| A Montana Rookie in the Colorado Rockies Trip Report |
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| A Montana Rookie in the Colorado Rockies   | 
| Page Type: Trip Report Location: Colorado, United States, North America Date Climbed/Hiked: Nov 30, 0000 Activities: Hiking Season: Summer | Page By: Aaron Johnson Created/Edited: Oct 5, 2009 / Oct 7, 2009 Object ID: 560379 Hits: 177 Loading... Page Score: 87.68% - 7 Votes Loading... Vote: Log in to vote |
A FATEFUL MEETING IN GLACIER NATIONAL PARKWe met Sandi Everts three years ago in Glacier National Park at the beginning of a long day’s climb of Rising Wolf Mountain, in the Two Medicine area. It was a casual introduction by Ken Mottram, our leader for the day, whom Ellen and I were thrilled to have holding our hands during our arduous visit to Glacier, climbing one of it’s loftier “9ers.”
Over the course of the climb, we got to know Sandi and appreciated her company and past experience of climbing Glacier’s many peaks. She had informed us that she loved Colorado and ventured down to our state every summer to do some climbing and rock collecting. She was working on the state’s 14ers and was approaching the point where she would have to take on the harder ones if she were to continue working on the famous 14er list that Colorado is known for. We encouraged her to look us up whenever she was down our way and hopefully we could do a hike together. Sandi was 64 years old.RENDEZVOUS IN COLORADODuring the summer of 2009, I received an email from Sandi. She had secured our email address from our climbing partner Vernon (known as saintgrizzly here at SP). She was coming to Colorado to climb some 14ers and was hoping to get some information and perhaps have us tag along. I responded saying we had climbed the 14ers and would not be interested in returning to them, but I was glad to offer up information to increase her chances at success. She was going to be in the Buena Vista area, and I told her we’d be glad to rendezvous for a short hike, and that we’d love to see her again. A number of emails back and forth transpired, and we arranged a meeting in Buena Vista.
As for our climb, I explained that Ellen and I were trying to visit places we had not been to before, and there was such a locale that I had read about on SP near Buena Vista. Several years back, SP member Ryan Schilling submitted the Emma Burr mountain page, along with an intriguing route that not only climbed Emma Burr, but strolled along the Continental Divide for 3.5 stunning miles. The route was too long for a day’s outing with my tired feet, but with some study, I figured out a way to break the route down into two parts.
The northern portion of the route made for a nice and short 5 to 6 mile day, allowing us time to drive home afterwards and Sandi time to get settled in to a car camp situation before continuing on with her Colorado climbing vacation. This part of the route diverted from the Divide and followed the east ridge of Chalk Rock mountain, an unofficially tagged peak so named by famous Colorado climber Gerry Roach for its interesting color. This east ridge route appeared at the very least to be an entertaining outing, if not exhilarating. The route was rated Class 3 with some appreciable exposure, and featured a fascinating ledge system that escorted climbers through the difficulties in grand style.
I figured Ryan’s excellent pictures didn’t do the route justice, but did enough to entice me to save the route in the back of my mind, where it lingered for several years until this excellent opportunity to execute it with Sandi. Being a Glacier climber, Sandi is no rookie and highly experienced in exposed Class 3 and 4 scrambling. She’d feel right at home on this route, so I was decided this was the route we would do with her (at this time she was on her way to Colorado).
Ellen and I drove to Buena Vista the night before and met Sandi promptly at the appointed time of 7AM. It was a joyous reunion and it was wonderful to see her again and get reacquainted. Despite her impressive climbing and hiking background, Sandi was admittedly a beginner as far as Colorado goes, just as Ellen and I were in her home state of Montana. She was thrilled to be climbing in Colorado with us as her guides for the day. I knew the feeling well. We just love having local folks lead us around when we visit an area, and we’re blessed to have enjoyed this opportunity in Utah, Nevada, Montana and, yes, even Oklahoma!
Shortly after 8AM, we were on the trail, bound for a wonderful, shared experience in a forgotten corner of Colorado’s high country.A PATHWAY ON THE EDGE OF HEAVEN
Spectacular Traverse |
 Chalk Mountain East Ridge
We followed an old mining road into the basin between Chalk Rock Mountain and Mount Kruetzer, due west toward the Continental Divide. The old two-track road has been slowly reverting to trail status due to a Forest Service closure near the former mining site. Lovely alpine flowers lined the road near the unnamed lake we strolled by beneath Chalk Rock’s alluring and rugged east ridge. I studied the features of the ridge, spotting what I thought was certainly the amazing ledge system Ryan mentioned in his Grand Slam Route for Emma Burr Mountain. I spotted the large overhanging alcoves and caves Ryan mentioned and illustrated with photos. It was going to be a real fun day, if short lived.
