Introduction

I first visited the heart of the Weminuche last August with a trip to Chicago Basin. Expecting it to be just another 14er trip filled with overhyped climbing and decent views, I was absolutely blown away at the unique beauty and grandeur of it all. The mountains here are like nothing else; every peak you see is covered in cliffs, wildflowers, and an intangible mystic feeling unlike anything else in the state. This area is magical, and my first impression was nothing short of perfect. We had perfect weather for a week, not many crowds, and I got to enjoy some fantastic scrambling and scenery on some of the Colorado's greatest hits (and hidden gems). I knew that I would be back soon.

This Summer, I found myself without a job and with the intention to use all my free time for walking up mountains. I've done well for myself; as I write this report ListsofJohn tells me that I've climbed 81 ranked peaks over 13,000 feet this year. Maybe I'll get to 100 by the end of the Summer, maybe not. I've struggled during my peak obsession to not get too focused on the numbers. This Summer has helped with that. I've been focusing on climbing with people as much as possible, trying to build a community inside my hobby, turn it less into a way of retreating into myself and more into a way of communing with others.

I meet all the best people on mountains. I met Robin (bunny256) on Homestake Peak in March of 2021. The skiing was good, the company was better. Once I proved to her I wasn't just some punk kid, she was down to meet up for some summits and we got a few weird things done in the South San Juans that summer, and have stayed in touch ever since, to the point that I'd now call her my primary hiking partner. My dear friends Josh & Monika I met on Mount Powell in August of 2020. They are a dynamic duo of mountain lovers, two of the most bizarre and charming people I've ever met, and immediately weasled their way into my (at the time) closed-off little world.

Planning

Josh's friend Tyler has been itching to get more into the mountains since his life has gotten busier in recent years. He was plotting some sort of mountain-themed backpacking trip, and recruited Josh to put it together. Chicago Basin it was, with all the grownup sex-appeal of dangerous mountains and all the childlike train-appeal of a big thing that goes "toot toot". I was immediately in (fun times in the mountains with my friends) but needed to figure out how I'd be able to get some peaks I hadn't climbed already (I had already climbed all the 14ers, plus Peak Eleven, Grizzly Peak C, and McCauley Peak the aforementioned year prior). With enough staring at maps, skimming through trip reports and forum threads, I had devised a plan: hang out in Chicago Basin for a few days with friends, then grab Aztec on the way to the Endlich Mesa peaks, then somehow hike out. This way there would be some old peaks and some new ones! All I need to do is just mention the plan to Robin for her to be down, so now I don't even have to do it alone, yay!

After the requisite fuel stop at Grassburger, Robin and I met at the Vallecito trailhead Sunday evening, left her car there, and drove to a friend's place in Durango to spend the night. We got dropped off at the train station Monday morning to meet up with Josh, Monika, and Tyler, who were all smiles as always.

Day 1: Monday, August 21 - pack in to Chicago Basin and attempt at Peak Eleven

Toot toot. The train is delightful. Don't scoff at it. Don't even dare. I have no regrets. This is probably the last time I'll take the train, but it's so nice. The logisitcs are annoying, to be sure, but it sure is a romantic way to start a trip. We enjoyed the views, got dropped off at Needleton, and were on our way up to Chicago Basin under sunny skies with delightful temperatures. After 4 hours of hiking with plenty of breaks, we found an excellent campsite at 10,800 and set up our base camp for the next couple of nights.

Robin needed to do Peak Eleven that afternoon if we were to stay on schedule, and I offered to join her after a quick cat nap. Off we were by about 5:30pm. We got to Twin Lakes in about an hour, just to see the sky get awfully dark over the peaks. It seemed like we might be able to make it go, but after all didn't feel like chancing it or making dinner after dark. Of course, the sky cleared up soon after we descended, ain't that just the way. No big deal, we figured, she can get Peak Eleven on her way to Ruby Basin some other time.

Day 2: Tuesday, August 22 - attempt at Sunlight

The next day I was hiking with Josh, Monika, and Tyler with the hopes of summiting Sunlight and Windom while Robin was off to do Grizzly C and McCauley. Despite OpenSummit's forecast looking pretty good, this day was awful. Remnants of a hurricane over California made the weather hilariously unpredictable over the next few days. It rained and hailed on us numerous times on our way up to Twin Lakes, and the clouds never showed a hint of breaking. We got up to Twin Lakes in time to see a guide and client descending, who informed us the upper basin was crazy cold and windy, with no sign of the moisture stopping. If it's bad enough for a guide to turn around, I guess we should too. Robin had a similar experience, getting just past Columbine Pass before calling it quits due to hail and general awfulness. It rained off and on all day, but let up enough for us to have lots of time for card games and shenanigans around camp. No photos of this day, there was nothing to see.

Day 3: Wednesday, August 23 - Aztec Mountain and move camp to Endlich Mesa

The weather looked somewhat better after sunrise this morning. We had no idea what to expect, but Robin and I needed to get to Endlich Mesa one way or another. It ended up pulling through. We bade farewell to our friends who were heading up for a second attempt at Sunlight (it was a success, congrats you guys!), then we packed up camp and headed up Columbine Pass. Just after treeline, we left the trail, dropped our packs, and found a mining trail that heads up towards Aztec Mountain. This trail was downright excellent, and got us quite high into the basin. We saw some neat rocks and just enough wildflowers (a butt-ton).

The scree gully to gain Azec's East ridge wasn't bad, though there was some sketchy class 3 to top out. The ridge was tedious as you have to bypass a lot on the South side, but we found our way to the summit and found a bit of service to check the forecast for the next few days (and keep the Duolingo streak alive). Looks like more bizarre hurricance influence, yayyy. But back to typical monsoons by Saturday? Okay, we can hold out. We won't get our stretch goals, but we can at least get the Endlich Mesa peaks done. And look! An email from Aspen confirming my acceptance of their job offer, I'm gonna be a liftie at Highlands this season! I rode that high all week: one less thing to think about, and a legendary ski season to fill my dreams.

Back to the packs, we hauled up and over Columbine and Trimble Passes, and down Silver Mesa to find a camp at Lake Marie. There isn't really a trail south of Trimble pass, just a weird landscape with some massive cairns to tease you along. It was a lot less cruiser and a lot more exhausting than we expected. We found a fine campsite just above Lake Marie to set up camp, just before it started raining. This was a pretty big day. There was screaming in the distance, which we mostly ignored in our exhaustion.

Day 4: Thursday, August 24 - Organ Mountain B, Amherst Mountain, "Peak Twenty Two", Sheep Mountain D

It rained all night. Our alarms went off, it was still raining, and we shouted to each other that there was no way in hell were we getting started in a downpour. It eventually let up some, and I poked my head out of my tent. I got that weird feeling, after days of bad weather, that this day of bad weather would be unpleasant but fine. I rallied Robin and we got going, fueled almost entirely on my good feeling. We could at least get two peaks today.

We started up the informal but pretty good trail towards Castilleja Lake, leaving it at some point, crossing the creek, and heading towards the screaming which was always just out of view. The wails and the calls lead us on, through the fog, up Endlich Mesa's weird, broken terrain of slabs and grass. Eventually there was barking too. And more screaming.

I knew there were sheep in the Cimarrons, but did not expect to see them all the way out here. Hundreds, of course. A few dogs to watch after em, maybe a couple people too. They screamed without end, the poor souls. The dogs kept us at a distance and we worked our way around the herd, headed eventually for the Emerson Moutain/"Peak Twenty Two" saddle, where I knew there'd be a way down into the backside of Organ B and Amherst. I'll refer you to Supranihilest's trip report for detailed beta on these peaks, I am mostly here to tell a story. These were easy peaks, Organ B was class 2 until a couple of class 4 moves at the summit block, not too much exposure here (epecially with fog all around). Amherst was a walkup with a truly fantastic scree ski. "Peak Twenty Two" was a lot of grass walking till just below its class 4 summit block, which had some slightly difficult moves but never much exposure. Sheep Mountain D had an unexpectedly amazing trail all the way to the summit ridge.

Through the fog, we worked our way back down to a game trail we found on the way up, and followed it back to the valley, again led on by the Great Wailing and Gnashing of Teeth. It was an easy hike out. Our feet had been soaked since the very beginning of the day, and it would be a few days before our socks dried out. Once we got back to camp, the rain started again.

Day 5: Friday, August 25 - Mount Valois

A new morning, the same bad weather. Mount Valois was the goal for today, with the stretch goal of descending to Johnson Creek if the weather seemed okay enough. Valois is a delightful little peak, a bit of routefinding through cliffs and slabs to get to the ridge, then lots of slab walking and tundra strolling to reach the summit. The views were dramatic, but fleeting.

