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Estes Skyline High Route (~50 miles, rock up to 5.4, 3.5 days): Mummy, Hagues, Fairchild, Ypsilon, Ida, Chief Cheley, Sprague, Taylor, Powell, McHenrys, The Stoneman, Chiefs Head, Pagoda, Longs, Meeker

"Estes Skyline High Route"

Routes:

~50 miles, rock up to 5.4, 3.5 days

- Mummy Mountain (13,425')
- Hagues Peak (13,560')
- Fairchild Mountain (13,502')
- Ypsilon Mountain (13,514')
- Mt. Chiquita (13,069') (passed underneath)
- Mt. Chapin (12,454') (passed underneath)
- Mt. Ida (12,880')
- Chief Cheley Peak (12,804')
- Sprague Mountain (12,713')
- Flattop Mountain (12,324') (passed underneath)
- Hallett Peak (12,713') (passed underneath)
- Otis Peak (12,486') (passed underneath)
- Taylor Peak (13,153')
- Powell Peak (13,208')
- McHenrys Peak (13,327') + The Stoneman (12,550')
- Chiefs Head Peak (13,579')
- Pagoda Mountain (13,497')
- Longs Peak (14,255')
- Mt. Meeker (13,911')

A cross-country high route in RMNP traversing the entire Estes Park Skyline.

Region: Colorado
Elev: 10,000-14,255 ft
Rock type: Gneiss & Granite
Type: 
Trip Report 1:
First attempt: Mummy to Powell
Date(s): June 20-23, 2020 (Sat-Tue)
Partner(s): Nate Arganbright
Trip Report 2:
Second attempt: Mummy to Meeker (entire Estes skyline)
Date(s): July 17-20, 2020 (Fri-Mon)
Partner(s): Nate Arganbright

Related trip reports:

Map & Google Earth

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Labeled Panorama

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Intro

This is a trip report for a high route traverse of the entire RMNP skyline as seen from Estes Park, starting with Mummy Mountain and ending with Longs Peak. Nate came up with the idea of the route after years of staring at it from his front porch. As far as Nate or I know this awesome traverse has never been done in a single trip.

The route took us over about 50 miles of cross country terrain over the course of 3.5 days, staying mostly at 12,000-14,000 feet close to the ridgeline. There are 19 major summits along the way, 14 of which we officially summited and the rest of which we skirted a few hundred feet below the summits. The terrain for the first two days was a lot of 3rd class scrambling interspersed with 2nd class cross-country romps and section of trail, while the terrain on the last day was more rugged entailing scrambling up to 5.5. Trekking through the mountains, camping out up high, and exploring new terrain is a pretty awesome way to spend a few days. Plus, what better way to get in peak shape for alpine climbing than to do a 3-day cross-country hike at 12,000-14,000 feet?

Nate and I first attempted the trip in June 2020, but on the third day we made the tough decision to turn around at Powell Peak, since early summer conditions and building thunderheads didn't look favorable for continuing onto the most rugged section of the traverse. The following week, I scoped out this section of the traverse during a solo day out on the "A Walk in the Park" Traverse from Thatchtop to Half Mountain, which included the entire technical section from Powell to Longs. Four weeks after our first attempt of the Estes Skyline High Route, with a good forecast and knowledge of every section of the route, Nate and I executed the traverse. And an amazing trip it was!

Nate and I thoroughly enjoyed this athletic adventure traversing the Estes skyline. Thanks Nate for inviting me along on this awesome adventure you dreamed up!

Scroll below for two trip reports complete with maps, stats, and lots of photos.

Trip Reports

CLICK ON TRIP REPORT TO DROP DOWN CONTENT

Intro

This is a trip report for our first attempt at the Estes Skyline High Route, which ended at Powell when early summer conditions and building thunderheads did not look favorable to continue onto the most rugged section of the route.

Some of my highlights: the view from the top of Mummy of all the terrain to come, passing bikers as we hiked up Trail Ridge Road to the Alpine Visitor Center, the frantic scramble to set up a waterproof shelter beside the trail and getting it up just seconds before a thundershower let loose, the beautiful hike over the Flattop Plateau, constructing and then enjoying comfortable seats at our third camp, a dramatic sunset from the summit of Taylor, the rugged view from the top of Powell, and the overly friendly guy who asked a lot of questions who gave us a ride back to Estes Park.

