Uncompahgre Peak Trip Report 05/29/2011

Report Type	Full
Peak(s)	Uncompahgre Peak - 14,318 feet
Date Posted	05/29/2011
Modified	09/10/2017
Date Climbed	05/27/2011
Author	Rastaman566

Glissader's Paradise
Uncompahgre Peak 14,309' May 27, 2011 Route: South Ridge from Nellie Creek Distance: 11.22 Miles TH Access: 10,300' Elevation Gain: 4,010' Solo Distance: Vehicle to Camp(11,720'): 3.5 Miles Camp to Summit(14,309'): 2.5 Miles Time: Moving Time/Speed: 5 hrs 31min/2MPH Stopped Time/Speed: 2hrs 7 min/1.5MPH Vehicle to Camp: hrs 2.2 hrs Camp to Summit: hrs 2.5 hrs Summit to Vehicle: hrs 3 hrs Means: 10,300'-10,700' Foot 10,700'-14,309' Snowshoes "Unca-pah-gre": Such an ugly name is unfitting for this beautiful place. I had Uncompahgre in mind during a trip that me and a friend made a week ago to Lake City. Unfortunately, after climbing Redcloud and Sunshine a storm rolled through for the next couple of days and ruined our ambitious plans. The real problem is that the name uncompahgre has been stuck in my head since, and I find it very unpleasant the way it rolls off the tongue. By far the worst 14er name in my opinion. Anyway, I was hoping that by completing the climb it wouldn't be stuck in my head anymore. Not sure if it worked yet. Uncompahgre from Redcloud summit the prior week Nellie Creek Road: Rock slides, Streams, and Snow Drifts Although my vehicle is only 2wd, I have pretty good clearance so I decided to continue on Nellie Creek road to see how far I could get up it. From the turn-off all the way to the first creek there is no snow to worry about but there are a number of rock slides that left good sized boulders on the road. My guess is that no ones been up that road for a while because I had to get out about eight times to move rocks off the road. Rock slides on Nellie Creek Road When I finally got to the first stream I found a nice nook to pullover in just before the stream. My vehicle wouldn't have made it, maybe a bigger 4wd would, but it would be unnecessary to cross right now because the road is blocked just a short while after the first stream. First Creek Crossing/Vehicle Pullover Site About 100' feet up from the stream you'll see your first couple snow drifts that are passable without snowshoes. An additional 300' up and the road becomes impassable by vehicle because of large snowdrifts. This is where I chose to use snowshoes, and they stayed on for the rest of the trip to the summit. Road Snowpack begins (10,700') Camping vs. Single-day trip I chose to camp out at tree-line so that I'd have firm snow to travel on the approach in the morning. Travel was pretty quick and camping was definitely unnecessary but it did enable me to see a beautiful sunset and sunrise that I otherwise wouldn't have been able to see. Sunset on Uncompahgre As the sun went down I had a tough time finding a dry spot to set up my bivy, but with the help of my trusty head torch I found this nice area hidden from the wind at 11,720' Dry Patch Bivy-site You can sleep when you die! I never sleep very well before a climb because of the excitement and anticipation, so when I checked my watch at 3:15am I decided I'd get up, make breakfast, and get a super early start. I was on the trail by 3:45 and everything about the climb just felt great! It started getting light during the last push before the summit ridge. I always love that first look around when it gets just light enough to see what the scenery is around you. It's kind of eerie at first. Then its just beautiful. Summit Ridge at Sunrise The trail was very straight forward and I had no trouble finding my way to the summit. This summit definitely takes the cake on being most scenic. Summit Ridge at Sunrise Summit View Summit View Summit View Wetterhorn Redcloud and Sunshine Glissader's Paradise I've glissaded on a number of peaks this winter, but I always seem to hit the peaks too late to get a great glissade out of it. That wasn't the case here. As I descended from the summit I checked my watch and saw that it was still only 6:45. With ice axe in hand I began my glissade from the summit ridge. Awesome! Not only was the snow the perfect firmness to get a good slide on, and not only were there a number of great glissade lines all the way back down to tree-line, but I found that every slide had a safe run-off that ended in a bowl. My first slide dropped me about 650' vertical in seconds. My GPS tracked my speed at a steady 15-17 mph. Fast enough that my ass was burning by the time I got to the bottom. My initial glissade line I haven't heard too much talk on the forums about the glissade opportunities on Uncompahgre, but I found it to be perfect, especially if you can hit it super early in the morning like I did. This picture doesn't do it justice. Looking back on the approach to Uncompahgre and the awesome glissade oppurtunities On the way back down to camp I also found some coyote tracks traveling directly towards by bivy site. Luckily, no coyotes got into my food or other stuff. Coyote tracks What makes a favorite peak? I'd have to say this peak is my new favorite so far. Before this one, no climb really stood out as being more enjoyable than the rest. I actually questioned whether I'd have a favorite peak before leaving Colorado in June. It got me thinking about what it actually takes to become a favorite. For me, I have to feel like I had a very controlled ascent and descent of the mountain. I don't get a large thrill when it comes to taking chances with safety. I love pushing my body to the limits, but I can't continue to do that if I'm dead! For this reason I've stayed away from more technical stuff while I've been in Colorado and stuck with the stuff that challenges my cardio. I found Uncompahgre to be a nice balance. The approach was rather quick, but I still was able to push hard on the ascent and have fun on the descent. It also has an amazing view from the summit. My favorite summit to date? I think so! I got back into Lake City, still very early in the day, and decided to head to the Black Canyons near Montrose to hike down into the inner canyon and camp out. Although it might not be kosher of me to include that trip into this TR, I'm going to include some photos anyway. If you haven't checked out the Black Canyons yet, it's worth the trip just for the overlooks. If you have some extra time, hike down to the inner canyon from the south rim. It's a good 1800' below the rim, but a whole different experience at the bottom. Camping out down there was quite the contrast with my previous nights camp at 11,700'. Black Canyons Painted Wall of the Black Canyons, Colorado's tallest cliff Inner canyon exploration My inner canyon Bivy-site Sunrise during my ascent back to the canyon rim Sunrise during my ascent back to the canyon rim Hope you enjoyed the report. Have fun and be safe! My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload): Login required to view this map... Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Glissader's Paradise

Uncompahgre Peak 14,309'
May 27, 2011
Route: South Ridge from Nellie Creek
Distance: 11.22 Miles
TH Access: 10,300'
Elevation Gain: 4,010'
Solo

Distance:
Vehicle to Camp(11,720'): 3.5 Miles
Camp to Summit(14,309'): 2.5 Miles

Time:
Moving Time/Speed: 5 hrs 31min/2MPH
Stopped Time/Speed: 2hrs 7 min/1.5MPH

Vehicle to Camp: hrs 2.2 hrs
Camp to Summit: hrs 2.5 hrs
Summit to Vehicle: hrs 3 hrs

Means:
10,300'-10,700' Foot
10,700'-14,309' Snowshoes

"Unca-pah-gre": Such an ugly name is unfitting for this beautiful place.
I had Uncompahgre in mind during a trip that me and a friend made a week ago to Lake City. Unfortunately, after climbing Redcloud and Sunshine a storm rolled through for the next couple of days and ruined our ambitious plans. The real problem is that the name uncompahgre has been stuck in my head since, and I find it very unpleasant the way it rolls off the tongue. By far the worst 14er name in my opinion. Anyway, I was hoping that by completing the climb it wouldn't be stuck in my head anymore. Not sure if it worked yet.

Uncompahgre from Redcloud summit the prior week

Nellie Creek Road: Rock slides, Streams, and Snow Drifts
Although my vehicle is only 2wd, I have pretty good clearance so I decided to continue on Nellie Creek road to see how far I could get up it. From the turn-off all the way to the first creek there is no snow to worry about but there are a number of rock slides that left good sized boulders on the road. My guess is that no ones been up that road for a while because I had to get out about eight times to move rocks off the road.

When I finally got to the first stream I found a nice nook to pullover in just before the stream. My vehicle wouldn't have made it, maybe a bigger 4wd would, but it would be unnecessary to cross right now because the road is blocked just a short while after the first stream.

First Creek Crossing/Vehicle Pullover Site

About 100' feet up from the stream you'll see your first couple snow drifts that are passable without snowshoes. An additional 300' up and the road becomes impassable by vehicle because of large snowdrifts. This is where I chose to use snowshoes, and they stayed on for the rest of the trip to the summit.