The summit was a white room, but the only peak on our whole trip to have an intact summit register. We descended the same route back to camp. The rain did not stop. We were demoralized and couldn't imagine a steep, downhill bushwhack with heavy packs in this kind of moisture. Another lazy afternoon, I guess.

Day 6: Saturday, August 26 - bushwhack down to Johnson Creek

Sun??? In the sky??? Blue??? What is this!! Finally, things are turning up. We pack up camp, actually get most of our gear dry for the first time in days, and head off into the sea of anguish and suffering. I mean sheep.

The trail that heads towards Castilleja Lake is a game trail, no doubt, but it led us on quite a ways. At the outlet of an unnamed lake East of Castilleja Lake, our adventure began. Or so we thought: I had heard that this drainage that leads towards Johnson Creek had game trails and wouldn't be too bad, but I was not prepared for an entire trail. A glorious trail! Better than the trail on Silver Mesa, even, this game trail took us steeply down our drainage at least a thousand feet before we lost it. It delighted us in both mind and body. Spirits high for the first time in a little while, our easy progress got us quite far, and we only had to bushwhack for the last 300 vertical feet or so. Our bushwhacking plopped us out at a delightful little campsite (which happens to be marked on Caltopo and Gaia) and we settled in for another lazy afternoon, this time with thunderstorms, yay thunderstorms! Never thought I'd be excited about afternoon thunder and rain, but here's a weather pattern I can actually predict for once!

Day 7: Sunday, August 27 - Grizzly Peak C, McCauley Peak

We had originally intended on heading up towards Sunlight Creek at the tail end of our trip, with the hopes of getting at least 2 of peaks up that way. This being our second-to-last day though, and Robin having gotten stymied on Grizzly C and McCauley earlier in the week, we decided it made more sense to come back for Sunlight Creek on a future Beartown trip, and not orphan these two for her now. Teamwork makes the dreamwork.

The Johnson Creek Trail is delightful. We made quick work of it and were soon at Columbine Lake. Up and over to Hazel Lake, maybe the most beautiful basin I've ever been to; it didn't take much to convince me to come back here. Grizzly C is a fun scramble with exceptional views, and McCauley is a peak also. Let it be known that I am the only 14ers.com member to log two ascents of McCauley Peak, I will lord that over this community for years to come, surely. I'll refer you to Wildwanderer's report for detailed beta on both of these.

Day 8: Sunday, August 28 - pack out to Vallecito

Grassburger day. I mean, hike out day. Cruiser trail and 12.5 miles to go - how quickly can we get to Grassburger?? I mean, the car?

The Johnson Creek trail continued to be great until we had to cross Johnson Creek. There was no dry way across, so we took our shoes off and walked through. As the next creek crossing at the Vallecito was only 1/2 a mile away, we just kept our sandals on, but turns out there's a bridge here! Welp. Shoes back on until another wet crossing at Irving creek, then I kept my sandals on for another mile until you actually do have to cross the Vallecito without a bridge. It was about mid-thigh deep for both of us.

After the last wet crossing, we made great time grinding out the trail, drove to Durango and quickly inhaled large borgor and shake of milk. No more Wailing or Gnashing of Teeth, not from us at least. We picked up my car and started the drive back to Grand Junction, where we were greeted by cats, frozen pizza, and beer.

Conclusion

I spent the prior week offroading around Silverton with my dad. During that week, I found myself musing about how well the two of us spend time together, how it's always just so easy. I found myself thinking about relationships, romantic and platonic, and how it can be so difficult to find people that you can not only stand for a full week, but really enjoy your time with. I feel very thankful to have found a friend like that in Robin, and to keep finding more friends along my way this Summer. I'd like to give a few shoutouts to Matt (dubsho3000), Ben (supranihilest), Heather (hr011242), Vera (VeraUndertow), Sarah (SasMaster22), Brandon (mountainmaestro) a certain memestress in Durango, and all my family and friends back in Denver who I've been missing all Summer.

This Summer has been one for the books so far, and I was looking forward to this trip as some sort of "crowning achievement". Weather kept us from true greatness, but it was a lovely week in a fantastic place, with the best company I could ask for. I've recently been considering stepping back from peakbagging a bit, but the Weminuche is a place I hope to be coming back to for many years to come.

Thanks for reading. I've poured a lot of myself into this peakbagging thing for a few years now, and I hope this trip report is some small way of giving back to the communtiy a bit. Let's walk up a mountain together sometime.