The Ridge on the Edge of Forever

As winter continues, lets take a journey back in time, back to a hike on Quandary peak at the end of August.

My friend joined me on this trip. We pulled up to the parking area by the dam at about 3 pm

We started our hike at about 330 pm. The weather forecast was very nice that day, hot and sunny. While it was a late start for sure, my friend had done the route 2 times before this, plus we both felt we had nothing to worry about weather wise.

We made our way up the ridge without any problems. Other people were coming down, but we took a slightly different route up so we didn't talk to them. I'm sure they thought we were crazy though.

The route was pretty easy up to this point, but it was kinda long. We are both fast hikers, however we were not out there timing ourselves or anything like that. There was some loose rock to gain the ridge, but nothing too crazy.

When we arrived at the crux area, everything changed as far as the route is concerned. Right away we were faced with some pretty serious scrambling, and also serious route finding.

Neither of us spoke about the lateness of the day as we made our way through this area. We didn't have to. We both knew we needed to find our way through this area in a timely manner, before darkness fell.

The Crux Wall loomed in front of us just as the light was fading. My friend led the way.

As the scrambling stopped and the hiking resumed again, we could see the summit.

We were both really happy as we topped out.

My friend and I made the "summit bid" at 802 pm. The sun was setting to the west and the colors and the lighting was absolutely brilliant. Except one moonlight hike, I had never been on the summit of a 14er so late in the day before, ever.

As we shared some snacks and water, we again both knew without talking about it that we would have to take the east ridge route down. The decision was not a hard one. Down-climbing the west ridge in darkness would not have been a smart move. We decided not to take the couloir route either, because it was particularly dark that night. We didn't want to risk getting off route when we knew a easier, but longer route was literally right before us.

Going down the east ridge was easy, thanks to the great trailwork that has been done. Just as we reached the false summit area, we saw a flash. Far in the distance to the south a storm was brewing. We saw many flashes as we went down, but didn't hear any thunder. The storm was far away, and stayed far away. Those lighting flashes that night, when above treeline, far away or not, motivated us to hike down a little faster.

The main tail head lot was deserted when we got down there. We of course had to walk up the road to where my friends truck was parked. Just as we got back to his truck, a friendly face pulled up next to us, looking to camp for the night. It was just after 11 pm. We could have gotten a ride from him, we could have started earlier and down climbed the route we went up. We could have just sat at home and done whatever that day. Life is full of what ifs. Luckily everything turned out ok that day on Quandary Peak. One thing I'm sure of is that being on top on 14er at sunset is a unforgettable experience.

The End ?