Mt. Antero (8/14/93)

Route Name: West Slopes via Baldwin Gulch
Start Elevation: 13,000 ft.
Summit Elevation: 14,269 ft.
Elevation Gain: 1269 ft.
Round-trip Mileage: 1.5 mi (my estimate)

TRIP REPORT:

Because of the miracle of the 4WD vehicle Antero is our shortest 14er hike to date. If one were to hike the extent of the road from Baldwin Gulch it is a long 15 miles round-trip with 5200 feet of elevation. If one drives up the 4WD trail the route gets shortened significantly. We were able to drive up to just over 13,000 feet. This made for under 3 miles round-trip for our hike. We followed the road until snow forced us to make a stop. We actually followed onto a mining around around to the south side of Antero. Our recollection is that Antero had many informal roads at that elevation, not unlike Mt. Bross.
From our parking spot we made a bee-line for the summit. We had a cloudy day on Antero and had snow on the peak. It is typically unusual to have snow this early in August but on a mountain like this anything is possible weather-wise. The snow cover was not thick though, the rocks had no more than an inch scattered about them.
Our hike went well. All four of us summited without any trouble. Most difficult challenge of the day was simply the long drive up the 4WD road. But with every mile we made it up the road we were thankful that we weren't walking it.

TRACK:

I do not have the original track file from this hike. Embedded is a track from a more recent hike for Antero. We drove to over 13,000 feet on the road. Our estimated starting point is near the red pin.

PHOTOS:

Just two photos from this hike. The first is a look at Tabeguache Peak from Antero. The second is a look at Antero from the 4WD road.

Mt. Bierstadt (8/12/93)

Route Name: West Slopes
Start Elevation: 11,669 ft.
Summit Elevation: 14,060 ft.
Elevation Gain: 2391 ft.
Round-trip Mileage: 7.00 mi (based on the books)

TRIP REPORT:

This was our 4th 14er attempt. After having conquered Quandary, Sherman, and Uncompahgre we decided we'd continue to stick to the easier hikes. The Bierstadt challenge begins with the fun drive up Guanella Pass. This is where the "fun" stopped. We readied ourselves in the parking lot at Guanella Pass and immediately found ourselves off track. Somehow we missed the clear Bierstadt trail leading from the parking lot and started onto a small side trail that simply led us into the willows. If there were two words to describe this beginning it would be Wet and muddy. Our adventure in the willows was to follow one faint trail segment to another while crawling through thick willow bushes and lots and lots of puddles and mud. It took forever to make our way through this mess.
When we finally left the willows, with soaking wet feet and shoes, the easier climbing began. From 11,800 and on its a hike up the western shoulder of Bierstadt. The push to the summit was quite uneventful compared to the beating we took from the willows. The other highlight of the day came as we were descending the trail on Bierstadt and finally realized our morning mistake. From above it was much easier to stay on and follow the main trail all the way back to the parking lot, avoiding most of the willows and staying much drier.

TRACK:

This is not the original track file, but I have included a track from one of our more recent hikes up Bierstadt:

PHOTOS:

Here is the single photo that I have from this hike: