Keller Mountain Trip Report 10/01/2013

Report Type	Full
Peak(s)	Keller Mountain - 13,080 feet
Date Posted	10/01/2013
Modified	10/02/2013
Date Climbed	09/30/2013
Author	boudreaux

Keller Mountain, No Piece of Cake
Keller Mountain was a long time coming, 21 years to be exact. Saw it long ago from a foray up Pitkin Creek from the Vail Valley to get Peak X. I was planning to get at least North Traverse, but leaving your glacier glasses behind kinda screwed that for me. The trail to the mine was very smooth, Highline Canal smooth. I made my 1st mistake at the mine, by taking the wrong trail. When you get to the mine, a pile of rocks blocks the path, take that right turn, it will save you some hard bushwacking. Eventually, I found that trail, but not before I was thinking this was going to be a long day if something didn't start going right. When I got to a large talus field, I turned it up the slopes and contoured over to the small ridge heading to the main east ridge. The 1st time I saw the Grand Traverse Mt Valhalla SE slopes of Keller As you can see it is a nice looking climb up, hit that crack left of center. It was good climbing on solid rock, mostly class 4. One part had me topping out through a spruce tree, a little annoying but I made the best of it. Starting things off right I bypassed a sub-point on the East ridge and got into some minor trouble, but reclimbed a little to get around a cliff. There is no jumping down in the Gores! I saw Keller for the 1st time here, but wasn't sure if that was the summit, doesn't look like a summit to me! Summit of Keller I wasn't making that great of time up the ridge, just slowly making my way up, there is just so much to stare at! Quite a few times, I was walking through heavy spruce ground cover on the ridge. A point where the ridge turns north has a nice overlook of the basin below Keller. Looking back on the ridge climbed You can see how the North faces have a lot of snow, while the southside looks bare. It was nice for Keller, but not good for a north slope approach. The western exposures looked melted out as well. East Thorn, Mt Silverthorne Once I got on top, the rest of the Gores came into view. Such a rugged range! Main Range with Pk C and Powell It was getting late, so I needed a quick way down. Going back the way I came took to long. Looking down the slope was all I needed to do to make a quick decision, and away I went. The Great Escape Looks like somebody forgot their LNT tactics, look at the size of the footprint!! Took about 30 minutes from the summit to this point. You talk about ease your mind, I didn't want to walk out in the dark and I didn't know exactly where the trail was beyond the talus field. After about 15 minutes in the forest, I walk by a few cairns before doing a double take. Oh yeah, there it is and happily started down the faint, but thankfully good trail. It didn't take long for me to lose it though, so consequently, I went through the thickest crap I have ever had the privilege of crashing through. It was so thick, I couldn't see more than a few feet in front of me. My shins got all bruised up, sticks, leaves in my clothes, beard. I almost kissed the ground when I got to some open space and rejoined the trail at the bottom of the talus field. Looking back up the descent The trail did lead back into the Boss Mine thankfully. A couple of switchbacks later and I am laughing at myself as I look at that fateful mistake. Fall Colors It was good to get back on the Highline Canal trail again and made it back to the car way before dark. I was able to drive my car all the way to the Rock Creek TH. Not perfectly smooth road, but you should be able to get around all obstacles you encounter. It was a fitting end to a great fall day! Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Keller Mountain, No Piece of Cake

Keller Mountain was a long time coming, 21 years to be exact. Saw it long ago from a foray up Pitkin Creek from the Vail Valley to get Peak X. I was planning to get at least North Traverse, but leaving your glacier glasses behind kinda screwed that for me. The trail to the mine was very smooth, Highline Canal smooth. I made my 1st mistake at the mine, by taking the wrong trail. When you get to the mine, a pile of rocks blocks the path, take that right turn, it will save you some hard bushwacking. Eventually, I found that trail, but not before I was thinking this was going to be a long day if something didn't start going right. When I got to a large talus field, I turned it up the slopes and contoured over to the small ridge heading to the main east ridge.

