Quandary Peak Trip Report 07/31/2016

Peak(s):	Quandary Peak - 14,272 feet
Date Posted:	07/31/2016
Date Climbed:	07/23/2016
Author:	Chagster1

Crowded Quandary
Quandary Peak: July 23, 2016 Due to extreme weather and late snowfalls this past winter in Colorado, my hiking season was delayed until late July. Living in Texas, it consistently makes it tough to find time to come back to Colorado year after year to hike 14'ers. Due to my hiking partner having a family emergency at the last minute, I would be hiking alone for the first time. My first peak for the 2016 season would be easier one (none of them are actually "easy"). I chose Quandary Peak because it is a Class 1 and felt it would be a great warm up for the season. I normally come to Colorado from Texas, but this hike would bring me from Junction City, Kansas as I am doing some work for the military there. I left Junction City at 2:30 pm and after a long drive across Kansas and Colorado along I-70, I finally made it to Breckenridge around midnight. I slept in the car in the City Market Grocery Store parking for about four hours. At 4:00 am, I decided to head to the trailhead to try to get an early start. After driving the 8 miles south on Colorado 9 from Breckenridge, I hit the trailhead around 4:30 am. Surprisingly, there was already several cars parked at the trailhead. I made last minute adjustments to my pack, donned my headlamp, and proceeded up the trail. Due to the darkness and being alone, it was kind of spooky hiking along in the forest. All the descriptions of the route made me think that this was a relatively clear trail all the way to the top. As I was hiking along, I met a group of three who were coming back my direction. They quickly informed me that the trail disappears and they must have missed the real trail somewhere. It was a good thing I met them otherwise, I could have found myself wandering in the dark by myself (not a good thing). I followed them and we retraced our steps and finally found where the trail splits and turns right. We simply missed it in the dark. I recommend that if you are hiking in the dark, pay close attention to the trails. We made our correction and turned right, and they quickly distanced themselves as they vigorously hiked up the dark trail in the dark. As I neared timber line, the sun began to come up and I got my first glimpses of Quandary Peak. It was obvious where the trail was going. Although, it is only class one, the route up the ridge is still tough. I found myself taking multiple breaks to catch my breath. Along the trail, I noticed people ahead of me were stopped and seemed to be taking pictures of the valley below. I turned in that direction and saw a herd of mountain goats in the area. It has been a while since I have seen wildlife along the trail and it was a pleasant surprise. Also at that moment, the wind began to pick up and I put on a heavier jacket. After another big push, I finally reached the summit at 7:40 am which meant it took about three hours to reach even after getting lost in the forest for a bit. Quandary Peak 14,267 feet was in the books! I ate a light snack, took some pictures and decided to head down knowing I had a long drive back to Kansas in the afternoon. On the way down, I encountered multiple parties coming up. There were so many people coming up that at times seemed to be traffic jams along the trail. If I had to guess there was probably hundreds of people on the trail which I have never seen before on a 14'er. It was really cool to see. After hiking for two hours, I finally reached the bottom where I saw many cars jam-packed the Quandary Trail parking lot all the way down to Colorado 9. It was surreal to see so many cars parked. I would recommend to anybody, get an early start on Quandary due to how popular it is. Overall, it was a great climb and a good warm up for the season. Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Crowded Quandary

Quandary Peak: July 23, 2016
Due to extreme weather and late snowfalls this past winter in Colorado, my hiking season was delayed until late July. Living in Texas, it consistently makes it tough to find time to come back to Colorado year after year to hike 14'ers. Due to my hiking partner having a family emergency at the last minute, I would be hiking alone for the first time.

My first peak for the 2016 season would be easier one (none of them are actually "easy"). I chose Quandary Peak because it is a Class 1 and felt it would be a great warm up for the season. I normally come to Colorado from Texas, but this hike would bring me from Junction City, Kansas as I am doing some work for the military there. I left Junction City at 2:30 pm and after a long drive across Kansas and Colorado along I-70, I finally made it to Breckenridge around midnight. I slept in the car in the City Market Grocery Store parking for about four hours.
At 4:00 am, I decided to head to the trailhead to try to get an early start. After driving the 8 miles south on Colorado 9 from Breckenridge, I hit the trailhead around 4:30 am. Surprisingly, there was already several cars parked at the trailhead. I made last minute adjustments to my pack, donned my headlamp, and proceeded up the trail.

Due to the darkness and being alone, it was kind of spooky hiking along in the forest. All the descriptions of the route made me think that this was a relatively clear trail all the way to the top. As I was hiking along, I met a group of three who were coming back my direction. They quickly informed me that the trail disappears and they must have missed the real trail somewhere. It was a good thing I met them otherwise, I could have found myself wandering in the dark by myself (not a good thing). I followed them and we retraced our steps and finally found where the trail splits and turns right. We simply missed it in the dark. I recommend that if you are hiking in the dark, pay close attention to the trails. We made our correction and turned right, and they quickly distanced themselves as they vigorously hiked up the dark trail in the dark. As I neared timber line, the sun began to come up and I got my first glimpses of Quandary Peak.

It was obvious where the trail was going. Although, it is only class one, the route up the ridge is still tough. I found myself taking multiple breaks to catch my breath. Along the trail, I noticed people ahead of me were stopped and seemed to be taking pictures of the valley below. I turned in that direction and saw a herd of mountain goats in the area. It has been a while since I have seen wildlife along the trail and it was a pleasant surprise. Also at that moment, the wind began to pick up and I put on a heavier jacket. After another big push, I finally reached the summit at 7:40 am which meant it took about three hours to reach even after getting lost in the forest for a bit. Quandary Peak 14,267 feet was in the books!

I ate a light snack, took some pictures and decided to head down knowing I had a long drive back to Kansas in the afternoon. On the way down, I encountered multiple parties coming up. There were so many people coming up that at times seemed to be traffic jams along the trail. If I had to guess there was probably hundreds of people on the trail which I have never seen before on a 14'er. It was really cool to see. After hiking for two hours, I finally reached the bottom where I saw many cars jam-packed the Quandary Trail parking lot all the way down to Colorado 9. It was surreal to see so many cars parked. I would recommend to anybody, get an early start on Quandary due to how popular it is. Overall, it was a great climb and a good warm up for the season.

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

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