Below are a map and a google earth overlay of our route. Below that are a selection of photos from the trip, broken down by day. Enjoy!

Map & Google Earth

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Photos by Day

THIS TRIP REPORT IS STILL MOSTLY IN THE EMBEDDED HTML FORMAT OF MY OLD WEBSITE.

Day 0

Stats:
8.2 miles, ~4 hours
• Start hiking from Estes Park (~7,500'): 3:40 pm
• Camp: 7:46 pm (split: 4:06)

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Approach (Estes Park --> Camp) (split: 4:06)
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1. We managed to get our starting pack weight down to about 25 lbs (the photo shows just under 20 lbs, but this did not include water, phone, book, or jacket).
2. We began the hike from Nate's front door. This avoided the need to have to negotiate the timed entry ss pick up a car at a trailhead after the trip. 
3. Starting the hike with a bit of cross-country.
4. On the Black Canyon Trail.
5. On the southeast shoulder of Mummy, looking for a place to stop for the night.
6. Evening light.
7. My dinner. Twig adds some fiber.
8. To save weight, Nate did some surgery on his book so I could start in on the first half. I had also brought a pdf of my Numerical Analysis textbook and ended up mostly reading this for "fun"...I would have much preferred Dune but that will have to wait until after prelims.

Day 1

Stats:
16.4 miles, ~10 hours
• Start hiking (~11,400'): 7:46 am
• Summit of Mummy (13,425'): 8:43 am (split: 0:57)
• Summit of Hagues (13,560'): 9:42 am (split: 0:59)
• Summit of Fairchild (13,502'): 11:20 am (split: 1:38)
• Old Fall River Road (10,640'): 2:17 pm (split: 2:57)
• Alpine Visitor Center (11,796'): 2:59-3:34 pm (split: 0:42)
• Thundershower: 4:02-4:40 pm (split: 0:28)
• Camp: 6:00 pm (split: 1:20)

Summits along the way: (Pink = summited; Grey = passed underneath by a few hundred vertical feet)
• Mummy Mountain
• Hagues Peak
• Mt. Fairchild
• Ypsilon Mountain
• Mt. Chiquita
• Mt. Chapin

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Mummy Mountain (Camp --> Mummy summit) (split: 0:57)
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9. Lenticular clouds. These things make for great photos but usually don't bode well for the day's weather. 
10. Heading up to the summit of Mummy Mountain.
11. Summit cairn on Mummy Mountain.
12. Pretty amazing place to hike. We are headed for those mountains behind Nate in the distance...
• Hagues Peak (Mummy summit --> Hagues summit) (split: 0:59)
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13. Radio repeater on the top of Hagues Peak.
• Mt. Fairchild (Hagues summit --> Fairchild summit) (split: 1:38)
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14. Headed down from Hagues towards Fairchild....
15. Some mellow terrain on the way to Fairchild.
16. Postholing through the snow.
• Ypsilon Mountain - Mt. Chiquita - Mt. Chapin (Fairchild summit --> slopes below Ypsilon, Chiquita, and Chapin --> trail --> Old Fall River Road) (split: 2:57)
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17. Ypsilon as seen from the top of Fairchild.
18. Headed for Ypsilon. Clouds are getting kind of dark, hmm....
19. Given the threat of thundershowers, we decided to contour below the north sides of Ypsilon, Chiquita, and Chapin. 
20. It's important to keep hydrated!
21. Mellow terrain on the north slopes of Chiquita. That's Chapin on the left.
• Alpine Visitor Center (Old Fall River Road --> Alpine Visitor Center) (split: 0:42)
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22. We intersected Old Fall River Road. 
23. Hiking Old Fall River Road for 2 miles. Notice the Alpine Visitor Center in the distance. See those bikers...we are gaining on them....
24. And this is a low snow year.
25. Alpine Visitor Center.
26. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the cafe had rather limited options. But at least it was open. This face mask thing will never seem normal to me though.
27. Taking a short lunch break outside the Visitor Center.
28. Ominous dark clouds. We figured we had about 30 minutes until it was upon us. Should we hide in the bathroom or find a place to set up a shelter for cover?
• Camp (Alpine Visitor Center --> Thundershower --> Camp) (split: 2:26)
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29. Hurrying down the trail in search of a place we could pitch a quick shelter to weather out the storm.
30. We threw up our waterproof shelter just in time to beat the rain. I took advantage of the rain storm to read a few sections of numerical analysis. I am not sure which is more terrifying: graduate level numerical analysis or a Colorado thundershower.
31. Once the storm passed we continued onward for another hour, looking for a place to camp. This is a cross-country zone.
32. The headwaters of the Big Thompson River.
33. In the summer I take a break from keto. Dang, these are good....

