Peak G

After a park-n-ride meeting and carpool we arrived at the Piney River Ranch and prepared to head out on a cool day with hints of an approaching autumn.

Just before the cataracts, we stopped for lunch with a view back down the valley we’d slowly been ascending.

Above the cataracts, route finding became a little more difficult as the trail wasn’t well maintained or as frequented. Several paths diverged to head toward Mount Powell and Peak C and other paths just meandered on a different route before rejoining the main path.

After passing through a steeper section where the valley narrowed the trail rejoined the river while the mountains spread apart and we hiked through meadows.

We stopped at a few meadows to discuss where to camp and argue about our position and which peak above us was Peak G. GPS units, maps and compasses were used to argue various opinions with no clear resolution until we hiked further up the valley.

We eventually reached an unnamed pond with a great area for camping and a good view of a distinctive gully marking a saddle between Peak’s F and G.

The majority of us voted to camp here and set about creating a temporary village of tents while our trip leader explored the surrounding area to decide how best to reach the gully above in the morning.

The wind and cooler weather kept the few remaining mosquitoes away and I prayed that condition would continue as I setup my minimalist shelter for the night.

Jonathan and I decided to explore the bouldering possibilities of a steep rock next to our tents by putting up a few routes.

Later I sat on a log and just watched the stream flow by and a few small fish hunt bugs. I was soon joined by most of the rest of the party on their own hunt for drinking water.

Most of the group retired shortly after dinner, but Jonathan and I stayed up watching the light fade and the stars come out.

The wind died down at dusk and the temperature quickly nose dived as well. The mosquitoes stayed away and I experienced the best night’s sleep outdoors of the year. Several others mentioned being cold in the night and having worried about me, but I passed the night warm in my sleeping bag and even caught sight of a shooting star during a brief moment awake.

About quarter to 6 alarms and people began to wake up. Our planned departure of 6:30am was only missed by a couple minutes and the seven of us started out from camp and through the woods.

The initial climb through thick woods and across rocky creeks was slow going. Soon we broke out into an avalanche gully and rapidly gained elevation.

Once the grass petered out, we boulder hopped below below cliffs and aimed for the mouth of the distinctive gully.

Before reaching the gully we spotted two bighorn sheep eying us critically and bounding away in the maze of cliffs above. Unfortunately, we were trapped on the shady side of the ridge and couldn’t get a decent photo.

The wind had returned with dawn and as we reached the gully it seemed funneled through our ascent route. We quickly speed up the lower portion of the gully and then took a break in a welcome patch of sun.

Break over, we returned to the gully to do battle with loose rocks. Trying to avoid friendly-fire casualties, we moved carefully and close together, always hunting for the most solid rocks to support our weight.

Once we topped out on the ridge crest we enjoyed a great view of the permanent snowfield below Peak G and the Ice and Bubble lakes.

To our north we looked for lines of ascent up nearby Peak F – an un-ranked bump on the Ripsaw Ridge running from Peak C to Peak G.

Then we turned our attention to Peak G. Two different trip reports of previous ascents had recommended going right and left of the towers in front of us. Filled with conflicting reports, we choose the ridge side of the ridge and just past the summit we found a gully to climb up.

A tall cairn was stacked on the summit marking this bump as higher than one a little further south.

We spent a while on the summit taking in the views of the Gore Range. I enjoyed looking back at Peak L, just over the top of Peak I, and remembering my climb of that mountain back in July.

We worked our way back down the gully and then back across the slopes to the saddle.

Kurt, Jonathan and I discussed a few different routes up Peak F and while the rest of the group went off to ascend a gully to the summit, we chose a direct arete which was very exposed in places, but had the advantage of being solid.

Once on the summit of Peak F, we enjoyed the view of Peak G’s summit and could spot the tall cairn from this distance.

With Peaks F and G climbed, it was time to brave the gully of loose stones again. Jonathan found a hair-trigger rock which rolled and slid down half the gully before coming to a rest. Thankfully, the torso-sized block didn’t come close to anyone else.

Once out of the gully the wind died down a little and we retraced our path back over the grassy slopes.

After bushwhacking through the trees again we reached camp.

We rushed to dismantle our tents and repack everything. I was glad I’d gone lightweight and had only a small load to haul out.

Before reaching the cataracts and the more defined trail, our group kept separating and we lost some time trying to locate each other on the network of trails.

Once we hit the cataracts it was smooth hiking back to the trailhead. We did have to watch Piney Lake present the illusion of never getting any closer despite how long we’d been hiking.

As we neared Piney Lake and the ranch property, we noticed something moving in the weeds at the far end of the lake. A huge bull moose was having dinner. As tired as we all were, we could still be impressed and forget the long day momentarily. Unfortunately, the light was low enough that it wasn’t worth trying to take a picture.

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