Ellen and Sandi were ahead chatting up a storm as I shot photos. I eventually caught up to them just below the Divide, where the badly deteriorated road intercepted the Continental Divide Trail. This trail is a labor of love for a number of folks and the evidence was apparent. An orange hard hat, wheel barrow, a pack full of trail tools and a stack of pick axes were all stashed nearby, waiting for the next construction phase.
Once the ridge line was achieved, it was a quick stroll to the top of Chalk Rock Mountain, a light colored and forgotten bump on the Continental Divide in the heart of the Sawatch Range. It was windy, so we hunkered down for a bite to eat and to relax. Sandi was not affected by the altitude and was doing very well (the starting elevation of this hike is higher than any peak in Glacier National Park). I explained that the next portion of our hike was the Class 3 section that would likely involve some brief route finding but would otherwise be no more difficult than most climbs she would do in Glacier. Little did I know how close to perfect my statement was.
As we descended the low angled ridge and enjoyed the stellar views, I studied the ridge before us with eager anticipation. I just knew we were going to enjoy this ridge traverse, and that it was one of Colorado’s coolest little secrets. I was excited at knowing I had finally arrived at this moment and I was going to check it out for myself. Then I was pleasantly caught by surprise.
At my first instance of reaching out to grab the rock with my hand, it had a familiar feel to it. I was surprised I had not noticed it earlier, but then again, I had not been on terrain requiring the use of hands until we reached this fun and engaging ridge descent.
The ridge was made of limestone! That explained the caves and ledge features, which limestone has a tendency to feature. The rock had a familiar grip to it. If you handle it enough, it’ll dry out your skin and make it rough, and actually tear at you. It has sharp edges, sharp enough that gloves are recommended if you’re on it for any length of time. It will rip your clothes if you’re not careful. It’s grippy stuff and provides wonderful traction, and it’s a blast to climb on. Our last experience on such terrain was Eagle Mountain during our Las Vegas outing in the spring. It was the same stuff, but actually, this particular rock bore a closer resemblance to none other than a peak called Divide Mountain, which resides (of all places) in Glacier National Park!
I pointed this out to Sandi. Having climbed Divide Mountain as well, she agreed the rock was the same stuff. How appropriate that our fellow Glacier climber would come to visit us and end up climbing a Colorado peak that could have easily been in Glacier National Park! So when I told Sandi she’d be right at home, I was spot on!
The ridge presented numerous fun scrambling opportunities and we were having a great time. Exposure was there but not constant and easily maneuvered around. I kept my eyes peeled for a grassy ramp that Ryan mentioned in his route, which descended slightly to a ledge that traversed the south face of the ridge beneath some very exposed escarpments. When we arrived at the ramp, it was obvious and we followed it out onto the ledge. This was a spectacular place, and it was exciting to be there. Sandi and Ellen were both smiling and our camera shutters were clicking. The weather was perfect and the views were dramatic. We could not have asked for a grander experience on such a perfect day.
The ledge went on for some time and we savored the moments. At its widest, it was about two feet, and in steep gullies, it narrowed to almost nothing, buried in loose, fallen rubble. Exposure came and went, making for much fun and excitement that sadly did not last very long. A few more obstacles and the experience of Chalk Mountain’s unique east ridge route was over.
We were having too much fun and the weather was too good to be true, so we marched up the vast tundra of South Jones Mountain, the mellow coda to Ryan’s Grand Slam Route. There on that isolated summit, we treated Sandi to a Colorado rarity: Lingering on a 13er summit for over an hour. It was pure heaven. We got down on the lee side of the summit and enjoyed a nice lunch and a long, leisurely rest in the warm Colorado sunshine on a priceless cloud-free day.
As we prepared to leave, a family climbing the east side of the mountain from Ptarmigan Pass arrived. We were glad to turn the mountain over to them so that they too could enjoy some solitude on this glorious day in the Sawatch Range. We meandered down a variation to Ryan’s descent route just east of the unnamed lake, intercepting the road for a leisurely stroll back to the car.
After enjoying some pizza in Buena Vista, we said our goodbyes, wished Sandi well in her attempts on Sneffels and Wetterhorn and then Ellen and I took off for home with another wonderful experience shared in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains.
Summit View Due East |
IN CLOSINGSandi went on to climb Wetterhorn Peak, car camping at Capitol City. The night before the climb, she was besieged by a mouse that got into her car and kept her awake most of the night. After matching wits with a crafty rodent, Sandi was pretty exhausted and barely made it up and down Wetterhorn. She cancelled her climb of Sneffels and returned to Montana to visit a friend as planned, before returning home in Columbia Falls.
Sandi hopes to return next year to make another run at some of Colorado’s highest mountains. Hopefully we can rendezvous again for a hiking interlude somewhere. She’s a great hiking partner, avid and able. With any luck, we’ll see her again in Glacier National Park. Images
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Sawatch Range