Day 2

Stats:
13.9 miles, ~8 hours
• Start hiking (~11,500'): 8:12 am
• Summit of Ida (12,880'): 10:13 am (split: 2:01)
• Summit of Chief Cheley (12,804'): 10:56 am (split: 0:43)
• Camp: 4:30 pm (split: 5:34)
• Summit of Taylor (13,153') (evening excursion from camp): 8:15 pm (split: 0:14)

Summits along the way: (Pink = summited; Grey = passed underneath by a few hundred vertical feet)
• Mt. Ida
• Chief Cheley Peak
• Sprague Mountain
• Flattop Mountain
• Hallett Peak
• Otis Peak
• Taylor Peak

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Mt. Ida (Camp --> Ida summit) (split: 2:01)
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34. Some elk on the hillside. We decided to respect their space and give them a wide berth and hike up and around them.
35. Another elk on the horizon.
36. Mountain vista.
37. A lone cairn.
38. Hm....wonder what the story is here?
39. Some pretty alpine forget-me-nots.
40. We intersected a trail.
41. Enjoying a cruiser couple of miles along a trail to the top of Mt. Ida.
42. Marmot.
43. Getting closer to the summit of Ida.

• Chief Cheley Peak (Ida summit --> Chief Cheley summit) (split: 0:43)
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44. Looking towards the summit of Chief Cheley from the top f Ida.
45. Another marmot.
46. White granite on the summit of Chief Cheley.
47. Nate and I stopped to appreciate this marvelous chicken head.
48. Highest Lake on the west side of Chief Cheley. The lake is about 12,500 feet. I winder if it is the highest lake in RMNP?
• Sprague Mountain - Flattop Mountain - Hallet Peak - Otis Peak (Chief Cheley summit --> Bighorn Flats --> North Inlet Trail --> Camp) (split: 5:34)
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49. More chickenheads.
50. We found plenty of water along the way from snowmelt. Later in the summer, water would be more scarce on sections of this route.
51. Pleasant cross country hiking towards Flattop.
52. Pretty sunflowers.
53. More pleasant hiking.
54. We intersected the North Inlet Traill on the flats near Flattop.
55. Enjoying a rare break from the hiking.
56. Trails sure make travel easy.
57. Some moose scat.
58. Some more alpine forget-me-nots.
59. On a snowfield on the slopes below Taylor.
• Taylor Peak (Camp --> Taylor summit --> Camp) (split: 0:14)
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60. Collecting water. In June there is lots of water to be found from melting snow. 
61. Relaxing with a view.
62. Relaxing with a view.
63. Okay, enough relaxing, time for some studying....
64. Dinner. I never get tired of mashed potatoes.
65. Looking up to the summit of Taylor Peak from camp. I decided to head up there for some sunset photos.
66. Nearing the summit. Some dramatic clouds were billowing around the summit as I arrived on top.
67. Summit view.
68. This phenomenon is called a "glory", caused by sunlight interacting with the tiny water droplets in the mist.
69. Longs Peak.
70. Mt. Alice.
71. More dramatic clouds.
72. The end of a beautiful day.

