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Base Camp
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- Statistics:
- Date Hiked: July 29, 2006
- Miles Hiked: 13.6
- Elevation Gain: 4,850'
- Hiking Partner(s): Brian
Kooengia & Sarah Richardson
- Description:
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Brian and I wanted to attempt something a bit more technical than we had
climbed in the past, so we decided to try the north face of Longs Peak.
Sarah was a late addition to the climb after calling Brian looking for
something to do. With a liberal 5.4 rating and only two short
technical pitches, we felt it was well within our abilities.
Although I was somewhat nervous about the climb, Brian was cooler than the
other side of the pillow. After climbing Pyramid Peak and the Maroon
Bells (N to S) with Sarah, I don't think she gets shaken up by too much.
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I was up shortly after 1:00 am and picked Brian and Sarah up at 2:00 am.
We arrived at the Longs Peak Trailhead to a packed parking lot.
Sarah left approximately 5 minutes before us suspecting we would catch her
shortly down the trail, whatever. Brian and I headed off at 4:00 am
and didn't see Sarah again until we got to the Boulder Field where she was
waiting for us. The approach went quickly; however, a ranger warned
us at Chasm Junction that two rescues were in progress and we should
expect a helicopter. We continued on to Granite Pass and sure enough,
the helicopters arrived to evacuate someone with cerebral edema. We
aren't sure what happened near Chasm Lake.
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After a short break in the Boulder Field, we proceeded to Chasm View and
were awestruck by the incredible views of the Diamond. We leisurely
prepared for the climb as there were already climbers on the route.
Brian confidently took the sharp end of the rope and made short work of
the first pitch. Sarah clipped into the rope with a figure eight on
a bite about 20 feet from the end of the rope while I tied into the end.
As Brian belayed from above, we simu-climbed to the belay ledge where
there was barely room for the three of us. Brian once again led the
second pitch and before we knew it, the technical climb was over.
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We packed up the rope and finished the scramble to the summit in 30
minutes. Despite having to wait approximately 30 minutes at the
bottom of the technical section of the climb, we made the summit in 5
hours and 45 minutes. We hung out on the summit for 45 minutes with
about 423 other people. We soaked up some rays, took a few photos,
and fueled up before deciding to descend. We enjoyed our time on the
summit despite having a lady spewing on the rocks next to us. The
three of us essentially wore the same clothes for the climb. (Trail
Running Shoes/Tights/Shorts/Base Layer Top) Our packs were fairly
light except for the fact that Brian made me carry the rope, except when
people were around to see him with it. ;-)
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The scramble back down to the top of the climb took about 15 minutes where we had to
wait another 30 minutes for our turn to rappel. At this point,
another helicopter buzzed the summit. I was waiting for Brian to
utter the infamous line from Apocalypse Now, "I love the smell of napalm
in the morning", but it never came. Apparently someone fell 60 feet
off the narrows on the Keyhole Route and also needed to be rescued. Since we only had one
rope, we had to do two rappels which wasn't that big of a deal with the
eyebolts still remaining from the old Cables Route.
-
Once down at the Boulder Field, we hiked/trail ran back to the trailhead
for a round trip time of 10 hours and 10 minutes. Overall, it was a
great climb and experience. I was a little surprised (disappointed?)
that the technical sections weren't a little longer, but it was a great
introduction to alpine technical climbing. To top off the day, we
stopped in Boulder for a late lunch and a couple of beers.
- Maps:
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Click here
to view a
2D
map of the area where this hike is located.
- Photographs:
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