The 1st time I saw the Grand Traverse

Mt Valhalla

SE slopes of Keller

As you can see it is a nice looking climb up, hit that crack left of center. It was good climbing on solid rock, mostly class 4. One part had me topping out through a spruce tree, a little annoying but I made the best of it.

Starting things off right

I bypassed a sub-point on the East ridge and got into some minor trouble, but reclimbed a little to get around a cliff. There is no jumping down in the Gores! I saw Keller for the 1st time here, but wasn't sure if that was the summit, doesn't look like a summit to me!

Summit of Keller

I wasn't making that great of time up the ridge, just slowly making my way up, there is just so much to stare at! Quite a few times, I was walking through heavy spruce ground cover on the ridge. A point where the ridge turns north has a nice overlook of the basin below Keller.

Looking back on the ridge climbed

You can see how the North faces have a lot of snow, while the southside looks bare. It was nice for Keller, but not good for a north slope approach. The western exposures looked melted out as well.

East Thorn, Mt Silverthorne

Once I got on top, the rest of the Gores came into view. Such a rugged range!

Main Range with Pk C and Powell

It was getting late, so I needed a quick way down. Going back the way I came took to long. Looking down the slope was all I needed to do to make a quick decision, and away I went.

The Great Escape

Looks like somebody forgot their LNT tactics, look at the size of the footprint!!

Took about 30 minutes from the summit to this point. You talk about ease your mind, I didn't want to walk out in the dark and I didn't know exactly where the trail was beyond the talus field. After about 15 minutes in the forest, I walk by a few cairns before doing a double take. Oh yeah, there it is and happily started down the faint, but thankfully good trail. It didn't take long for me to lose it though, so consequently, I went through the thickest crap I have ever had the privilege of crashing through. It was so thick, I couldn't see more than a few feet in front of me. My shins got all bruised up, sticks, leaves in my clothes, beard. I almost kissed the ground when I got to some open space and rejoined the trail at the bottom of the talus field.

Looking back up the descent

The trail did lead back into the Boss Mine thankfully. A couple of switchbacks later and I am laughing at myself as I look at that fateful mistake.

Fall Colors

It was good to get back on the Highline Canal trail again and made it back to the car way before dark. I was able to drive my car all the way to the Rock Creek TH. Not perfectly smooth road, but you should be able to get around all obstacles you encounter. It was a fitting end to a great fall day!

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Comments or Questions

Jay521	Nice one, Beau! 10/1/2013 10:08pm You certainly took a tougher route than the one I chose a few years ago (East ridge). The Gores ARE ”beau”tiful, aren't they? GREAT pics!
boudreaux	Thank You 10/1/2013 10:21pm Jay, it sure was, these are the Gores, everything is hard in there! Certainly pushed me to the limits, glad I didn't have my shades, that next point over toward N Traverse was ugly, and time was running out!
Marmot72	Pretty 10/2/2013 3:57am Nice trip, great pictures. I'm surprised how dry it was there! I was east of there Sunday (Herman Gulch 13ers) and west on Monday (Lead King Basin) and both areas were much snowier.
maverick_manley	bruised shins 10/2/2013 5:06am We were on Keller on Saturday and were in a world of pain following deer trail through some not so nice shrubbery :shock:. Nice report. It looks like you took a slightly different route up and down. There seemed a few options.
jbchalk	Nice stuff, Boudreaux! 10/2/2013 5:27pm Loved the pics and the report. Well done. Keller is a gem.
boudreaux	Thanks Guys 10/5/2013 7:16pm I was hoping it would be a little drier to push onto NT, but I got my fill. I did see some not so fresh tracks high up on the ridge and a couple places where somebody slipped badly on the trail. I just hope the trail leading past where I picked it up is not just following cairns, not that I need a trail, happy to go face first through anything! :lol: I would like to go back in there and get NT and poke around in the basin below the traverse. Thanks JB!

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