Colorado Mountaineer: La Plata on June 14, 2009

La Plata Peak, 14, 336 feet
Northwest Ridge route
9.5 miles Roundtrip
4,500 feet elevation gain

Richard and I had been planning on a overnighter and a climb for several weeks. Work always dictates ones availability to go wondering outdoors, espically when it is to be for more than one day. Originally we had planned to leave from Denver as soon as Richard got off work on Friday, but Lindsay's work asked her if she would like to work overtime on saturday. She agreed, so that meant that I would have to take care of Bekah and Kegan that day instead of going climbing. Not at all what we had planned. Fortunately, Marisa had that day off and said that she would watch them so that me and Richard could go out. To make it short and simple, Richard arrived at my house a little afternoon and we were off to the Sawatch mountain range. We worried that such a late start to our hike to base camp coupled with the unpredictable spring time weather would hinder us, possibly restricting us to a lower camp site. When we arrived at the trail head, the weather had completly obscured everything above treeline and we could not see La Plata peak at all. A steady rain began to fall as we started up the trail through the forest. The rivers were alive and full to their banks.

The trail for the northwest ridge route is fairly steep, with very few level spots in it. It was quite exhausting, so we had many stops for water, food, and to simply catch out breaths. About 2 miles in, the rain changed over to sleet and snow. The ground was just to warm for it to stick. Below is a couple of mugshots from the trail.

At about 11,000 feet the trail enters the valley. The sun was beginning to set behind the mountains as the clouds and rain moved out. It was then that we saw our first view of our objective.

We decided to make camp at the first flat spot with a view and call it a night. The next two pics are from our campsite looking, first, towards La Plata and the northwest ridge, and second down valley. Notice the fresh snow above treeline. The storm that had pelted us with rain, sleet, and snow, had dumped fresh snow above treeline.

A closer look at the northwest ridge and our route to the summit.

We pitched our tent and began boiling water for cooking. It was an enjoyable meal of backpackers lasagna and trail mix for desert. Darkness fell on camp quickly and so it was time to crawl into our sleeping bags. I purposely brought my warmer weather 30 degree mummy bag, thinking that it would not dip below freezing at our lower altitude. I also neglated to bring my inflatable therma rest air mattress. Instead I brought my foam ridge rest, not nearly as comfortable as the air up one. The combination of the two kept me up all night tossing, turning, and freezing. I might have recieved a couple of hours of sleep; not nearly enough rest to prepare myself for a hard day of climbing. We awoke the next morning with clear skies and light winds. The views around were astounding! We fired up the stove for morning coffee and oatmeal. And away we went. There had already been a couple of groups that passed our camp on the way up prior to our departure. With the restless night behind us, we began to focus on the huge task ahead and above us. It was not long before we were above treeline and making ground towards the ridge line.

The final push for the ridge is before us. While most of the route to the summit is visible.