A Hike to Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks
A Hike to Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks
Friday, August 5, 2022
The day of peak challenge is finally here. Like every year there is a sense of excitement and adventure. This year there is more so because we are going to hike two 14000 feet peaks in a remote part of Colorado. The three of us departed our home at 8.02 a.m. with all our gear and supplies. It is a long six plus hour drive to Lake city where we planned to stay at night before the hike next morning. We stopped in Gunnison at the subway sandwich shop for lunch. While my friends bought sandwiches I took out my backpacking stove to boil hot water for the Mexican freeze dried food. I topped it off with nice cold Greek yogurt. After finishing lunch, I also bought a sandwich for the hike the next day.
Lake city is a quiet sleepy little town nestled on the eastern side of the San Juan mountain ranges. We decided to scope out the trailhead and so headed there immediately. It took us an hour to reach the trailhead, the last 30 minutes of driving on county road was rough and slow going. At the trailhead there were already a few people parked who were camping for the night. We could see the narrow valley in front of us which we had to climb the next day. The actual peaks weren’t visible from where we were; just the surrounding peaks. The air was very crisp and fresh. We were excited for what the next day was to offer us. After spending 10 minutes we headed back to the town. On the way we spent some time marveling at the calming waters of the magnificent Lake San Cristobal for which Lake city is famous for. It was truly an idyllic evening. Finally at 5.04 p.m. we unloaded our suv and checked into a room at the Bushwhack lodge. While we were having dinner it started to rain heavily. After about half an hour or so it stopped by which time we were ready to sleep. It was 6.35 p.m.
Saturday, 8/6/2022
We woke up at 1 a.m. to get an early start. The weather forecast called for a clear day on the mountains which was music to our ears. However we didn’t keep our hopes too high since the weather is especially very fickle in the high country. We continued with our original plan of starting early. I took a shower and packed up my backpack with all the essentials including four bottles of water, a smoothie for breakfast, 1 bottle of young coconut water, grapes, walnuts and snack bars.
We left Lake City at 2.10 a.m. We were the only one’s driving along the road at that early hour. It was slow going like earlier because of the rough rocky road. We reached the trailhead at 3.10 a.m. and by 3.20 a.m. we were well on our way up the mountain. We were the first one’s on the trail. The headlamps guided us on the trail very well. The trail initially had a series of wooden stairs after which we came to a sign for the trail register. We signed in and put our destinations for the day. From here we went through a wooded forest of pine and aspen trees with the sound of a stream giving us company along the way. The night sky was absolutely clear and magnificent with the milky way as well as the planets of our solar system clearly visible. Near the tree line we lost our way a couple of times. The second time we went straight up instead of taking a right and crossing a small stream. The Alltrails app on the phone was quite useful as it clearly indicated we were off trail. The trail became rockier and we were given company by the waters of Silver Creek which was flowing to the right. As we started getting the light of dawn, the Silver Creek really looked mesmerizing and true to its name. The trail kept going up. At this time a sole lady passed us. The lady was definitely on a mission as she kept going without any stops. We took plenty of breaks to savor the scenery around us, for food, water and for photos as well as videos. We were really enjoying every moment of it.
At around 6.30 a.m. we stopped for a bathroom break when we saw a deer on the trail follow us pretty close by. We kept going up and up. This time the saddle of the mountain along with the false summit clearly visible to us. Then to our surprise we saw a big herd of deer strolling on the saddle against the backdrop of the dawn sky. Another family with young kids passed us. At 7.29 a.m. we finally reached the saddle. We could now see the summit of Redcloud peak to the left up above the false summit. We could also see all the hikers who had passed us, climbing up. After a small break of food and water, we began the ascent of the rocky false summit. This was by far the hardest part as at some places the dirt and rock on the trail along with the steep incline made it very slippery. The good news was that there were a lot of switchbacks all along the trail.
