All Mixed Up - Thatchtop Mountain

Three years ago, Rick Inman and I made an attempt of a classic alpine ice climbing route in Rocky Mountain National Park called All Mixed Up. Fierce winds and a cloud of spindrift spoiled our plans, so we bid adieu and agreed to come back soon for another try.

Glacier Gorge approach

Crossing Mills Lake

Now in December 2011, just two weeks before Rick's wedding, we found ourselves driving in the cold, pre-dawn hours to Glacier Gorge in RMNP. The forecast was favorable on this last day of calendar fall. The shortest day of the year brought winter cold but, thankfully, low snowpack. 

All Mixed Up from the base

After a wrong-turn to start, we made our way to Mills Lake and began the very steep approach to the base of AMU. The route looked to be in great shape with full ice coverage. AMU is about 550 vertical feet graded at WI4 ("Water Ice Four"). Because of our route-finding blunder early on, we found ourselves behind two other parties.

Waiting our turn took another long hour, and it was cold! Rick started up the slabby first pitch. We decided to leave the rock gear in the bags, taking only a set of 9 or 10 screws.

Rick leading the first pitch

Rick reaching the top of Pitch 2

Pitch 2 belay with Mills Lake Below

The second pitch was much steeper overall. I took the sharp end and meandered up a series of vertical ice steps to an airy belay above. We passed one of the other parties on this pitch, as they were taking a variation further left.

Crux 4th Pitch on AMU

Our third pitch was a snow slope that led to the 75-foot crux pillar in a steep gully system. We climbed the final pitch and topped out. The day was getting late so chose to forgo Thatchtop's summit. Rather than rappelling the route, we decided to downclimb a talus slope to the east of the route before cutting back over to our packs at the base of the route.

Topping out All Mixed Up

Longs Peak in the mist

Another party on the 4th Pitch from our descent

The weather deteriorated as the daylight diminished. We returned to our car just before needing to pull out the headlamps. A full-blown snowstorm settled in as we drove home. We got AMU just in time! Thank you Lord!

Glacier Gorge (L-R): Longs Peak, Pagoda Mtn, Spearhead

The Unexpected Sweet Moments of Children

I (Josh) was outside with the kids one fall afternoon working on some different things. Often times, Caleb and Haley like to pull out the sidewalk chalk and draw away. This time I came found them on our front steps taking the whole thing, well, a step further. Check out the photos.

Fall Colors Day Hike

This fall, we made an effort to get out and enjoy the stunning fall colors we had been hearing about. We packed up our Pathfinder and set out for Kenosha Pass. Well, as it turned out, everyone seemed to be heading up to that hot spot for fall colors. The traffic was crazy! So, looking off to the west, we spied some yellow and gold groves of trees in the distance towards Mount Evans. We pulled off the main highway and started our adventure. The next thing we knew, we were heading up a dirt road that led to a trailhead leading into the Mount Evans Wilderness. The parking area was right at a gorgeous aspen grove in a prime fall colors! Here's some snapshots of the day:

Stettners Ledges - Longs Peak

Paul Bjork and I climbed a difficult, yet historical route on Longs Peak. I had attempted this route with Bryce Lokey several years ago in the fall, but we were turned back by cold and soft snow on the ledges. I asked Paul if he would give it a go with me. The route is rated at 5.8 and is 6 pitches in lengths. We had another two pitches on Upper Kieners. In all, we adventured for a little over 14 hours on a great day in the hills. Enjoy the video!

Bell Cord Couloir - Maroon Bells

Rick Inman, Paul Bjork, Adam Renfrow and I got out for another Colorado adventure. This time the Maroon Bells via the famous Bell Cord Couloir was on the hit list. We were blessed with great weather and conditions to bag both Bells, traversing the two peaks nearly twice. It was a big day - 15 hours and 5000 feet of climbing. Check out this video: