Hanging in Ouray

Stuart Paul on lead on Pic o' the Vic WI4 -- Ouray Ice Park
(click image to enlarge)

I spent 21 days this winter hanging from icicles in Ouray, Colorado. Ouray is, one of my favorite places in Colorado, an amazing little town, population about 800, that sits in a box canyon at the northern gateway to the San Juan mountains. At the edge of town is the Umcompagre Gorge and the Ouray Ice Park, a mile of farmed ice with about 160 routes, some up to 130 feet deep. I had decided to apply myself and focus on ice climbing this winter and there is no better place to just do laps and build your skill level than this world class ice park.
My first stay in Ouray was 11 days beginning on New Years eve. I completed almost 50 climbs -- as many as in the entire season last year. I spent the first half of the trip repeating climbs I had done last year and the second half venturing into new territory. I climbed most everything between the schoolroom and the five fingers. Spent several days climbing mixed routes up to M7.

Dizzy with a Vision M7 -- Ouray Ice Park
(click image to enlarge)

Charged up every WI5 I could find. Did leads at WI4. Spent one day climbing at Skylight area with Tom Maceyka. Was awesome to hang and climb with CMC, Phoenix Multisport, buds from Boulder, Steamboat, Golden and Denver and various travelers. Got invited to the family night potluck on Wednesday and got to meet many local persons and climbers.
My second trip was 10 days beginning February 6th. I had a little shopping meltdown in the days before the trip. I bought the Petzl Nomic Ice Tools for 30% off at Bent Gate in Golden. These are probably the best all around tool for ice and mixed climbing. I also picked up a set of the Edelweiss Oxygen 8.2mm half ropes. You can always get a good deal on Edelweiss ropes at Bent Gate because they sell a lot of them. All my ropes are Edelweiss at this point. I decided that this trip would be all about lead climbing and that my goal would be to do as many leads as I could. I led everything in the schoolroom and all the long routes above the upper bridge. I climbed in a snowstorm one day with Mark Allen and we took turns doing some big leads around the upper bridge including Abridgement and Pic of the Vic. I got on the mixed routes in the Scottish Gullies including Super Dave and Dizzy with a Vision (attempt). Later in the week I led the Skylight via an inside ice chimney with wanderers Cory and Ella in tow.

Stuart Paul looking down the ice chimney -- Skylight WI5, Camp Bird Road
(click image to enlarge)

Rudy on the first rappel -- Bridalveil Falls WI5+, Telluride, CO
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I climbed the left side of Bridalveil Falls with Rudy McIntire (seperate post to come), and the next day, 5 pitches of Stairway to Heaven with Rudy, Kevin and Danielle in two side by side rope teams. We started at 11am and were rapping in the dark. On the way out the Brokering family at the Eureka Lodge below the climb invited us in to warm up and fed us dinner and wine. Cool place!!
My time in Ouray and the San Juans yeided over 100 pitches, half on lead, many long WI4 leads and some shorter 5s, mixed to M7, experience and self-sufficiency in the alpine. And I went leashless with the Nomics -- never going back.
Thanks to all my partners and local Ouray friends, especially Mark, Cory, Ella, Rudy and Kevin. You dooods are the best!!
Props to Mark at Riverside Cabins -- the cheapest coziest place to stay with your dog for no extra charge.
Complete list of climbs on Mountain Project.

Surfing the Elks

A week ago Sunday, Rocco and I went to the Mace Hut in Castle Creek in the Elk Range near Aspen. Amos Mace was our gracious host and he and Donnie from Glenwood met us at Ashcroft and pulled me into the hut on my split snowboard behind a snowmobile. Rocco had to run up the hill along with Amos' white husky dog.
The hut, 4 miles up at 10,800 ft is made of stone and was built by a team of Swiss builders in 1969. At the hut were three surfer dooods from Maui, James and Mike, raised in the Carbondale area, and Lydel a native of Hawaii. These guys did not ride skis.
After weeks of warm weather the temperature dropped that afternoon and it began to snow. I looked at the guys and said with a twisted grin, "its back". For two days the snow fell, about a foot, and settled nicely on the wet warm stuff below creating a solid and safe snowpack. We did three tours each day riding the wave of the fresh white stuff on the backyard slope on Greg Mace Peak. It felt great to be in the backcountry again surrounded by snow covered trees and high peaks, that deafening silence.


Rocco and I during our solo ride out from the hut late Tuesday.

Thanks for a great time boys. See you soon.