Camping vs. Single-day trip
I chose to camp out at tree-line so that I'd have firm snow to travel on the approach in the morning. Travel was pretty quick and camping was definitely unnecessary but it did enable me to see a beautiful sunset and sunrise that I otherwise wouldn't have been able to see.

As the sun went down I had a tough time finding a dry spot to set up my bivy, but with the help of my trusty head torch I found this nice area hidden from the wind at 11,720'

You can sleep when you die!
I never sleep very well before a climb because of the excitement and anticipation, so when I checked my watch at 3:15am I decided I'd get up, make breakfast, and get a super early start. I was on the trail by 3:45 and everything about the climb just felt great! It started getting light during the last push before the summit ridge. I always love that first look around when it gets just light enough to see what the scenery is around you. It's kind of eerie at first. Then its just beautiful.

The trail was very straight forward and I had no trouble finding my way to the summit. This summit definitely takes the cake on being most scenic.

Glissader's Paradise
I've glissaded on a number of peaks this winter, but I always seem to hit the peaks too late to get a great glissade out of it. That wasn't the case here. As I descended from the summit I checked my watch and saw that it was still only 6:45. With ice axe in hand I began my glissade from the summit ridge. Awesome! Not only was the snow the perfect firmness to get a good slide on, and not only were there a number of great glissade lines all the way back down to tree-line, but I found that every slide had a safe run-off that ended in a bowl. My first slide dropped me about 650' vertical in seconds. My GPS tracked my speed at a steady 15-17 mph. Fast enough that my ass was burning by the time I got to the bottom.

I haven't heard too much talk on the forums about the glissade opportunities on Uncompahgre, but I found it to be perfect, especially if you can hit it super early in the morning like I did. This picture doesn't do it justice.

Looking back on the approach to Uncompahgre and the awesome glissade oppurtunities

On the way back down to camp I also found some coyote tracks traveling directly towards by bivy site. Luckily, no coyotes got into my food or other stuff.

What makes a favorite peak?
I'd have to say this peak is my new favorite so far. Before this one, no climb really stood out as being more enjoyable than the rest. I actually questioned whether I'd have a favorite peak before leaving Colorado in June. It got me thinking about what it actually takes to become a favorite. For me, I have to feel like I had a very controlled ascent and descent of the mountain. I don't get a large thrill when it comes to taking chances with safety. I love pushing my body to the limits, but I can't continue to do that if I'm dead! For this reason I've stayed away from more technical stuff while I've been in Colorado and stuck with the stuff that challenges my cardio. I found Uncompahgre to be a nice balance. The approach was rather quick, but I still was able to push hard on the ascent and have fun on the descent. It also has an amazing view from the summit.

I got back into Lake City, still very early in the day, and decided to head to the Black Canyons near Montrose to hike down into the inner canyon and camp out. Although it might not be kosher of me to include that trip into this TR, I'm going to include some photos anyway. If you haven't checked out the Black Canyons yet, it's worth the trip just for the overlooks. If you have some extra time, hike down to the inner canyon from the south rim. It's a good 1800' below the rim, but a whole different experience at the bottom. Camping out down there was quite the contrast with my previous nights camp at 11,700'.

Painted Wall of the Black Canyons, Colorado's tallest cliff

Sunrise during my ascent back to the canyon rim

Hope you enjoyed the report. Have fun and be safe!

My GPS Tracks on Google Maps (made from a .GPX file upload):

Thumbnails for uploaded photos (click to open slideshow):

Comments or Questions

Monster5	Awesome pics! 5/30/2011 3:35am And thanks for the info earlier. It's pretty cool to see how quickly things are melting up there.
greenwok	Bivy 5/30/2011 4:02am Super nice experience you had - great photos to capture it! Who needs more than a bivy 8)
Rcizzle	The BCG 5/30/2011 6:58pm Awesome Canyon with HUGE fish. Great view of Uncompahgre on the top too!
kingdave68	Black canyon 5/30/2011 7:37pm Thanks for adding the Black canyon pics, very cool.
mtgirl	NICE ! 5/31/2011 2:04am I keep driving by the Black Canyon and saying I need to visit it sometime. After reading your report, I'm going to make it sooner than later. Looks like a great trip !
doggler	Extras 5/31/2011 3:03am Cool to see pics of the Black Canyon. Thanks for that!
vorian	Sweet! 9/24/2011 12:22am great report. i am a flatlander now and this is the next one i want to do when i get back out there.

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