Challenger Point Trip Report 07/28/2013

Peak(s):	Challenger Point - 14,086 feet Kit Carson Peak - 14,167 feet
Date Posted:	07/28/2013
Date Climbed:	07/21/2013
Author:	TheOtherIndian
Additional Members:	sad2, cbrobin, IronSkiMountaineer

Challenging human patience
Mountain and Route: Challenger Point and Kit Carson Peak Standard routes via Willow Lake Date: 07/21/13 RT Mileage: 17.1 mi Vertical Gain: 6836 ft Party: Chris (cbrobin), Saurabh (sad2), Steve (Ironskimountaineer) and Karthik (theotherindian) Wildlife: Murderous Mountain goats, marmots, pika, woodpecker, housefly, three hundred thousand gazillion mosquitoes Initial weather reports for the weekend were not too good. I posted a thread looking for partners for Challenger and Kit Carson but was ready to bail out at the last minute if the weather forecast doesn't improve. Chris and Saurabh seemed more optimistic and with some encouragement from Natalie (nkan02), I decided to join in on the hike. We drove to the TH and met Chris at the trailhead. Saurabh decided that he would do the entire route as a daytrip. Chris and I were less adventurous and decided to break it into a two day affair. We started up the Willow lake trail around 4 pm. We made quick time up the 12 switchbacks (we were told there's 13 of them but I couldn't find the last one on the way up or down) to the overlook of Wilson Creek Park. A mile after that, heavy rain and hailstorm halted us for over 45 minutes among the trees and when the clouds finally relented, it was close to 6pm. The area had plenty of wildflowers and with a favorable cloudy weather, photographing them took away quite some time from the hike. Wildflowers on the trail Fairy trumpets More wildflowers Columbines One of those paintbrushes The rest of the hike up to the lake was uneventful except for a few thousand mosquitoes requesting blood transfusions. We finally found a campsite, farthest away from the lake, setup tent and made a quick dash to the lake to fill up water and check out the famed lake and waterfall before dark. Chris on the Willow Creek approach Certainly better than Lake Como Trail had plenty of shade and some scenery The alarms went off at 4:30am and we were still tossing and turning in our sleeping bags when Saurabh stormed into the campsite shouting out our names. Half the sleep vanished because of this shock and the other half left from the guilt of sleeping comfortably when this guy walked up 5 miles in the dark to make it to the decided start time! Very soon we started on the trail weaving through the willows and around the lake. The trail through the willows was a bit hard to follow but Steve did an excellent job of finding the trail through the willows and talus in the dark. By the time we reached the cliffs above the lake and the waterfall, the sun was beginning to light up Challenger and Kit Carson. Looking back at Willow Lake Challenger and Kit Carson Ironskimountaineer takes a break. sad2 and cbrobin in the background. We slowly made up the slopes up Challenger with occasional breaks. Climbing up the slope was not bad at all with the worst being a couple of 50-100 foot sections of steep scree. A long but very stable talus hopping then led us to the summit of Challenger. Challenger summit, some talus to go. sad2 on the ridge, looking NOT sad A short break on Challenger and we were off to Kit Carson. I felt pretty intimidated by views of the Avenue while descending Challenger to the saddle, but once on the avenue, it actually is pretty wide and just a walk up. Kit Carson peak and the Kit Carson avenue. Looks daunting, but just a walk up Saurabh descending the avenue The rest of the hike to the summit of Kit Carson was on fairly stable trail through the gully and some talus hopping. We took a slightly longer break on Kit Carson taking in the surrounding views and the magnificent view of the Crestones while Saurabh decided to start carefully find his way down. The Crestones, beautiful from all angles Second summit for the day. Group shot Summit views from Kit Carson The descent off Kit Carson was not terrible, but there were a few slips and a couple of scrapes. The worst probably was a herd of mountain goats that decided to play on the slope. This herd, many kids among them, ran all over the slope knocking down rocks and having no decency to even yell down 'ROCK'. One of them was breathing deeply, hard enough to be heard 150-200 feet away! Despite being cautious and keeping an eye out for the avenue on the descent, we almost missed it, mostly because we went far too left in pursuit of stable route down. But using Saurabh's and Chris' route finding and some help from my GPS, we were able to eventually get to the avenue. It was here that we first heard the helicopters looking for a missing hiker. The helicopter search would continue throughout the day on our descent off the mountain. The small ascent and then the descent on the avenue to the Kit Carson - Challenger saddle went quick and so did the ascent back up to the summit of Challenger. Another view of the Avenue Views from KC/Challenger saddle The descent off Challenger as many others have noted and many others will note is the hardest part. Probably not hard, just long and nasty. To make matters worse, there were hailstones and rain for the upper part of the descent. The rain made the rocks slick, the 'trail' was full of puddles and the grass slippery. I got ahead of the others and had to wait for some time at the base of the slope. The chopper flew over me a couple of times and then I realized I might be misleading them and got up and walked around. Ominous sign at the KC/Challenger saddle Search and Rescue flying low Rain and hail doesn't make the descent easy Mountain views from near the base of Challenger Willow Lake on the descent We packed up and then headed out to the cars. On our way out of camp, we saw two woodpeckers next to our tents. The hike out was long, but with heavy packs, we appreciated the switchbacks. A while ago, someone here was wondering how Willow Lake approach compared to Lake Como approach. Having done both now, the latter two more times than the former, I feel the Willow Lake is a much better approach with good views, milder grades and no ankle breaking rocks. Also, on the willow lake approach, you are among the cool trees for a good amount of time and the wildflowers this time of the year were a welcome addition. After dinner at Amica's in Salida, we drove back home and to the rigors of urban work life. As a public service announcement for anyone having to choose between Eddyline in Buena Vista and Amica's in Salida, I'd prefer Eddyline over Amica's any day. We did not try the paninis at Amica's but purely from the pizza and ambiance point of view, Eddyline was a far superior restaurant and I guess the service also was a bit faster. Woodpeckers at the campsite Epilogue There has been many accidents in the community over the past few weeks. I did not know any of them personally and closely as many of you do. But nevertheless, I feel that I knew them by their posts here and by the common pursuit of enjoying nature and the mountains. It is shocking and painful to learn of the accidents and the death of people I considered invincible. But it is comforting to know they lived their life to the fullest. Life should not be measured by it's length, but by the quality of the days in it. These people saw more wildflowers, curious goats, pesky marmots, cute pikas and summit vistas than many city dwellers. Although cliched to say they enjoyed their life till the very end, it is a fact, and a happy fact. This is my first fourteener after these accidents and was in memory of Steve, Terry, Howard and as I would painfully learn later, Mike. Onwards! To the stars .... My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload): Login required to view this map... Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Challenging human patience

