Pfeffner Traverse Attempt

Description

Elevation: - approximately 12,500' maximum elevation
Location - Along the Continental Divide in Indian Peaks Wilderness Area.

Trip Report(s)

The Pfeffner Traverse is the name for a loosely defined route along or near the Continental Divide in the Indian Peaks. This route is described in Roach's guide book. It is not an undertaking to be taken on lightly, given the fact that the entire traverse is "against the grain" of the range, requiring either high altitude (12,000') traverses off trail or constant ascents and descents of various trails, often requiring elevation gains and losses of thousands of feet and up to 10 miles of trail travel out of the way. Needless to say such a fruitless, unknown grind such as this sounded just up my alley! :-) When Mike and I started discussing our first attempt in four years at a long-term (7+ day) backpacking trip this year, the Pfeffner Traverse was the first thing that leapt to my mind. The following is the trip diary I wrote while on the trip. Photos follow.

Pfeffner Traverse Attempt - July 19 to July 26, 2003

Sunday, July 20, 2003

Sitting in tent at 4:20AM writing this.

Started yesterday (Saturday) at 7:00AM at the parking area at the Hessie trailhead (9,000') It took Mike and me 2:20 to gain 2,250' and six miles to King Lake (11,431'). We did good [sic] until the last mile where it steepens, which really hit me hard. I could tell I had just come from sea level two days before! (I flew back from the UK to Missouri Thursday, then after 4.5 hours of sleep drove for 11 hours to Colorado, then spent the night at John and Sally's in Nederland.)

After setting up camp on a cool but windy ledge looking down the hanging valley and the whole drainage with a waterfall in the valley below us, we ate and then hit Rollins Pass above the lake then hiked north along the Divide until we were at a high point just over 12,000' looking over King and Bob Lakes. Great views to the west of Winter Park, etc., great views east down the valley and ultimately out over the plains. We then came down and I down climbed from the pass to a permanent snowfield above the lake and checked that out (very soft in the very warm afternoon).

Hung out the rest of the afternoon until the first of three rainstorms made us hang out in the tent until a break let us cook dinner (not having appetite problems on this relaxed trip. In fact, wishing I had kept more of the five pounds of food I took from my pack at John and Sally's.

Today I want to get an early (5:00AM to 6:00AM) start to climb this 40°-45° snow slope we saw from on top yesterday. It starts at a tarn above King Lake to the northwest and climbs about 600' to the Divide unbroken. It is wide and convex so I am not worried about rockfall and there is no cornice on top. There are also escapes to the bergschrund almost everywhere. Want to try the crampons on my leather boots and see how that goes. Also want to do it in the morning before the snow gets too soft. It has been hot in Denver (100°) and I think it got to about 80° here yesterday, so the snow gets real soft and slippery.

Monday, July 21, 2003

6:00AM, in tent. 45° in tent.

Saw two [mountain] goats come up over snow - weren't afraid of us at all.

Yesterday was a bitch and because of it our itinerary has now changed. It started well enough. We were up early and walked over to do the snow climb, watching the sun come up as a fiery red ball rising above a ridge to the east at 5:40AM. Mike decided not to do the climb, so I strapped on my crampons and went up - the snow was good, very firm. At about halfway up I went for a finger of stone that came down between two of the snow fields going up. The run out below me was not great and I got nervous. Should've finished on the snow but didn't, so made it a mixed alpine climb, about 200' on snow and 200' on rock at the same angle (45°). I then hiked back and was at camp by 6:30AM or so.

We then broke camp and left at 8:00AM. It was easy up to the pass then up a steep hillside. >From there we ambled along, dropping our packs to go up Skyscraper Peak. We hit Devils Thumb Pass and that's where the fun began. Instead of traversing the slope to the left (west) of the main peak, we climbed the peak straight up with our packs on. This was my route choice and it was a mistake because we went from tired to tapped.

