Tag Archives: Centennials

Centennial Sunday – California’s West Ridge

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I get excited every time I visit the San Luis Valley. How could you not? It is a 122 mile long, 74 mile wide, vast high desert plain surrounded by mountains. And not just any mountains. To the west, the Sangres rise up like nowhere else in Colorado. Going from 8,000 to 14,000 feet in a matter of 2-3 of miles just never gets old. On every trip I am stunned by the relief off of the valley floor. The fact that most of the high peaks are as rugged as they come only adds to the appeal. Keep reading…

Longs Radical Slam

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As almost anyone who has ever climbed a 14er knows, Gerry Roach’s Colorado’s Fourteeners book is pretty much the bible for all things high in Colorado. It is the book that started it all for many of us and it guided us on many early trips during our mountaineering journeys. The second edition I own shows all the signs of nearly 15 years of use: the cover is coming off, nearly 50 pages are loose, the pages have been written on, and a good chunk of the material is now outdated. Keep reading…

Pomeroy to Carbonate: A Sawatch Six Pack

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This past Saturday morning Steve and I motored down to Poncha Springs and up road 240 to the historic Shavano townsite. Armed with a prototypical September forecast and only one day at our disposal, we hoped to get some good bang for our buck out of the day. Earlier in the week we set our sights on a ridge run from Pomeroy Mountain to Carbonate Mountain (including Cronin), a loop we knew had been documented a few times already but a somewhat rare one nonetheless. Read more…

Purgatory to Ruby: Pigeon, Turret and the Animas Group

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Nate, Ray, Migz and Dana (who couldn’t make it due to “work”) currently call the east coast their homes. These boys get out quite frequently into the mountains in New England, but the east coast only affords them so much. Once a year they are usually looking to get a little wild and that’s when I’ll get the call. On their inaugural trip to Colorado 2 years ago we trekked through Wild Basin in RMNP en route to Alice and Chiefs Head via Lion Lakes and then followed it up the next day with a sunrise climb of Longs Peak. Each has his own temperaments and talents, but in the end it always seems to work out, even with Ray who has no qualms calling the Pigeon/Turret saddle a success and may still be referred to as “the Gatekeeper” of the Keyhole. Keep reading…