Mountain and Route: Challenger Point and Kit Carson Peak Standard routes via Willow Lake
Date: 07/21/13
RT Mileage: 17.1 mi
Vertical Gain: 6836 ft
Party: Chris (cbrobin), Saurabh (sad2), Steve (Ironskimountaineer) and Karthik (theotherindian)
Wildlife: Murderous Mountain goats, marmots, pika, woodpecker, housefly, three hundred thousand gazillion mosquitoes

Initial weather reports for the weekend were not too good. I posted a thread looking for partners for Challenger and Kit Carson but was ready to bail out at the last minute if the weather forecast doesn't improve. Chris and Saurabh seemed more optimistic and with some encouragement from Natalie (nkan02), I decided to join in on the hike. We drove to the TH and met Chris at the trailhead.

Saurabh decided that he would do the entire route as a daytrip. Chris and I were less adventurous and decided to break it into a two day affair. We started up the Willow lake trail around 4 pm. We made quick time up the 12 switchbacks (we were told there's 13 of them but I couldn't find the last one on the way up or down) to the overlook of Wilson Creek Park. A mile after that, heavy rain and hailstorm halted us for over 45 minutes among the trees and when the clouds finally relented, it was close to 6pm. The area had plenty of wildflowers and with a favorable cloudy weather, photographing them took away quite some time from the hike.

