| Peak(s): |
Mt. Princeton - 14,200 feet |
| Date Posted: | 09/18/2007 |
| Modified: | 05/11/2016 |
| Date Climbed: | 09/16/2007 |
| Author: | KeithK |
| Peak(s): |
Mt. Princeton - 14,200 feet |
| Date Posted: | 09/18/2007 |
| Modified: | 05/11/2016 |
| Date Climbed: | 09/16/2007 |
| Author: | KeithK |
| Introducing Mr. MJ Summit |
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Mt. Princeton September 16, 2007 Route: Standard from Mt. Princeton Road Round Trip: 6.25 miles Elevation Gain: 3200' Dave(DCM57), Lisa(elims), Matthew(MJ), Keith Mt. Princeton has a bad reputation. If you ask 100 hikers what their least favorite 14er is, this one is likely to be mentioned at a very high percentage. Sure, there's a road above tree line. The trail is rough and rocky down low, while getting steep and loose up high. For the most part, it is an unremarkable hike. For an adult... But this is the story of a remarkable young man taking on a BIG mountain, and doing so with the vigor and enthusiasm that only a seven year old child could have. Lisa and Matthew met me at 4:00 a.m., and we began the journey to Buena Vista. Matthew quickly fell asleep on the floor of my supercab; I don't know about Lisa, but I was quite jealous. The little guy had plenty of room back there, and we had a comforter and pillow for him. Kids have it so rough. We journeyed through Buena Vista to the infamous Mt. Princeton Road. It is a bit rough at the beginning, but for the most part, just steep and narrow as it works it way up the broad southeast ridge of the mountain. The golden aspens quickly stood out amongst the pine forest. Nobody is sleeping at this point, not even a seven year old. As only a boy of his age could, Matthew made it known that "this is definitely a 4 wheel drive road!" as he bounced up, down, left, right, and in whatever other direction the road caused him to be thrown. Finally reaching the radio towers, I continued just a short distance further up to some nice, wide parking areas. We parked, organized our gear, and were ready to start hiking. Matthew getting ready to tackle his 3rd 14er!  Matthew and I starting up the road...  Sure, hiking up a road is considered boring for most, but not when you have the eyes of a child to see things in a different light. Stopping, running, stomping, and being a kid, Matthew kept things interesting and fun... at least for me. Mom may have been less impressed, especially after about the 20th skewered pine cone. Give a kid trekking poles, and what do you think he's going to do? Lisa and Matthew...  Like mother, like son...  This kid is quite the photographer, as you'll see a little later...  Soon, our destination comes into view... (image by Lisa)  We were supposed to meet Dave on our way up, but we never saw his vehicle. Figuring that he was ahead of us, we continued up the road. During another frequent youth-induced stop, however, a hiker caught us about halfway up the road to the actual trail. It was Dave. Our group was now complete. The Buffalo Peaks... (image by MJ)  Fall colors... (image by MJ)  A cool view from the road... (image by MJ)  Lots of color... (image by MJ)  Beatiful rays of early morning light...  Finally reaching the trail, we were all ready to do some "real" hiking. The steps to the Mt. Princeton Trail...  The good part of the trail... (image by Lisa)   Our destination... (image by Lisa)  The good part of this trail doesn't last very long, and we soon began negotiating the numerous rockslides that have added an element of class 2 rock hopping to the hike. Looking back at the trail...  Joking that he could easily fit under a rock if weather came in, Matthew was excited to find shelter that he could share with his mother...   We continued on, slowly negotiating the rocky sections that dissect better trail. It was a nice relaxed pace, but we always had an eye on the weather, and Lisa, Dave and I were certainly keenly aware of the threats that might come from the turbulent Colorado skies. We agreed that the clouds were moving overhead so fast that it seemed unlikely that we'd get caught in anything this early. Dave leads the way as we turn onto the new trail... (image by Lisa)  There is some confusion as to the "new" and "old" trails. There is a short rock barrier now in place, and the new trail is well cairned. It is a steep hike, though, almost straight up to the ridge. The turn to the new trail...   A look at the route, taken during the descent...  Making our way up the steep ridge...  As we topped out on the ridge, a spectacular view of Mt. Antero presents itself...  Beginning to pick our way up the ridge...    