We got to the col above Storm Gulch and realized we didn't have the strength to do the remaining traverse around Jasper and Neva. What was worse was the weather had turned (much earlier than the day before, when lightning started at 3:00PM and rain at 4:00PM) and we needed to get off the Divide. We came back south over a ridge and dropped to 12,000' just below the ridge line and set up camp. Exposed (to lightning) but not real exposed, we were on the only flat spot not on a ridge for miles. So we set up the Hole (from the inside because it had started to rain - some cursing but it worked) and rode out the rain storm. Once it cleared we determined we were sitting just above Devils Thumb Pass. After talking it out Mike wants to descend the trail from the pass down to the west which means about a two day itinerary change. We will probably skip Lost Tribe Lake (sigh) and head "straight" for Crater Lake. Two days of trail hiking down and up again, but whatever. I have to be flexible.

It was beautiful at this campsite after the rain cleared and we just hung around looking down at the pass and down to Fraser in the distance. We had the nice sound of running water, as the melt from the snowfields above us passes about 20' from the tent. And it did not rain again last night - a real plus given our somewhat lightning rod of a position (but we could not have gone farther yesterday without being even more exposed to the storm for quite some time).

Monday, July 21, 2003 (continued)

Well, in an unexpected turn of events, I am writing this on the back porch at the Stoddards' house, basking in the sun. As of going to sleep last night the plan had been to descend the Corona Trail, head down to the junction with the Cascade Creek Trail, and head for Crater Lake, taking two days to do it and getting us back on schedule. That was the plan.

At 5:00AM I woke up and at 6:00AM Mike informed me he had been up at 1:00AM and was now sick, which he was, with active vomiting (multiple times to which I was unfortunate witness) and diarrhea. So then we had to decide which way to go, because at Devils Thumb Pass below us we would be committed one way or another. After putting it to Mike as "Can you stay out another night in a tent?", he said he thought he needed to be out [of the wilderness] today. That meant dropping back to the east side of the Divide and trying to get out in one day.

We left at 8:00AM and were at King Lake at 11:40AM. I had us take a long break there because we were not even close to being halfway done as measured by trail miles. We then hiked the six miles out and were at the trailhead at 2:20PM. A nice couple (thankfully!) gave us a ride to John and Sally's. Oof! 10+ miles in 6+ hours.

Tuesday, July 22, 2003

Saw bunches of mountain goats on drive to Monarch Lake.

Writing this from perfect campsite at Crater Lake with Lone Eagle Peak literally right out my tent door across the lake. The whole cirque is incredible. Will go up and poke around base of Lone Eagle Peak. Also looking at Cherokee to my west.

Hit trail at Monarch Lake trailhead at 8:40AM. Made it to [Crater] lake at 12:40PM. 7.3 miles - not bad! Stream crossings were problematic - progressively more so until the last one, below Crater Lake, I forded instead of crossing the single teetering log over 4' deep rushing water. No thanks!

Forced myself to rest this afternoon. There are numerous real waterfalls draining into Crater Lake. I can hear them as I write this. Many have plumes that leave the cliff walls in the wind.

Everything here is way steep.

"The map is not the terrain."
    - me

"A flash, a bang, and the sudden smell of bacon."
    - me

Weather was glorious today - 70° in tent at 7:02PM.

Wednesday, July 23, 2003

10:00AM and I am back in camp - whipped, defeated, turn[ed] aside at every path. I was on trail this morning at 7:00AM. Perfect day - blue sky, no clouds (yet). I go down to the creek in between Crater Lake and Mirror Lake and the only way across I can find is on a large smooth deadfall crossing the creek upwards from my side at a 15° angle over deep water. My worry was getting back down across it on my way back. So I decided not to explore Lone Eagle Peak.