March Blizzard

Last Thursday was sicknasty at Beaver Creek. There was over 30 inches of fresh powder and 11 inches from overnight. We rode the trees off of Rose Bowl and cut fresh tracks, knee deep, all day. In the afternoon it snowed so hard that you could barely see the chair in front of you.

Rocco Climbs Class 3

Titcomb Basin from Mt Fremont, Wind River Range, Wyoming

A few years ago in July Rocco and I went backpacking in the Wind River Range with an awesome group from the Chaos Outdoor Club in Boulder. We hiked 11 miles into Island Lake, just below Titcomb Basin at the foot of Mt. Fremont (13,730'), the second highest peak in the Winds after Gannett. The Winds are a rugged vertical range of bomber granite, and are loaded with technical routes that are high on my list for this summer.
We camped at Island Lake for four nights and spent our days hiking, and climbing up to class 3, around camp. The weather was mild and sunny with isolated thunderstorms rolling through each afternoon to cast an ominous black across the sharp spires, loud bangs echoing from the rock.
We climbed Mt. Fremont one day, ascending about 2700 feet from camp, the top 1000 feet to the summit solid class 3, but easy for dogs. Over the top to the west was a giant glacier that filled a massive cirque of vertical peaks. Looking straight down over the back were huge bergschrunds where the snow met the rock. I felt like I could be anywhere in the world in awe of the power and beauty of this place.
This summer I hope to return to the Winds to Cirque of the Towers to climb some technical routes. Please check back to see if I make it there this year.

Partners in AWD

When I moved to Colorado six years ago I was living alone, in poverty, in Fort Collins with no wheels. My system was in shock after leaving my previous big city life in Chicago. I went through every day with the mountains watching me and calling from the west as I worked to establish myself in Colorado and to build my web design business. I longed for the day when I would have the freedom to go to the mountains and as time passed a vision of that became clear in my minds eye. I am driving a Subaru AWD wagon with a Weimaraner in the passenger seat. The Subaru and the Weimaraner would be the vehicle and the companion for any adventure -- the possibilities would be endless and no one could stop us.
One year later, Rocco, at 8 weeks of age, became my accomplice and we soon moved to Denver to begin a new chapter together. His steady enthusiasm for our friendship is intoxicating and he has been the great joy of this adventure.
The Subaru came one year after that -- a red '95 Legacy Wagon, all wheel drive -- a dream machine to take us over rock and snow to the voice calling from every mountain valley and summit. C'mon boy, lets go!!
We have covered many miles, climbed many peaks, in the remote mystery and power, so much beauty, solitude and majesty. Today we are living the dream.

I invite you to please leave your comments regarding these entries.

Walking Over Mountain Ranges

SKY Chutes from Copper Mountain Super Bee lift

A few weeks ago I hooked up with riding buds Jeremiah and Doug for a ski mountaineering day in Summit County. The plan was to ride the K chute, one of the SKY chutes on the west side of the 10 Mile Range opposite Copper Mountain. If you are driving down from Vail Pass on east-bound I-70 you can see the SKY chutes clearly -- they are three avalanche chutes that look like the letters S,K and Y. These chutes can be very dangerous for avalanche so they are only good to ride if the snow pack above them is minimal and after some good warm weather to consolidate any layers. Definitely be properly equiped and trained and check the CAIC website for current avalanche conditions before any backcountry trip.
The plan was to start in Breck and climb over the top of the 10 mile range in order to access the K chute. We started at Jeremiah's house in Frisco, took the bus to Breckenridge at 9600', rode the gondola and chair lift to the top of Peak 7 and then rode far skiers left to the backcountry gate at 10,600'. From there we climbed about 1800 feet to point 12,438 between Peaks 6 and 7, with our snowboards on our backs. It was a bluebird day in the 20s, but with wind gusts to about 50 mph above treeline. We reached the summit over steep and rocky terrain after about two hours climbing. Next, we hiked along the top of the 10 mile range -- its like walking on the top of the world, snowy peaks 360 dgrees -- for about a mile to the top of the K chute, then dropped about 2000 feet, on snowboard, through beautiful gladed terrain on perfect powder snow. I love to wipe out in powder -- it just makes you laugh.


I always carry a mountaineering ice ax above tree line as a basic piece of safety equipment (see pic -- that's Doug with my ax). It was one of the first pieces of gear that I bought when I moved to Colorado and it always comes in handy for climbing or crossing snow fields, for glissade descents or if I were to fall and need to self arrest. I also like to use it like a cane when traveling over rough or unstable terrain on talus or scree.
I have not been in the backcountry to ride my board much this winter because I have been so focused on ice climbing -- but I plan to get in some rad snowboard mountaineering in April and June. Stay tuned here for those adventures.

