had he overdone it by climbing the Pyramid twice? I hoped serious injury wouldn’t result.

We packed up our gear in the truck and headed back to Creede. We stopped at a private campground along the way and took a shower—joy! It was well worth the $4.50 each. In Creede, we savored a hot meal, glad it was something other than ramen noodles and oatmeal. More joy.

All and all, it was one of our best hikes ever. The scenery was beautiful, the hiking invigorating, and the company enjoyable. Backpacking is really one of my favorite things in the world. Being outdoors makes me feel peaceful and happy. Want to go backpacking with me??

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