Day 3

Stats:
12 miles, ~5 hours
• Start hiking (~12,600'): 7:22 am
• Summit of Powell (13,208'): 8:20 am (split: 0:58)
• Andrews Pass (~12,000'): 10:14 am (split: 1:56)
• Bear Lake Trailhead (9,450'): 12:20 pm (split: 2:06)
• Estes Park (~7,500'): 2:05 pm (split: 1:45)

Summits along the way: (Pink = summited; Grey = passed underneath by a few hundred vertical feet)
• Powell Peak

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Powell Peak (Camp --> Powell summit) (split: 0:58)
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73. Breakfast in bed.
74. The sun is coming!
75. Pretty purple flower. I think these are called "purple fringe".
76. It gets cold overnight at 13,000 feet.
77. Shadows on snow.
78. The edges of snowfields were slightly annoying due to a soft layer under the crust.
79. A steep dropoff on the north side of the ridge.
80. A unique view of the Petit Grepon and Saber and Sky Pond.
81. Traversing towards Powell Peak. The peak in the distance is Chiefs Head. Powell is on the left.
82. The terrain gets much more rugged after Powell. This is the rugged terrain of McHenrys's Notch. That's McHenry's Peak on the other side of the notch. 
83. Contemplating. Snowy conditions in the Notch and building clouds over Longs Peak just weren't looking ideal for tacking the most rugged part of the traverse.
• Hike out (Powell summit --> Andrews Pass --> Bear Lake trailhead --> Estes Park) (split: 5:45)
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84. At the head of the Andrews Glacier. This was an easy exit from the ridge.
85. Looking back up at the Andrews Glacier. It's more of a snowfield than a Glacier.
86. Getting on the Visitor Shuttle to the Park and Ride. From the Park and Ride, it's about a 7.5 mile hike to Nate's place in Estes Park...
87. Taking a break at a picnic table on our hike from the Park and Ride back into Estes.
88. After about a mile of road walking, we (somewhat surprisingly) we able to hitch a ride back to Estes in the back of a white pick-up truck. The driver was perhaps a bit too friendly and asked a lot of questions and he handed Nate a rusty piece of metal for seemingly no reason, but he did spare us a long road walk.....fun times....

Intro

This is a trip report for our successful second attempt at the Estes Skyline High Route, all the way from Mummy to Meeker. What an amazing trip.

Below are a map and a google earth overlay of our route. Below that are a selection of photos from the trip, broken down by day. Enjoy!

Map & Google Earth

CLICK TO ENLARGE

Photos by Day

THIS TRIP REPORT IS STILL MOSTLY IN THE EMBEDDED HTML FORMAT OF MY OLD WEBSITE.

Day 0

Stats:
7.4 miles, ~3 hours
• Lawn Lake Trailhead (8,540'): 4:37 pm
• Camp: 7:30 pm (split: 2:53)

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Approach (Lawn Lake Trailhead --> Camp) (split: 2:53)
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1. Starting pack weight down to just under 20 lbs (about 5 lbs less than the previous trip). And this time it includes everything, including water, phone, book, and jacket. 
2. Lawn Lake trailhead, our starting point. While it was cool to start the adventure from Nate's doorstep the previous trip, the more reasonable starting point would  be Lawn Lake trailhead. 
3. Open terrain on the south shoulder of Mummy Mountain.
4. Water. Finding and filling up with water was a bit more strategic than it had been in June, now that much of the snow had melted. We would often fill up a few liters at a source if we suspected we would not have water for a good portion of the day. 
5. Cool boulders on the ridge.
6. Nate doing some bouldering.
7. A nice sunset.
8. Evening light on the south shoulder of Mummy Mountain.
9. Evening light.
10. Mashed potatoes is my go-to backcountry dinner.
11. Nate had rice in tortillas. Topped with Fritos for extra crunch and flavor.

Day 1

Stats:
15.5 miles, ~9.5 hours
• Start hiking (~12,000'): 7:11 am
• Summit of Mummy (13,425'): 7:54 am (split: 0:43)
• Summit of Hagues (13,560'): 8:56 am (split: 1:02)
• Summit of Fairchild (13,502'): 10:23 am (split: 1:27)
• Summit of Ypsilon (13,514;): 11:47 am (split: 1:24)
• Old Fall River Road (10,640'): 1:24 pm (split: 1:37)
• Alpine Visitor Center (11,796'): 2:00-3:17 pm (split: 0:36)
• Camp: 4:45 pm (split: 1:28)

Summits along the way: (Pink = summited; Grey = passed underneath by a few hundred vertical feet)
• Mummy Mountain
• Hagues Peak
• Mt. Fairchild
• Ypsilon Mountain
• Mt. Chiquita
• Mt. Chapin