Then I tried my hand at Cherokee behind me to the west. Roach's description belies the true nature of the slope. I could never find landscape that matched his description for more than 200 yards and then it just got cliffy and steep. So either I was way off course, which is quite possible, of course, or Roach is mad. I'm sitting on a rock on the edge of Crater Lake looking up at that slope, and while it is not technically impossible by any sense, it sure seems like a very steep bushwhack to me. I know, whinge, whinge, whinge.

So then I just went along the lake shore to the south almost to the first waterfall, a good third of the way around. Back to camp, a few chores, and now it's hang out time. Quite disappointed with how I felt today - "lake lassitude" (ha!) But an enforced rest day on my vacation may be just what I need. A day of contemplation. A day of enforced doing of nothing. Can I stand it? Will I survive? :-)

The weather is just fucking amazing. I am sitting in the sun in perfect comfort. A nice breeze is blowing. There are no (0) clouds as of 10:16AM. Even the trout are feeding right at my feet. I just looked into the water and saw a trout swim by (really!) Birds, squirrels and insects are chirping, plus the occasional plop! or splash! of the trout, but the sound of the waterfalls, especially the one coming down the cliffs from the Hopi(?) Glacier across the lake from me.

So, what has kept me from doing what I wanted to do this morning (stream crossing), and what "made" me ford the last crossing yesterday instead of taking the "bridge" (one log, tilted, deep stream) is a fear of crossing running water (duh). This has troubled me for at least 10 years - I can remember a particularly heinous stream crossing higher up on the Pawnee Pass Trail (still in Cascade Creek valley, though from my first trip through here 10 years ago. It would be great to conquer this, because it hinders what I want to do and ultimately what I can do (or will do). To have faith enough in my own sense of balance is part of it, and of course I've never felt that I had a good sense of balance (get that from my mother! :-) ).

I am somewhat more cautious this trip now that I am solo. Even with Crater Lake being "crowded" (I've counted six other people here in the last day) the places I am (trying) to go are such if I hurt myself nobody could hear me nor would be coming that way again (this year).

So it is disturbing to see me remaining cautious, even while I want to break out of it. Sigh.

Thursday, July 24, 2003

5:00PM, in tent. Raining. At Gourd Lake, elevation 10,800'.

Left Crater Lake at 7:20AM this morning. Could not cross the first log bridge! Tried marching right up to it and getting on, but something in my head just says "No". I think the biggest problem with it is the top is at an angle.

Anyway, I had my Tevas handy and so after extensive scouting to see if there was somewhere I could cross without using the log or getting wet fording (almost jumped one place - jump being the operative word - from rock to rock, with pack on) I put the sandals on and just forded it again (this time keeping my boots dry - duh). Was across at 8:00AM. Walked down, down, down to where the Buchanan Trail forks off - I think I did about 10 miles today - five down and five up! Stopped and enjoyed the many incarnations of Cascade Falls. Reached fork in path a little after 10:00AM. Then it was a mellow walk uphill (Buchanan Pass Trail has some uphill parts, but nothing like Cascade Creek!) until the Gourd Lake turnoff.

This was basically 16 switchbacks uphill over about three miles. It was heinous but predictable. Just a grind. Made Gourd Lake (finally!) about 1:40PM. Over six hours on trail! Have not done much of anything since setting up my camp on a promontory on the east side of the lake looking right up at Cooper Peak. Four guys are camping just past me to the north and that's it.

The real problem will be climbing the slopes to the north and west of Gourd Lake tomorrow to get access to Cooper Peak! Looks to be hard work coupled with a route finding problem. Nothing impossible, just hard and hopefully I find a way up to Cooper!

Wildflowers have been beautiful this trip. This campsite has columbine (my favorite) and Indian paintbrush. Had the honey smell above timberline on the last two days with Mike. Have walked through more flowering meadows than I can count. Perfect weather for them and right time, too (my birthday plus or minus a week seems to be good wildflower times in Colorado).

Friday, July 25, 2003

11:06AM in camp at Gourd Lake. Beautiful weather as usual.

