| I was planning on a good endurance hike to train for covering longer
distances by climbing Bierstadt from the Scott Gomer trailhead (now the Abyss
trail). While 13.6 miles and 4,450' vertical, this is probably the most
reasonable way to gain 3,000'vertical on Bierstadt. I had a bit of a
late start at 6:40 am due to problems remembering how many miles to drive
in on Guanella Pass road from Hwy 285 (forgot the guide book). Eventually
I found the trail and got started into the chilly morning. The trail is
pleasant for 3 or 4 miles in, like a sandy road with little elevation gain.
On the right is a view of Bierstadt's southern sub-peak from about 2 hours
into the hike. There were in total four log bridges to cross before the
approach to the southern slope, which were of quality workmanship. |
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Like my previous weekend, the day was to include some arduous bushwhacking.
The Abyss trail continues into the basin to the east of the south slope of
Bierstadt. Leaving the trail about 400' below tree line, I picked through
the fallen trees and willows up to the apex of the slope. It took about
two hours to reach this point form the trailhead. I was eager to start
ascending after such a long and flat approach. The highest point in the
picture above is the sub-peak of Bierstadt, which took a good 45 minutes to reach.
Slogging up the grass slopes and talus, it was clear that few people had been
up this route, with no visible trace of traffic and no path to speak of. On the
left is a shot taken of Bierstadt from the slope just near the top. |
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Finally reaching the upper stretches of the slope, Bierstadt came into view
to the North. The train of people from Guanella pass made Bierstadt look like
an anthill. The remainder of the route to the base of the connecting ridge
was a nice reprieve from the steep slope, as it was relatively flat on the
ridge for about 300 yards. It still looked far away, but within ten minutes
I joined up with the Guanella Pass route. The weather had been holding up
well to this point with exception to some wind on the slope. It was becoming
quite warm actually, though nothing like the descent the previous weekend on
Huron Peak. Hiking up the trail to the summit went by fairly quickly, and I
had completed the route in 3 hours 20 minutes. |
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I got a nice view of Grays and Torreys to the west, and Mt. Evans reveals
itself for what it is from here, a bump on a huge ridge. I was surprised that
I was the only one gaining 3,000'+ this day (I would be willing to bet that 90%
of people who claim to have climbed all the fourteeners have done this one
from 11,670' at Guanella Pass). I began my descent and started feeling
unpleasant sensations in my knees on the way back down the grass and talus
slope. This was turning out to be a bit more wear and tear on the body than
I had anticipated. Route-finding back to the trail below tree line was
challenging. I ended up a few hundred yards north of the trail and had
to cross an expansive willow meadow (something I originally thought would
be eliminated on this route). Eventually I made it back to the truck at
1:15- a little over 6.5 hours total. |