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 North Apostle, Ice Mountain and West Apostle, left to right, frame the valley on the hike in, under cloudy but dry skies. Lake Ann and the west peak were our destination. The wilderness rehabilitation continues and for the second week in a row, we managed to escape the summer crowds and find a little peace and quiet. Well, it was quiet at least with regards to the lack of people, but the regular rolls of thunder and sheets of rain against the wall of the tent were at times pretty loud.
The weather pattern is in a full blown monsoonal pattern right now, which for our area means rain, heavy at times, and nearly every day. Discouraging as it may be, if you’re motivated, you can often sneak in an activity in the morning, before the deluge begins.
So unwilling to spend our days off at home, we had little choice but chance it. Christy and I headed over Independence Pass to Lake Ann, high in Apostle Basin in the Sawatch Range, just west of the popular 14er, Huron Peak. Framing the backdrop of the basin are the namesake “Three Apostles”, two of which are the Centennial 13ers, Ice Mountain and North Apostle, which we climbed back in 2002. It was back then, when on the summit of Ice Mountain, that we first saw Lake Ann out to the west, and set it as a goal to return here some day and explore the area and maybe even try for the third peak of the trio, West Apostle. Finally, eight years later, we finally checked it off our list. read more>>>
 Lissa and Ted at the top of Buckskin Pass. On Saturday of July 4th weekend, Lissa, Ted and I hit the Four Pass Loop, one of our favorite long runs through the Maroon Bells/Snowmass Wilderness. We started from Maroon Lake and ran the loop counter clockwise, tackling Buckskin Pass first. With the Hardrock 100 only days away, Ted planned to come along for just Buckskin Pass but couldn’t resist tagging along, down the other side to Snowmass Creek, before turning back.
For the most part, the trail was in good shape, with just a little snow on the passes. One thing worth reporting is the presence of a significant number of downed trees between Trail Rider Pass and Frigid Air Pass– on the section of trail between the waterfall and the Fravert Basin creek crossing. Although it’s a little tedious to get through, it’s totally passable- just count on needing a bit more time, especially if you have a large backpack. The wildflowers looked like they might be a few weeks out from peaking so we might have to run the loop again in the next couple weeks to catch the all the fantastic colors. read more>>>
 Christy and Lissa on the ridge, seen here form the summit of North Traverse Peak. The route heads to the highpoint out to the left, Grand Traverse Peak. Christy, Lissa and I did the Gore Grand Traverse the other day. Not to be confused with the popular ski race, the Elk Mountain Grand Traverse, often discussed here on the blog and which was a grand disappointment this year, the Gore GT is a Vail area ridge traverse between North Traverse and Grand Traverse Peaks, and requires an approach and descent via two different valleys, creating a really cool loop. read more>>>
 Two Christy's? Can the world handle that? Actually she was caught in two shots that made up this panorama, approaching the top of Willow Pass.
On Sunday, my 37th birthday, Christy and I ran a trail linkup that started at Maroon Lake and finished with a beer and pizza at the Snowmass Mall. Rather than find ourselves in yet another grand birthday outing that’s both physically strenuous and technically elaborate, involving multiple summits and excessive vertical gains, we opted for something a little more chill. It’s been busy lately and we’re tired. After all, as a kid I recall considering a 37 year old adult to be officially “old” so according to me (at age 10 or so), I’m now over the hill and should take it easy read more>>>
 Hitting the trail for a quick jaunt up towards Buckskin Pass on Saturday was our first visit to the area since ski season. Some useful route beta for the Maroon Bells area was learned. Here’s the report:
Buckskin Pass and the Four Pass Loop
The only news from down low is that as you pass the wilderness boundary sign there are four new trail washouts from the recent rain. Higher up, it’s dry in the open, sunny areas but in the shaded spots the snow still remains, even as low as where the trail crosses Minnehaha Creek. Stretches of patchy snow above the creek crossing are easily passable, to near 12,000 feet, and above that the remaining 500 vertical feet to the top of the pass is still pretty well covered. read more>>>
 Don't let the photo fool you, we're out in the upper part of Hunter Creek where the ground is dry. The three hours prior were spent in a mix of mud, snow and water. At least it was hard last Monday. More so than when Richard Betts, an avid trail running friend, sommelier and producer of killer wine and fine mezcal (if there is such a thing it’s called Sombra), and I have completed this trail linkup in years past.
This time was different though. With all of the recent cold temperatures, cloudy weather and rain (and snow up high– see last weeks TGIF dawn patrol), the local high country trails haven’t been melting. As an annual rite of summer for Richard and me, we run the 19 mile Midway Pass to Hunter Creek route each year in the days preceding Food & Wine weekend in Aspen, and this time the mostly downhill(2211 ft. gain/4891 ft. loss) run wasn’t the typical the pre-work cruise but rather an early season hike/ slog through water, mud and snow. read more>>>
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