Shelf Road

Rocco and I headed down to Shelf Road outside Canon City, Colorado, a few weeks ago, for a two day sport climbing, grunt fest on those vertical limestone cliffs, with rope gun Boulder Rudy. Jonesin' for caffeine we stopped into the Coyote Coffee Company, on Hwy 115, where I ate the best chunk of homemade apple pie ever, with my bare hands dirt-bag style. Rudy got none and I had to apologize.
That is no way to treat a valued high-level partner like Rudy McIntire, whom I admire for his bold endeavors and feats of athleticism on ice and rock. You need to feed them well so they can gun up those climbs all day long -- because shelf road is a little above my ability. I think Rudy brought a couple of almonds, a few flakes of green tea and some scraps of cous-cous to eat, so I fed him peanut butter, meat sandwiches and oatmeal (see pic), so he could keep leading those heinous 5.10s and 5.11s.
You also need to let your valued high-level partners do all the leading. Why bore them and risk losing them by making them follow your 5.9 routes, when you can bloody yourself on 5.11 and keep them around to gun you up some more wicked climbs in the future. Thanks Rudy!!
Remember kiddies don't be leading, be feeding.

THE RD

With all the warm weather I thought I was done with ice climbing for the season, and was happy to quit while I was ahead, having made it unscathed, just with swollen knuckles, through a season with over 120 pitches, many difficult leads and some awesome alpine adventures. If you are interested there is a complete list of my climbs here. But, all it took was a phone call from Tom Kavanaugh and a check of the weather report and I was off to face the Rigid Designator for a second time this season.
The Rigid Designator Amphitheater (RDA) is just west of the I-70 East Vail exit up in the cliff band on the south side. The amphitheater walls are 120 feet high and it is an absolutely spectacular place, summer and winter, to be experienced by climbers and the vertically challenged alike. And, the parking lot at the nordic center has a heated bathroom (read: luxury bivy) for the dirt bag ice climber looking to beat the crowd. The RDA has long and difficult mixed routes to ice curtains floating in space and several imposing columns of ice that make your teeth chatter. You can learn more about the climbs in this area here.


Me on lead -- Rigid Designator WI4, Vail CO

I met Eric Malmgren from Copper Mountain who put up Red Bull with Vodka last year. Its, two pitches, M8+, immediately behind the Fang and to the left of Amphibian. Eric took a ride to the top of the Fang on our top rope, set a fixed line and did about half a dozen laps rope solo. I let Eric try out my Ushba, a Russian made device that we both agree is probably superior to anything else on the market, for rope solo on a fixed line, because it doesn't have any teeth to chew up the rope sheath. Eric said that the local doods climb at the RDA year around and in the summer with rock shoes and either with of without picks. He also said that the waterfalls have the greatest flow around the end of May. Climb on Eric, see you soon.

EPILOGUE -- On March 21st Chris Boratenski fell 70 feet while on TR on the RD. I believe he ran his top rope through the existing webbing anchor. PLEASE do not use existing anchors, for TR or belaying a second, that are buried beneath the snow making it impossible to inspect them thoroughly. Use your own double redundant cordelette with your rope through two locking biners for the anchor. If you are rapping from an existing anchor you must back it up with your own gear for the first (heaviest) guy. The RD and the Fang both have large trees 20 feet back from the lip to anchor.

Mayflower Gulch Traverse

with Erich and Tom.
Climbed the gulley to the low point on the traverse.
Scrambled for 100 yards to the south on the east side over 3rd and 4th class terrain covered with 6 inches of soft snow.
Bailed.