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Mummy Mountain (Camp --> Mummy summit) (split: 0:43)
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12. Making breakfast in the sun.
13. Heading up towards the summit of Mummy.
14. Pleasant terrain.
15. On the summit of Mummy. I took a photo like this on every summit, to easily create a timestamp and be able to more easily identify the locations along the traverse of my 700+ photos after the trip.
16. On the summit of Mummy.
• Hagues Peak (Mummy summit --> Hagues summit) (split: 1:02)
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17. Headed for Hagues.
18. Nate found his Hyperlight pack to be great for this adventure. And, no, we're not sponsored by Hyperlight...
19. Cirrostratus clouds.
20. Sky pilot.
21. Lake below Rowe Peak.
22. Radio repeater on the top of Hagues Peak.
• Mt. Fairchild (Hagues summit --> Fairchild summit) (split: 1:27)
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23. Headed down from Hagues towards Fairchild.
24. The grassy saddle between Hagues and Fairchild. We met some hikers here doing the Mummy Kill traverse. This "all-day suffer-fest" hike from Mt. Chapin to Mummy Mtn seems short in comparison to our traverse plans! 
25. Another summit timestamp photo on the summit of Fairchild.
• Ypsilon Mountain (Hagues summit --> Ypsilon summit) (split: 1:24)
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26. Headed from Fairchild to Ypsilon.
27. Some water between Fairchild and Ypsilon. Drink up when you can!
28. Nate on the summit ridge of Ypsilon.
29. On the summit of Ypsilon, headed towards the trail along the northwest slopes of Chiquita and Chapin.
• Mt. Chiquita - Mt. Chapin (Ypsilon summit --> slopes below Chiquita and Chapin --> trail --> Old Fall River Road) (split: 1:37)
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30. Hiking along the slopes under the summit of Chiquita. As before, we decided not to hit the summits of Chiquita and Chapin. Of the nineteen summits on the traverse, we skipped only five.
31. And hiking.
32. In this photo you can see the trail we intersected at Chapin Pass. This brought us to the Old Fall River Road which led up to the Alpine Visitor Center.
33. Kings crown.
• Alpine Visitor Center (Old Fall River Road --> Alpine Visitor Center) (split: 0:36)
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34. We intersected the Old Fall River Road and hiked it 2 miles up to the Alpine Visitor Center.
35. Indian paintbrush along the road.
36. Hiking up Old Fall River Road towards the Alpine Visitor Center.
37. Taking a break at the Alpine Visitor Center.
38. We bought some snacks and drinks. The cafe options were quite limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
• Camp (Alpine Visitor Center --> Camp) (split: 1:28)
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39. Getting back on the trail again.
40. Hiking.
41. A view across the headwaters of the Big Thompson River towards Mt. Ida (our next summit objective).
42. On the alpine tundra on the north slopes of Mt. Ida.
43. This cairn looks pretty old. 
44. We stopped to admire this cool chunk of quartz.
45. A late afternoon storm brewing over Mt. Ida.
46. I had some instant pudding for dessert. Reminds me of my childhood when we used to shake the powder in a Nalgene and my mom would dole out four small servings for each of us to enjoy for desert.
47. Nate's dinner of ramen, dehydrated vegetables, and tuna.
48. Enjoying a book and the evening sun.

Day 2

Stats:
16.1 miles, ~8.5 hours
• Start hiking (~11,700'): 7:32 am
• Summit of Ida (12,880'): 8:56 am (split: 1:24)
• Summit of Chief Cheley (12,804'): 9:37 am (split: 0:41)
• Summit of Sprague (12,713'): 11:07 am (split: 1:30)
• Thundershower: 2:25-3:25 pm (split: 3:18)
• Camp: 4:00 pm (split: 0:35)
• Summit of Taylor (13,153') (evening excursion from camp): 6:25 pm (split: 0:15)

Summits along the way: (Pink = summited; Grey = passed underneath by a few hundred vertical feet)
• Mt. Ida
• Chief Cheley Peak
• Sprague Mountain
• Flattop Mountain
• Hallett Peak
• Otis Peak
• Taylor Peak

Photos:
Photos: 

Photo descriptions:
• Mt. Ida (Camp --> Ida summit)  (split: 1:24)
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49. A glorious morning.
50. The grassy golden ridge leading towards Mt. Ida.
51. Nate enjoying the hike.
52. We intersected the trail leading to the summit of Ida. This was the portion of our trip where we encountered the most hikers.
53. Summit of Mt. Ida.