We took our own sweet time marveling at the progress we made. The saddle and the forest valley below now appeared really far away. Finally at 9.05 a.m. we reached the false summit and were ready for the final pitch of Redcloud peak. We met the lone lady who had passed us earlier in the morning. She had already summited both Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks. She mentioned that she was from Colorado Springs and it was her 14th 14er. The trail here was better. However there were steep drop offs on one side. At 9.20 a.m. we reached the summit of Redcloud Peak at 14040 feet. We were in awe of the scenery in front of us. All the majestic peaks of the San Juan were around us. There were mountains in all 360 degrees as far as the eye could see. We identified a few peaks including Handies Peak, Uncompahgre Peak, Wetterhorn Peak, Mount Sneffels and Matterhorn Peak. Closer to us was Sunshine Peak which was our next destination. Surprisingly there was a cell phone signal on top of Redcloud Peak. We took our customary photos and videos.
At 9.35 a.m. we started hiking down Redcloud peak and headed towards Sunshine Peak. Initially the trail was nice and gradual. After a while the trail became very rocky. There were a series of false summits till we reached the saddle of Sunshine peak at 10.20 a.m. After a small break of food and water we started our final ascent of Sunshine Peak. We were really fortunate with the weather as it was nice and warm with almost no wind except in the exposed areas where we probably had 5 to 10 miles per hour wind. Also surprisingly I didn't have to wear my inner goose down jacket all along this hike. The skies were blue with high white clouds far away. There were no signs of any rain clouds anywhere. The trail up Sunshine Peak was very rocky but not as bad as the false summit of Redcloud peak which we had climbed earlier. At 10.55 a.m. we were half way done. We had come down 500 feet from Redcloud peak and had to do another 500 feet. Next we started the final pitch of Sunshine peak. Finally after an hour and 45 minutes from Redcloud peak, at 11.20 a.m. we reached the summit of Sunshine peak. We thoroughly enjoyed the 360 degree views up Sunshine Peak. This time we could see Redcloud peak and the trail we took along the way; it was well over a mile. One of the things in high mountain areas is y ou lose a sense of height and distance. While some things look so close while they really aren’t. On the other hand things that seem far are indeed close by. The same goes with direction. Its hard to explain unless y9ou experience it. Hence one needs to be really well prepared and really respect these high mountain peaks as well as the weather Gods. I ate a good lunch of Sandwich and your coconut water while admiring the views around me. We took our celebratory photos and videos.
At 11.50 a.m. we headed down Sunshine peak back towards Redcloud peak. We had to climb down 500 feet and climb up 500 feet again Couple of times we thought we were nearing the Redcloud summit only to be disappointed by the false summit. Couple of people passed us along the way who were headed in the opposite direction. At 1.40 p.m. we reached the summit of Redcloud peak again. After a brief stay, at 1.55 p.m. we headed down back towards the trailhead. The weather still cooperated with us. The climb down the false summit was slow and steady. When we reached the saddle the high white clouds were above us with the sun hiding behind them. However there was still no sign of lightning or thunder. As we were hiking down the tundra the sky cleared again and we had blue skies all along till the end. We could now see all the scenery we had passed in the dark. In the tundra there were a lot of wildflowers everywhere. It was pretty. The Silver creek was picturesque. We passed by a couple of marmots. We then had to make a left turn from where we had missed in the early morning. Even though there was no proper trail at that junction, in the daytime the turn is hard to miss since you can easily see the trail down below. We were down at the tree line now. The forest was lively and had that distinct smell which I have come to like so much. After a long walk down we reached the trail register.