My favorite picture... (image by Lisa)  While the weather continued to maintain a relative predictability, we slowly worked our way up the ridge. Cairns are helpful, but it is so easy to get off route and just pick a social trail on this mountain. Once reaching the steeper summit pitch, route finding seemed to go out the window, and we just worked our way up the path of least resistance. Unfortunately for Matthew, there really wasn't one. He was sliding and losing his footing often, and clearly getting frustrated by the difficulty. Who could blame the young man? It was difficult to gauge the weather as we began climbing to the eastern side of the ridge, and reports coming down from the summit were telling us that there were dark, foreboding clouds on the other side of the mountain. Dave was well ahead of us, and I certainly wouldn't discourage him from reaching his 5th 14er summit. But Lisa and Matthew were a different story, there was not way I was going to put them at unnecessary risk. We discussed going back, then discussed continuing. I knew we could make it up, but what would the descent be like on this nasty, loose, steep slope? Especially if wet? To the little guy's credit, he was ready to turn around. I knew that we'd be full of regret if we did, so after some internal conflict, I gave the go ahead. We would continue upward. Lisa and Matthew decided that it was easier to simply scamper straight up the rocks, and that's what they did. I continued to look for some semblance of a route, preferably a trail. The memorial placque... (image by Lisa)  The clouds continued to fly overhead from west to east, and my fears were diminishing as I finally found my way to the cairns that mark the route, right on the ridge. Suddenly, it was much easier, and I soon joined Dave, Lisa and Matthew on the summit! Prince Matthew on the summit of Mt. Princeton...(image by Lisa)  A very proud mother!   Our group...  Matthew enjoys a hard earned snack...  Yale and Columbia shrouded in cloud... (image by Lisa)  Mt. Yale finally showed itself...  We had the summit to ourselves for a short while, and the wind was replaced by the sun. We rested, snacked, and took pictures before finally being joined by the next group. Looking to the west, things seemed to be consolidating, and we all agreed that it was time to go down. The descent wasn't as bad for me as I thought it might be, and Dave had no problems negotiating the steep slope, either. Poor Matthew, though, just could not keep his footing. We tried to pick the best lines we could, but the little guy spent as much time sliding down the mountain on his backside as he did on his feet. I tried to show him how to use his trekking poles to brace in front of him, but true to a growing child, his coordination just isn't quite there yet. Time and practice will solve that issue... We continued to watch the weather, and it was clear to see that we were going to get wet. Fortunately, we had nearly reached the low point of the saddle when nature unleashed its fury. Donning our warmer clothes just in the nick of time, savage hail began to fly, literally blowing right up the west side and over the top of the ridge. Virtually running for the saddle, Dave and I made our way a few feet down the side, with Lisa and Matthew not too far behind. I could hear the little guy behind me, and tell that he was scared, but he handled the whole ordeal like a champion. Once we descended just a few feet onto the old trail, things were'nt quite so bad. The storm hits... (image by Lisa)  With a few flashes of lightning and some thunder, the cell quickly passed, and we descended on the slippery, steep trail. A few falls took place, but no one was injured, and we eventually met the old trail as it countoured the mountainside. It was not long before some of the most incredible, rewarding images appeared. The first double rainbow...  The second double rainbow...    All told, we encountered 2 double rainbows, and 2 single rainbows, making for a total of 6! Now that's a fantastic way to descend a mountain! We made steady progress down the sometimes trail, and Lisa and I noticed the pikas were out and chirping at us. We joked that they were mad that we were still on their mountain, and they were getting ready for their time, free of goofy humans. We were quickly humbled and corrected, though, as young Matthew pointed at a puddle on a boulder and said "I think they come out to drink the water after the rain". Wow! Why didn't I think of that? Now that's a smart young man!  Our hiking continued, and we were all happy to reach the road. Even then, there were still sights to be seen. The Golden Hallway...  A lonely auburn aspen, a true symbol of autumn... (image by Lisa)  As we reached the truck, a Jeep Liberty was parked in an odd position, not quite blocking me. As luck (or lack thereof) would have it, these poor people were having electrical problems, and were stranded. Fortunately, they had been able to call for help, and were waiting for a replacement battery. They also informed us of a downed tree somewhere below that was blocking the road all afternoon! Oh, goodie! Assured that they would be okay, we began our way down the road, anxious to see if the tree was out of our way. As it would turn out, being slow and the last ones off of the mountain wasn't such a bad thing. BIG tree... (image by Lisa)   Overjoyed as we hit pavement, we made a beeline for Pizza Works, to celebrate with a pie and some Tommyknockers Ornery Amber(Hawaiian Punch for the little man  ). What a day! Seven year old Matthew had summitted a huge, tough mountain, making his 3rd 14er already. What a stud! This was Lisa's 7th in a scant 10 weeks, and my 13th. It was another unbelievably memorable day in the Colorado high country, but most importantly, a SAFE day.
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