Colorado Trail -- 127 miles from Lake City to Durango -- July 25-30 2007

DAY 1 - 9pm
I am hiking with Mark from Denver. Last night we camped near Spring Creek Pass after dropping food at Molas Pass near Silverton (end of Day 3). I parked my car at the end of the trail in Durango at Junction Creek and Kase drove us 3 hours to the start. Thanks Kase. We hiked 16 miles today. We passed the Colorado trail yurt where Rocco and I went last winter. It was cool to see the same landscape in the summer. We continued south along the ridgeline. Red Mountain, Sunshine, Red Cloud and Uncompagre Peaks tower across the valley to the west. I am carrying my Garmin eTrex Vista Cx Gps and our moving time for the day was 6.5 hours and 8 hours overall. We arrived at camp at 3:30 with tired legs but no other problems. Rocco ate all his food today and is now sleeping soundly at 9pm.
Just as I left camp this morning four large Elk stags with huge antlers came up to the top of a ridge near me. They stopped and stared at me for a bit. They reminded me of my self and my buds out for a walk in the mountains. Saw a large herd of elk at some distance about mid-day. Heard the coyotes howl and bark again tonight at sun down. We expect that we will not get rained on during these seven days. (Power of positive thought) Today the cumulus clouds built and were massive by early afternoon but we did not get rained on.
"The mountains are calling, and I must go..." My heart and passion lies among the spruce and rock under the blazing sky. I am at home under this tarp on the ground. My mind is focused as I walk or climb. I feel the presence of nature; I am protected and enfolded, soaring, open. It is always a marvelous adventure and my body, mind and spirit grow and mature. I learn many lessons about life here. Everything I need to learn is here.

DAY 2 - 5pm
I am sitting with Rocco at 11,600, on a hillside overlooking the Bear Creek Valley. There are high peaks in the 13,000 ft range all around to the south, east and north. Each stands alone with a massive rock summit like majestic temples. We are camped here in a forest of Blue Spruce. Tomorrow we will cross the ridgeline at 12.600 to the west and enter the Wamanuche Wilderness.
Today we hiked about 16 miles in 6 hours. Our route took us 8 miles on a gentle downhill grade through the cow-infested Pole Creek Valley, then 5 miles gently upward through the Bear Creek Valley to old site of Bear Town. Not sure why its named that - must be a bear shaped lake around here or something. Today was a valley day.
There is blue sky now and we are drying our only slightly moist gear in the sun. There are large billowy clouds, but none that look threatening in our immediate vicinity.
We awoke this morning to clouds and, although we did not expect any rain this entire trip, we did have to walk through a brief shower about 11am. I am using the Gatewood Cape from Six Moon Design for shelter and rain gear. It worked nicely during the shower.
I tried to cross the Pole Creek twice by hopping rocks, I slipped twice and got my shoes and socks wet but they are dry now.
It is my third night in the wilderness, which is the longest I have ever been out.
My favorite wild flower is the Indian Paintbrush. In the last several days I have seen it in a dozen colors. I have seen bright red, dark red, magenta, fuchsia, orange, pale orange, yellow orange, yellow, light yellow, white with green, white with purple, light pink, pink and salmon. 14. I also saw the flower that looks like little elephant heads with trunks. Pretty cool.

DAY 3 - 10pm
I am writing from the Alma House B&B, Room 3, in Silverton, CO. At 3pm today just as we reached the track bed of the Silverton Railroad it started to rain. It was 4 miles to Molas Pass, and 2000 elevation gain in the first two miles. We figured we will stay warm climbing and the rain will let up by the time we reach the pass. But it did not stop. Cold and wet we decided to bail to Silverton (7 miles) for the night. We got a ride pretty quickly.
Mark and I seem to be on different schedules and we were crabby with each other tonight. I had a cheeseburger, fries and salad bar for dinner and took a walk down the street to digest. At the Empire Hotel an old played the piano as everyone sang along, The sign said, "This is not a player piano". A punk kid made fun of my "pink (Croc) shoes". I let him know that they were mauve. There were some groovy dudes hanging in a bar with folk music playing into the street. On the side street there was a bar called "Shady Lady" with mannequins dressed as hookers peering from the second floor windows.
Tonight I will sleep in a queen size bed with 10 pillows and two down comforters. I am tucked in already.
Our hike today took us two miles to a high mountain ridge, which we hiked along for a mile. There were 360-degree views of high mountain peaks in all directions. Then we ascended into the Elk Creek Valley, which is in the Wamanuche, for 13 miles. First we descended into a gorge with massive granite walls on either side. Then we walked through lush forest of Fir and Blue Spruce. We saw several waterfalls dropping 500 over rock to the valley floor. Across a tranquil beaver pond, bright green with moss, we passed the stunning vertical rock peaks of the Grenadier Range. I want to return to climb in this area soon. The Silverton train passed its whistle filling the gorge. Then it rained.