I was up and "on trail" (very quickly off trail) at 6:00AM. The secret to gaining the saddle above Gourd Lake is to go counterclockwise along the lake, first at the shoreline, then on the rocks right above it until you cross above the waterfall that feeds into the lake on the northwest side. After that you cross a little beaver meadow then "follow the grass", first along the creek, then breaking away to the southwest, finally angling up northwest until you hit the far left hand side of the saddle (as seen from Gourd Lake). >From there it's down a gully with some easily recognizable snow fields (good for finding it on the way back!)

I never did descend all the way to the lakes as I saw no need. Instead I traversed around the cirque at about the height of the saddle I had come over (plus or minus 100') until I was somewhat under the saddle between Martens and Cooper Peaks. From there it was a very steep "grass" and scree/talus climb with most of the time ultimately being spent on talus. Even reaching the saddle ridge was no break, and in fact on the Cooper side the climbing got worse for a while before breaking out into a talus/tundra mix. The peak to Cooper is actually not visible from Gourd Lake - that is a false summit. The summit is on the northeast side of the peak. Made it there at 8:00AM. Two hours, not bad! After filling in the summit register (Ken Nolan last October, Ken Nolan and friend 7/4/03, then me) I descended to the false summit that looked down over Island and Gourd Lakes. The views all around were amazing, with the peaks around Lone Eagle cirque clearly visible to the south.

From there I descended to the saddle reaching it at 9:00AM. I then decided to try Martens, and made it to the base of the summit blocks (about 75'-100' high) and try as I might couldn't see a route up that I wanted to do solo on a peak that probably gets one party a year (if that, and this year it was me). So I was "close enough" for me and descended back to the saddle, and then a long return trip back to the lake, all with no major route finding problems. Back at camp at 10:30AM.

So Coopers was the one thing I really wanted to try and I did it, and I did it solo, and I did it with no trail - cool. The trip may have had its disappointments, but as I sit in the shade of the seventh perfect Colorado day on the shore of a lake in which I watched two cutthroat trout swim by me just minutes ago (water so clear you could see their "cut throat"), I can't complain. If it hasn't turned out as planned it was still a good hard workout in the wilderness and even with most of it solo I was going strong. Need to conquer a few fears (stream crossing) but did work on one this trip (route finding) and climbed a peak that gets 2-4 people a year, tops.

Columbine everywhere - at one point I was using them for route finding, as in "many bad choices, so take the route with the lucky flower." Corny, but as good as anything.

Some trip stats:

1) Averages for trip: 6.7 miles/day, 1,456' elevation gain/day

2) Weather: 45°-80° during the days, averages between 55° and 70°, daily rain for an hour between 1:00PM and 6:00PM.

"Harder than it looks, especially with 50 pounds on your back."
    - me

"The map is not the terrain."
    - me

4:11PM - raining, in tent. Ate. Tired. Thinking about tomorrow. Big flash and bang about six seconds after just now! And there are still two dudes on the far end of the lake fishing! Not me - waving a wet rod with some metal in it above my head while standing on a wet rock and connected to the water by the wet filament. Fun! Not!

Food was gaggable. Three [protein] bars during day, an MRE tonight. Still have bars and gorp, am getting to where I detest both! But I just have to march out tomorrow. If all goes according to plan, should be at Monarch Lake before noon, to John and Sally's before 3:00PM regardless of which way I go (Berthoud or Trail Ridge). BIG thunderstorm going over now.

Saturday, July 26, 2003

Left camp at 6:40AM, was at Monarch Lake at 9:40AM - woof! Took me 1:07 to get from Gourd Lake to the junction with Buchanan Trail - 2.7 miles. The rest was just a trudge - 8.2 miles in three hours with two 10 minute breaks. Not bad. Then drove back through RMNP ($15!) over Trail Ridge and was back at Nederland at 1:00PM. A good trip!

Photos

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