Peak Condition Update | Mt. Lindsey

Peak:	Mt. Lindsey
Route:	Northwest Gully
Range:	Sangre de Cristo
Posted By:	Msbaker
Date of Info:	7/25/2020
Date Posted:	7/26/2020

Details
First off, I made it all the way to the trailhead with my Mazda CX-5. I saw mostly 4WD cars and trucks at the trailhead. There were three specific areas on Forest Road 580 which were bad and I may have bottomed out slightly but if you are careful you should be able to make it with decent clearance on your vehicle. With regards to the hike, the first 1.5 miles were muddy and wet with a few stream crossings. This was likely exacerbated with the recent rains. Absolutely stunning views as you get to tree line and descend into the valley. The winds were 25+ mph and there were threatening storm clouds obscuring Ellingwood as I ascended over west of the Iron Nipple. I decided to take the Northwest Gully as I had heard it wasn't that loose and I was slightly worried about the gusting winds on the ridge. This was a huge mistake, not because of the route itself (which was completely free from snow), but because of careless hikers on the ridge route and rock falls. About halfway up the gully, I hear "ROCKS" being yelled repeatedly from the ridge above. I looked up and, I kid you not, I saw a boulder (which I would estimate at 50+ pounds) and several other rocks barreling down from the ridge above into the gully towards me. Fortunately, I was able to shield myself from the smaller rocks which ended up falling far too close for comfort and the large boulder fell well below me further down the gully. Thankfully, I came out unscathed but I subsequently read several stories about hikers who have had this happen to them and were struck by rocks and suffered broken bones/concussions/other severe injuries and had to be rescued off the mountain. I understand that this was most certainly an accident and am thankful that the people on the ridge yelled "ROCKS" as this isn't always the case (based on the tragic stories I have read on social media). However, I met one individual in the gully who has hiked several class three and four 14ers and he said he had never seen anything like that before (the size of the rock that barreled down) and attributed it to careless hikers on the ridge above. If that large rock, free falling from over 500 feet above, had hit any of the people in the gully, we would not have survived. Mt. Lindsey is an absolutely stunning mountain, with incredible views from the parking lot all the way to the summit. The final pitch to the summit after the gully is Class 2 and is remarkable as well. However, as much as I enjoyed summiting this mountain, I will likely never do it again due to the scare I had in the gully. I would certainly be remiss if I did not share my experience for others thinking about hiking Mt. Lindsey. I would also be remiss if I did not ask that anyone hiking this beautiful mountain (regardless of the route) to hike it carefully and to think about others as you do so. It may just save someone from a serious injury, rescue, or death.

Details

First off, I made it all the way to the trailhead with my Mazda CX-5. I saw mostly 4WD cars and trucks at the trailhead. There were three specific areas on Forest Road 580 which were bad and I may have bottomed out slightly but if you are careful you should be able to make it with decent clearance on your vehicle.

With regards to the hike, the first 1.5 miles were muddy and wet with a few stream crossings. This was likely exacerbated with the recent rains. Absolutely stunning views as you get to tree line and descend into the valley. The winds were 25+ mph and there were threatening storm clouds obscuring Ellingwood as I ascended over west of the Iron Nipple. I decided to take the Northwest Gully as I had heard it wasn't that loose and I was slightly worried about the gusting winds on the ridge. This was a huge mistake, not because of the route itself (which was completely free from snow), but because of careless hikers on the ridge route and rock falls.

About halfway up the gully, I hear "ROCKS" being yelled repeatedly from the ridge above. I looked up and, I kid you not, I saw a boulder (which I would estimate at 50+ pounds) and several other rocks barreling down from the ridge above into the gully towards me. Fortunately, I was able to shield myself from the smaller rocks which ended up falling far too close for comfort and the large boulder fell well below me further down the gully. Thankfully, I came out unscathed but I subsequently read several stories about hikers who have had this happen to them and were struck by rocks and suffered broken bones/concussions/other severe injuries and had to be rescued off the mountain. I understand that this was most certainly an accident and am thankful that the people on the ridge yelled "ROCKS" as this isn't always the case (based on the tragic stories I have read on social media). However, I met one individual in the gully who has hiked several class three and four 14ers and he said he had never seen anything like that before (the size of the rock that barreled down) and attributed it to careless hikers on the ridge above. If that large rock, free falling from over 500 feet above, had hit any of the people in the gully, we would not have survived.

Mt. Lindsey is an absolutely stunning mountain, with incredible views from the parking lot all the way to the summit. The final pitch to the summit after the gully is Class 2 and is remarkable as well. However, as much as I enjoyed summiting this mountain, I will likely never do it again due to the scare I had in the gully. I would certainly be remiss if I did not share my experience for others thinking about hiking Mt. Lindsey. I would also be remiss if I did not ask that anyone hiking this beautiful mountain (regardless of the route) to hike it carefully and to think about others as you do so. It may just save someone from a serious injury, rescue, or death.

Comments or Questions

stickmann	Seconded 7/29/2020 7:07pm Great report. Definitely a good reminder to be careful when others are above you. I totally agree that I donâ��t understand why the gully is climbed when dry. There is such fun, solid rock on the ridge. It looks intimidating from the saddle but has great holds and small deviations to modify the difficulty.
austin132435	Careless Hiker Group Here 2/21/2023 11:39am A few years ago now, but still a bad experience. Hopefully this adds context to the situation for other people attempting the route. We had a group of 4, all with fairly significant hiking experience. We were heading down on the ridge after summiting, and had discussed the fact that hikers were below us in the gully, and that we needed to be especially careful. One of our group (by chance the most experienced with around 40 14ers done), was standing still on that 50lb boulder which looked as secure as any other boulder on the ridge when it suddenly gave way. He managed to fall uphill towards the ridge and avoid injury, but the rock was falling into the gully and brought a number of smaller rocks with it. We shouted ”Rocks” for a minute straight. We were all shaken, but got confirmation from a hiker below that nobody in the gully had been hit. While the group knocking rocks into a gulley will always seem careless, and we will always try to do better, I would still say we were not being overly careless hikers in this situation. No disrespect to you or the other hikers climbing the ”Standard” route, but 14ers.com makes it fairly clear that the gully route is not preferred in the summer, especially on a busy weekend with many other hikers on the ridge. I certainly didn't want to hike in a gully on a busy weekend below a bunch of ridge hikers, so we chose the ridge route. Rocks do falls sometimes, even when trying to be careful. I would say this situation was less ”Careless Hikers” above and possibly ”Careless Planners” below. However, now that this is a few years back and there were no injuries, we do enjoy calling our most experienced member a ”Careless Hiker” now!
Msbaker	Nearly three years later 2/22/2023 10:17am Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but ”Standing still on a 50lb boulder” on the top of a class four ridge with hikers down below is careless. Well trained hikers check every rock, foot, and hand hold when it comes to class 4 and 5 terrain before applying any weight. I have nearly completed all of the 14ers, now including Lindsay multiple times via both routes, and I have never dislodged anything larger than a pebble. Perhaps I am just a more experienced and aware hiker than your mate? Anyways, accidents happen though and I appreciate you owning it all these years later. Also happy that you guys can all joke about almost killing several people way back when.

14ers.com

Social

Mobile App