One of many
trip reports under the
SilGro home page for Alan Silverstein and Cathie
Grow.
Email me at
ajs@frii.com.
Last update: March 7, 2024
(Previous trip report: 1988_0731_McHenrysPeak.htm)
(A
Fourteener
trip report.)
Friday, August 5: Chuck Reese and I left Fort Collins this morning and drove to the trailhead for Mount of the Holy Cross via Dillon and Vail in about four hours. The dirt road up from US 24, south of Minturn, was in pretty good condition. It still took a while to drive the ~8.4 miles to Half Moon campground at the end (10400'). From here we could see Notch Mountain southwest through trees, but we had to hike almost three miles around its flank to first get a glimpse of Holy Cross.
We attached ourselves to backpacks and departed up the trail at 1410. It was a fine route although getting rather worn. We had superb afternoon weather with small, non-threatening cumulus shade clouds. We dared hope that the high pressure moving in from the north would continue this condition. (Alas the next two days the clockwise flow around that high apparently dragged up Gulf moisture. It was overcast and rainy...)
In just over an hour from the trailhead we gained 1200' to reach Half Moon Pass (11600'). It was a pretty place with patches of trees, but would be an obstacle to cross during an afternoon thunderstorm. From this vantage point on the north ridge of Notch Mountain we could see the road to Leadville and the Climax molybdenum mine below the Mosquito Range Fourteeners.
From the pass there was a distant panorama of peaks beyond Cross Creek. The trail dropped gently for a while. Just as it turned left and descended sharply we received the first tremendous look at the side valley of East Cross Creek, much nearer, with the pinnacle of Mount of the Holy Cross looming beyond it. There was little snow on the mountain and none in the cross.
We reached East Cross Creek, 900' lower (10680'), at 1620. There were a myriad of camp sites scattered around, connected by innumerable trails through lush forest under tall trees deep in the valley. After some exploring we settled on a nice site near the main trail.
Saturday morning, August 6: We were on our way up at 0610, just about at sunrise. The skies were dreary and the morning was grey and ominous. After crossing the creek the trail went way west up to the north ridge of Holy Cross, a glacial moraine I think, before cutting suddenly left into forest.
We encountered a large porcupine right next to the trail, a novel sight. He sat still with his brown and white back and tail bristles exposed for as long as we studied him.
The trail took us steeply through forest to timberline high on the west side of the ridge. A ways beyond this it finally joined the ridgetop at about 12400' where there was a memorable view down into the valley. By this time we were being drizzled on. We sat for an hour enjoying the scenery, getting cold, and debating whether to continue, as clouds began to swirl slowly around and obscure the summit.
Eventually we continued up the ridge. Dunno why, but the weather didn't concern me and I wanted to revisit the peak. Chuck felt more conservative, but on we went anyway. We gained about 1000' more, in and out of cool wet fog. Then HPites Larry Chapman and Shaw Moldauer caught up with us to our surprise. They dayhiked the peak from the trailhead!
The north ridge abruptly joined the summit cone. We picked our way up braided trails to the top of Mount of the Holy Cross at 0955 (3:45 for 3325', not bad at all with the long break). It was smaller than I recalled, rather flat and very rocky. We were in clouds the whole twenty minutes we loitered but for two short, tantalizing breaks under the cloud deck.
I'd planned and hoped to continue south to circumnavigate the whole valley of East Cross Creek on high ridges to Notch Mountain. The weather put this idea on ice. Chuck and I left the summit at 1015. Below us clouds swirled beneath and east of the north ridge, quite pretty.
On reaching the turn to the ridge we took an adventurous route off the mountain. There was a steep gully filled with everything from sand to boulders, plus snow on top, which led down directly towards Lake Patricia from ~13400'. It was a little firm for "screeing" but still a great way down. (I would not recommend it for climbing up though.) Earlier in the year an ice axe would be required.
From there to camp was the highlight of the outing... I like "living" clouds, and we were in and out of them. Notch Mountain across the valley was hidden much of the time but occasionally visible, wreathed in fog.
We had to carefully descend mud and gravel on top of ice for a time, but soon reached a small saddle in a north ridgelet from the peak at 12200'. Here we ate lunch looking down on Lake Patricia and north to the Bowl of Tears.
Dropping from this point brought us to delightful timberline alpine forest above the lake. We explored our way back along the lakeshore through a veritable Garden of Eden hardly minding the intermittent rain. The trail from there to camp wound down precipitously at points, "unimproved" to say the least, but quite fun to follow. We were back at our tents by 1420 with a whole afternoon left to nap, read, and stroll the area.
I like to wear zoris (flip-flops) around camp. I spent over an hour studying, photographing, and climbing around on rocks in the middle of a long, gentle, ice-cold waterfall nearby... Wow.
Near midnight it rained hard. Outside was as dark as I'd ever seen it, moonless and overcast. I could barely distinguish the sky from the treetops.
Sunday morning, August 7: It continued cloudy and wet as we packed up and hiked out from 0900 to 1100, including that slow, unavoidable 900' gain back over the saddle. We were back home by 1600.
(Next trip report: 1988_0820-21_SandbeachLake.htm)