Aaron Johnson & Potosi Peak

THE MAN AND HIS MOUNTAIN

Here I am, standing before the mountain that has taken me 26 years to climb, longer than any other mountain in my long (and I mean LONG) climbing experience. My first two attempts were due to poor route choices, thanks to ignorance. The mountain repelled me with its notorious and dangerously loose talus slopes. My third attempt was thwarted by lack of time and an unresearched route that was too long for the time allowed. A fourth attempt never really happened, as I never approached the mountain. Hurricane weather came in and bombed the San Juans with 4 inches of wet snow in the fall of 2004.

So here I am in 2007, facing down the mountain from Coffee Pot, closer than ever before, and it appears I'm going to finally climb the thing.

Potosi is one of Colorado's greatest mountains and it has a stellar view, but the price is loose rock, the likes of which startles everyone when they first encounter it. It's a wonder the mountain holds together. Even so, it's a fantastic climb, and the descent route is nothing to disregard, either.

It sounds sick, but if you like really loose rock, Potosi's the mountain for you!

More can be read here: 5th Time IS the Charm, but if you want to be really entertained, read this first: 3rd Time's NOT the Charm.

Digital photo by Ellen Ritt