• Chief Cheley Peak (Ida summit --> Chief Cheley summit)  (split: 0:41)
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54. At the saddle between Ida and Chief Cheley.
55. Azure Lake, Inkwell Lake, and Arrowhead Lake to the east of Ida and Chief Cheley.
56. This chickenhead actually looks like a chicken head!
57. Another chickenhead. I took a photo of this one the previous trip as well.
• Sprague Mountain (Chief Cheley summit --> Sprague summit) (split: 1:30)
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58. Water shortly after Chief Cheley. Drink up!
59. Between Chief Cheley and Sprague Mtn.
60. Between Chief Cheley and Sprague Mtn.
61. On the summit of Spague. The summit register Nate is examining was too wet to sign.

• Flattop Mountain - Hallet Peak - Otis Peak (Sprague summit --> Bighorn Flats --> North Inlet Trail --> Thundershower --> Camp)  (split: 4:53)
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62. The rolling high terrain of Sprague-Flattop-Hallet ("BIghorn Flats" on the map).
63. The rolling high terrain of Sprague-Flattop-Hallet ("BIghorn Flats" on the map).
64. The "Eureka Ditch". The ditch diverts water that would naturally flow to the west of the watershed to the east. 
65. We intersected a trail for awhile. I think this is called the North Inlet Trail.
66. More pleasant trail hiking.
67. Daisies.
68. Alpine sandwort.
69. Sky pilot.
70. Dwarf sunflower.
71. Sulphur paintbrush.
72. Alpine lousewort.
73. Elephant's head.
74. Queen's crown.
75. Queen's crown
76. Parry's primrose.
77. Parry's primrose.
78. Enjoying a midday break along the trail. Why not, we have plenty of time!
79. May as well make a midday coffee to go along with the break.
80. A marmot enjoying a midday break too.
81. Back on the trail.
82. Weather brewing.
83. It started to rain so we threw up a shelter to stay dry.
84. Flower shadow.
85. The storm passed and we resumed hiking. Here we are on the slopes of Taylor.
• Taylor Peak (Camp --> Taylor summit --> Camp) (split: 0:15)
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86. Filling up with water on the slopes of Taylor.
87. Looking up towards the summit of Taylor.
88. On the summit of Taylor. From here is a nice view of the remainder of the traverse from Powell to McHenrys to Chiefs Head to Pagoda to Longs Peak. This would be the next day's objective.
89. Evening light on Longs, Pagoda, Chiefs Head, McHenrys and Powell.
90. Evening light on the summit of Taylor.
91. A view down to the Petit Grepon and Sky Pond from the summit of Taylor.
92. Evening light show.
93. Evening light show.
94. Evening light show.
95. And another glorious day comes to a close. Red sky at night....

Day 3

Stats:
11.4 miles, ~8.75 hours
• Start hiking (~12,600'): 7:24 am
• Summit of Powell (13,208'): 8:16 am (split: 0:52)
• Summit of McHenrys (13,327'): 8:55 am (split: 0:39)
• The Stoneman (12,550'): 9:33 am (split: 0:38)
• Summit of Chiefs Head (13,579'): 10:28 am (split: 0:55)
• Summit of Pagoda (13,497'): 11:38 am (split: 1:10)
• Summit of Longs (14,255'): 12:41 pm (split: 1:03)
• Summit of Meeker (13,911'): 1:58 pm (split: 1:17)
• Longs Peak Trailhead (9,400'): 4:09 pm (split: 2:11)

Summits along the way: (Pink = summited; Grey = passed underneath by a few hundred vertical feet)
• Powell Peak
• McHenrys Peak
• The Stoneman
• Chiefs Head Peak
• Pagoda Mountain
• Longs Peak
• Mt. Meeker 

Photos:
Photos: Photo descriptions:
• Powell Peak (Camp --> Powell summit) (split: 0:52)
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96. Morning light on the slopes leading towards Powell.
97. A view of the Petit Grepon.
98. The rugged McHenrys Notch.