DAYS 4 & 5 - 6:30pm on Day 5
I am now poised to finish my hike a day and a half early. It is 20 miles to Durango. I am shacked up for the night in an old miners cabin. Probably lees than 50 years old, it has no windows or doors, but it has a good floor, roof and sleeping platform. Sweet. From the start of Segment 28 the cabin is just beyond the pass a half-mile away. Look left up the hill from the pass. Rocco and I are at 11.500 and I can see all of the San Juans to the east - Wilson Mastiff, the Needles and the lights of Durango to the south. The massive rock faces of Shoshone Peak are close to the southwest. From here the trail drops rapidly and descends into Durango.
Day 4 began with a divorce. Mark woke up at the B&B put on his stuff and said "good bye". I was surprised but indifferent to the change because we were not getting along that well. Mark taught me a lot about through hiking, about pacing myself with consistent breaks, taking care of my feet by putting them in snow or a mountain stream and to wipe myself down with water at night to clean the salt off my body. Feels good! Thanks Mark. As Mark hit the trail, I went downstairs for my breakfast of sausage, eggs, potatoes, granola, yogurt, coffee and a banana to go. I hitched to the trailhead and set out at 8am. I decided to try and finish the trail in 3 days instead of 4. I would try to make it 30 miles today through Segments 25 and 26. That would leave two 20-mile days. I decided I would rest every two hours for ten minutes and try to make 6 miles between rests. I had to really move and not stop but well rested and fed, I was able to keep the pace quite easily. I expected to finish in 10 hours at 6pm.
There is a fat marmot staring at me. I think he lives here. I will go hang my food and after he looks around (and sees the dog) I am sure he will go away.
Anyway, back to the story. About 1 pm it started to rain and that slowed me down a little. I made it 27.5 miles by 7:30 pm. I hiked 20 miles to the west and 7.5 miles to the south. I walked through many beautiful forests - including a mysterious forest of Lindeman Spruce, over several high passes and saw many beautiful waterfalls. At 7:30 I ran into a couple of guys camped. We started chatting and I decided to camp there with them for the night. Aaron from Denver had started from Durango two days earlier headed to Denver. Mike, also from Denver, had started two months earlier and was slowly making his way to Durango. We all demonstrated our gear for each other and compared calories. My Mountain House, Macaroni and Cheese impressed everyone with 960 calories and 70 grams of fat. Aaron said he would like to get together and climb once he gets home. I will keep him in my thoughts over the next month.
Day 5 - After an uncomfortable nights sleep on uneven ground with a dehydrated meal for a pillow, I awoke at 5am. My new strategy is to leave camp at first light in order to beat the rain. It is 23.5 miles to the end of Segment 27 and the cabin that Aaron has told me about. I left camp with Mike and we hiked and chatted for several hours. Under my system I should be able to make it in eight hours. Hopefully I will beat the rain to the 12, 500 section of trail at miles 17-19 of Segment 27. I ate gorp for breakfast and paid for it. At noon I ate my granola and felt fueled up. I learned not to skip breakfast. There is very little water in Segment 27 because the trail runs along the top of a ridgeline. I drank a liter of (treated) red clay puddle water. Is that bad for you? I moved along to the south at a good clip when at 1pm as I approached tree line at 11,500 it started to rain. Then it got much worse with buckets of rain and small hail. Rocco and I found good cover under a large Fir tree. There was much thunder and lightning within a mile. I have learned a lot on this trip about how to stay warm and dry. If it is not raining too hard you should layer up and keep moving because if you stop you will get cold which means you will have to set up camp and get into your sleeping bag. The rain and long distance has been hard on Rocco too. He has a waterproof raincoat from Canine Equipment that wraps his body. It keeps him warm and dry. The last too nights I have wrapped him in my sleeping bag when we have arrived at camp. He falls right to sleep and doesn't move until morning.
Anyway back to the story. So the rain slowed and I heard no thunder for 20 minutes. We made our break for the pass. It seemed wrong to run for the tundra after that storm but I could see that the dangerous weather had blown its load. The rote was very long - 2 miles above tree line crossing summit after summit. The hail was several inches deep in places and the wind at the edge of the ridge was powerful. This was definitely my "Man vs. Wild" moment of the trip. I ran as much as I could and made it over the last summit in about an hour. I descended into a beautiful valley and walked through chest high wild flowers - Queen Anne's Lace and Liatris. I got water for the night and then found my new house.

DAY 6
I awoke at 5 am and was on the road by 6. I had eaten some granola in the middle of the night and more in the morning. Ahead was 6 miles of gentle downhill followed by 4 miles up and 10 more miles down. I decided to try running the downhill sections. I did that and coved 20 miles in just over 6 hours. The spruce turned to aspen and then to ponderosa pine. I reached my car at Junction Creek at about 12:15. I cried victorious as I had beaten the rain that day. I washed up in the stream. Then I drove into town and ate a steak burrito followed by a mud pie blizzard. Rocco and I drove home and arrived back in Denver by 10 pm.