The rest of the hike up to the lake was uneventful except for a few thousand mosquitoes requesting blood transfusions. We finally found a campsite, farthest away from the lake, setup tent and made a quick dash to the lake to fill up water and check out the famed lake and waterfall before dark.

Trail had plenty of shade and some scenery

The alarms went off at 4:30am and we were still tossing and turning in our sleeping bags when Saurabh stormed into the campsite shouting out our names. Half the sleep vanished because of this shock and the other half left from the guilt of sleeping comfortably when this guy walked up 5 miles in the dark to make it to the decided start time! Very soon we started on the trail weaving through the willows and around the lake. The trail through the willows was a bit hard to follow but Steve did an excellent job of finding the trail through the willows and talus in the dark. By the time we reached the cliffs above the lake and the waterfall, the sun was beginning to light up Challenger and Kit Carson.

Ironskimountaineer takes a break. sad2 and cbrobin in the background.

We slowly made up the slopes up Challenger with occasional breaks. Climbing up the slope was not bad at all with the worst being a couple of 50-100 foot sections of steep scree. A long but very stable talus hopping then led us to the summit of Challenger.

A short break on Challenger and we were off to Kit Carson. I felt pretty intimidated by views of the Avenue while descending Challenger to the saddle, but once on the avenue, it actually is pretty wide and just a walk up.

Kit Carson peak and the Kit Carson avenue. Looks daunting, but just a walk up

The rest of the hike to the summit of Kit Carson was on fairly stable trail through the gully and some talus hopping. We took a slightly longer break on Kit Carson taking in the surrounding views and the magnificent view of the Crestones while Saurabh decided to start carefully find his way down.

The Crestones, beautiful from all angles

The descent off Kit Carson was not terrible, but there were a few slips and a couple of scrapes. The worst probably was a herd of mountain goats that decided to play on the slope. This herd, many kids among them, ran all over the slope knocking down rocks and having no decency to even yell down 'ROCK'. One of them was breathing deeply, hard enough to be heard 150-200 feet away!

Despite being cautious and keeping an eye out for the avenue on the descent, we almost missed it, mostly because we went far too left in pursuit of stable route down. But using Saurabh's and Chris' route finding and some help from my GPS, we were able to eventually get to the avenue. It was here that we first heard the helicopters looking for a missing hiker. The helicopter search would continue throughout the day on our descent off the mountain. The small ascent and then the descent on the avenue to the Kit Carson - Challenger saddle went quick and so did the ascent back up to the summit of Challenger.

The descent off Challenger as many others have noted and many others will note is the hardest part. Probably not hard, just long and nasty. To make matters worse, there were hailstones and rain for the upper part of the descent. The rain made the rocks slick, the 'trail' was full of puddles and the grass slippery. I got ahead of the others and had to wait for some time at the base of the slope. The chopper flew over me a couple of times and then I realized I might be misleading them and got up and walked around.

Ominous sign at the KC/Challenger saddle

Rain and hail doesn't make the descent easy

Mountain views from near the base of Challenger

We packed up and then headed out to the cars. On our way out of camp, we saw two woodpeckers next to our tents. The hike out was long, but with heavy packs, we appreciated the switchbacks. A while ago, someone here was wondering how Willow Lake approach compared to Lake Como approach. Having done both now, the latter two more times than the former, I feel the Willow Lake is a much better approach with good views, milder grades and no ankle breaking rocks. Also, on the willow lake approach, you are among the cool trees for a good amount of time and the wildflowers this time of the year were a welcome addition. After dinner at Amica's in Salida, we drove back home and to the rigors of urban work life. As a public service announcement for anyone having to choose between Eddyline in Buena Vista and Amica's in Salida, I'd prefer Eddyline over Amica's any day. We did not try the paninis at Amica's but purely from the pizza and ambiance point of view, Eddyline was a far superior restaurant and I guess the service also was a bit faster.

Epilogue

There has been many accidents in the community over the past few weeks. I did not know any of them personally and closely as many of you do. But nevertheless, I feel that I knew them by their posts here and by the common pursuit of enjoying nature and the mountains. It is shocking and painful to learn of the accidents and the death of people I considered invincible. But it is comforting to know they lived their life to the fullest. Life should not be measured by it's length, but by the quality of the days in it. These people saw more wildflowers, curious goats, pesky marmots, cute pikas and summit vistas than many city dwellers. Although cliched to say they enjoyed their life till the very end, it is a fact, and a happy fact. This is my first fourteener after these accidents and was in memory of Steve, Terry, Howard and as I would painfully learn later, Mike. Onwards!

My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload):

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Comments or Questions

sad2	great pictures and trip report 7/28/2013 7:21pm K - - Great job on the trip report. The picture of the storm during the descent of Challenger captures the conditions nicely.
zephyr_pelicante	Good Job 7/28/2013 7:56pm I agree completely - the descent off Challenger is among the hardest portions of any 14er in my opinion.
14erkid	Nice! 7/28/2013 11:53pm I love the wildflower pics! I remember seeing you guys up there! I was in a grey Petzl helmet, brown hat, and a bright blue jacket, and I was with my friend and my dad that day.
My-Therapy	Thanks for the nice report. 7/29/2013 12:54am Well done and well said Karthik. There will be 4 of us in our group for a long weekend of fun camping at Willow Lake and hiking KC & Challenger in just two weeks from now and we are all really looking forward to visiting that area.
LePhantom	Let 100 Flowers Bloom! 7/29/2013 1:12am Wow, fantastic photography. Definitely pro quality! Thanks for sharing. I knew Mike Smith, the pilot on STS-51, so Challenger has always been a special place to me. PS: Hmm, was the 1st photo of Kit Carson Avenue reversed?
Double Oh Seven	Nice Report 7/29/2013 2:52am It was nice to meet you guys up there. Great pictures especiallly the Wildflowers. Congrats on two great summits.
billkat	Great report 7/29/2013 3:03am Very nice, thorough report. Loved the pics.
screeman57	TheOtherPaintbrush... 7/30/2013 12:22am (aka photo 9). Great job, Karthik! I can't imagine that descent when wet (bad enough when dry). Let's get together in August.
TheOtherIndian	Thanks everyone for the kind words 7/30/2013 3:54am Thanks everyone for the kind words. The area was beautiful with all the wildflowers and the cloudy weather! 14erkid: I remember you guys and your dad! Nice to see you up there 007: Nice to see you man. Sorry we didnt hike together. LePhantom: Those were some first class men wandering into space and the unknown. I see the avenue in Image 19,21,25. None of it was reversed. There were two parts to the avenue - one going up and the other going down, not sure if they are named differently. screeman57: Sure Tim, most of my August is free!
lukehadden	Awesome Reprt 8/8/2013 4:51pm Any idea what time you arrived at Willow Lake? I know you had the rain/hail delay. I'm thinking of starting that hike at 8 pm tomorrow evening. Thanks!
cbrobin	Great Hike 8/26/2013 10:45pm Good hiking with both you guys. Great photos overall. I believe that is a three toed woodpecker. If so it's a lifer for me. 14erkid, great seeing you on the mountain. I just got back from Lindsey with my ten year old son. Luke-it took us about four hours to hike in. As Karthik pointed out we were delayed with rain about forty five minutes. Very very long day.
MUni Rider	Good Job 8/26/2013 11:47pm Nice report. Thanks for posting.
alpinenut	Helpful Nice Pics 8/28/2013 3:29pm Thanks for the nice trip report. Good pics and useful narrative. Look forward to using it in a couple weeks...
Cookiehiker	Nice work! 10/5/2013 11:03pm I am hoping to find someone to hike these with me soon. Very good information and great pics!
SnowAlien	Glad to hear 4/2/2015 7:45pm the weather cooperated for you guys. A little bit of rain on the descent is a small price to pay for 2 tough peaks. Gorgeous photos of the area. Keep chipping away at the list!...Beautiful tribute to the fallen climbers.

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