• McHenrys Peak (Powell summit --> McHenrys Notch --> McHenrys summit) (split: 0:39)
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99. The 3rd class ramp around the south side of a tower in McHenrys Notch.
100. The 3rd class ramp around the south side of a tower in McHenrys Notch.
101. To get out of McHenrys Notch on the east side and onto the summit of McHenrys, we climbed the steep rock on the other side of the notch. This was about 5.4.
102. Nate scrambling up the east side of McHenrys Notch.
103. The 5.4 section. We soloed this easily in approach shoes.
104. Nate on the summit ridge of McHenrys.
105. A view down onto Arrowhead.
106. On the summit ridge of McHenrys.
• Chiefs Head Peak (McHenrys summit --> Stoneman Pass --> Chiefs Head summit) (split: 1:33)
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107. Descending from McHenrys to Stoneman Pass.
108. A view of the terrain between McHenrys and Chiefs Head. 
109. Stoneman Pass. The Stoneman tower is on the left side of the photo.
110. Next thing I knew Nate was on top of the Stoneman. He said it felt like 5.9. I wonder how many other people have climbed to the top?! Nate can officially call himself a stoneman now.
111. A cool window near Stoneman Pass.
112. A quartz explosion.
113. On the final stretch to the summit of Chiefs Head.
114. A view of the remainder of the traverse: Pagoda, Longs, Meeker.
115. On the summit ridge of CHiefs Head headed towads Pagoda.
• Pagoda Mountain (Chiefs Head summit --> Pagoda summit) (split: 1:10)

July 2024 Update: I did the West Ridge Bypass (low 5th) on Pagoda. This is the way I would recommend rather than the NW Face that I did for the trip report on this page. Click link to see the trip report for West Ridge Bypass (low 5th).
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116. Looking up the west ridge of Pagoda. Apparently this is 5.7. I had scoped out a 5.4 route on the north side of Pagoda the previous week, so we went with the 5.4 route instead. I think the 5.7 west ridge would have probably been fine too.
117. The ledgy north side of Pagoda.
118. Grassy ramp with some pretty King's crown flowers.
119. Traversing towards a gully system leading back up to the ridge of Pagoda.
120. We climbed up this (5.4 ish) to intersect the upper west ridge of Pagoda.
121. On the upper west ridge of Pagoda.
122. A summit timestamp photo.
• Longs Peak (Pagoda summit --> Longs summit) (split: 1:03)
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123. Looking towards Longs Peak from Pagoda. We traversed on the right side of the Keyboard of the Winds, and climbed through the cliffband on juggy gneiss (5.5 ish) just left of the obvious weakness (3rd) that one could also take.
124. Nice gneiss. The banding is developed under high pressure and temperature conditions.
125. More nice gneiss.
126. We climbed through the cliffband on juggy gneiss (5.5 ish). One could also take an obvious weakness (3rd) just right of this. But the juggy gneiss was fun.
127. We went up the weakness on the right to intersect the Keyhole Route at the base of the Homestretch.
128. Scrambling up the Homestretch to the summit of Longs.
129. The view from the summit of Longs, looking towards the start of the traverse on Mummy Mountain. Looks a long ways away!
• Mt. Meeker (Longs Peak summit --> The Palisades --> The Loft --> Meeker summit) (split: 1:17)
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130. The Palisades between Longs and Meeker. We traversed below these to get to the Loft.
131. Some cool rock in the Palisades.
132. Traversing below the  Palisades.
133. We headed up this to get to the Loft.
134. Hiking across the Loft towards our final summit objective: Meeker.
135. View from the summit of Meeker. The mountains in the distance are the start of the traverse!
136. Longs Peak as seen from the summit of Meeker.
137. Beginning the descent from the summit ridge of Meeker.
• Hike out (Mt. Meeker --> The Loft --> Longs Peak trailhead) (split: 2:11)
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138. Starting down from the Loft towards the trail that leads to Chasm Lake.
139. Descending from the Loft.
140. A field of alpine columbine.
141. End of hike, at Longs Peak trailhead timestamp photo.

Previous and Next Adventures

Trip Report 1

Cragging at Jurassic Park, CO
Lower East Face Longs Peak (Kor's Door), CO

Trip Report 2

Rock of Ages (The Wasp, Greensleeves), CO
Vedauwoo, WY

Comments Pertaining to this Page / Trip Report

Useful beta. Updated route information. Corrections. Historical notes. Interesting facts. No fluff please.
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