The creek gave us company most of the way. The sounds were very pleasing. After signing out we headed further down back to the trailhead. After 14.5 hours on the trail we reached our car at 5.50 p.m. We took the final celebratory photos. There was a guy parked next to our car who introduced himself. He was planning to hike Handies peak on Sunday followed by the Redcloud/Sunshine Peak combination on Monday. He seemed to be in great shape. He asked us about the trail conditions and we gladly told him about our spectacular journey. Soon another lady came by and enquired us about the trail to Handies peak near Cinnamon pass up above. While we were not familiar with that particular trail, we told her about the wonderful trail right across the parking lot that also went to Handies peak as we were fortunate enough to do it a few years back. We then headed back to town passing by the picturesque Lake San Cristobal. We reached our room at 6.57 p.m. We took a shower and then enjoyed a nice dinner sitting in our room reminiscing the wonderful day we had. We were really grateful that we were alive, healthy, living in this beautiful state of Colorado and were able to afford this journey. For dinner I finished the other half of the subway sandwich along with the herbal tea as well as Greek yogurt.I really felt very nice and energized from the hike. There was no hint of tiredness. This is also the first hike I have ever walked for this long i.e. 14.5 hours.
Sunday, August 7, 2022
I woke up at 5.50 a.m. and after having a shower I packed all my belongings. I had a refreshing breakfast of blueberry walnut oats and herbal tulsi tea. We left Lake City at 6.48 a.m. The drive through the valley was very pretty; we stopped at the Love’s in Gunnison to pick up some food. I got the freshly cut watermelon which really topped up my breakfast from earlier, very well. The drive throughout was uneventful. Leadville had blocked their downtown due to the festivities for Borough days. There was also some slow moving traffic on the east side of the Eisenhower tunnel on I-70. We decided to take the frontage road from Bakerville exit to Idaho Springs. Adams County fairgrounds in Thornton had a huge fair for which they had blocked out some roads. We took a detour. We reached home happy and content at 1.30 p.m. This was an end to yet another memorable peak challenge with the best hiking buddies!
Link to all Photos from the hike to Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks
Stats
Total Mileage - 16.28 miles
Elevation Gain - 4800 feet
Roundtrip time - 14.5 Hours
Schedule
8/5/2022 (Friday)
7.28 a.m. - Depart Home
8.02 a.m. - Depart Rich’s home
9.24 a.m. - Eisenhower Tunnel
10.11 a.m. - Leadville
10.43 a.m. - Buena Vista, Stop at Love’s
12.27 p.m. - Gunnison - Lunch: Subway, Freeze dried food with backpacking stove
1.39 p.m. - Depart Gunnison
2.40 p.m. - Lake City
2.43 p.m. - Head to Redcloud/Sunshine trailhead
3.40 p.m - At trailhead of Redcloud and Sunshine - 18.6 mile drive over dirt + rocky road
3.50 p.m. - Head back to town
4.45 p.m. - Lake San Cristobal
5.00 p.m. - Lake City
5.04 p.m. - Stay at Bushwhack Lodge
5.45 - 6.00 p.m. - Dinner: coconut rice, tulsi tea, greek yogurt
6.00 p.m. - Heavy rain in Lake City
6.35 p.m. - Go to bed
8/6/2022 (Saturday)
1.00 a.m. - Wake up, Shower, Tea
2.10 a.m. - Leave Bushwhack lodge for Redcloud/sunshine trailhead
3.08 a.m - At Trailhead
3.20 a.m. - Start Hike to Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks
7.29 a.m. - At the Redcloud saddle
9.05 a.m. - At final pitch of Redcloud
9.20 a.m. - Redcloud peak summit
9.35 a.m. - Depart to Sunshine peak
10.20 a.m. - At Sunshine peak saddle
10.55 a.m. - At final pitch of Sunshine
11.20 a.m. - Sunshine peak summit, Lunch: subway sandwich
11.50 a.m. - Hike back to Redcloud peak
1.40 p.m. - Back at Redcloud peak summit
1.55 p.m. - Hike down back to trailhead
5.50 p.m. - Back at Trailhead
6.00 p.m. Head back to Lake City
6.57 p.m. - Back at Bushwhack lodge
7.00 p.m. to 8.00 p.m. - shower, dinner of subway sandwich, tulsi tea and yogurt
8.02 p.m. - Go to bed
8/7/2022 (Sunday)
5.50 a.m. - Get up
5.50 a.m. to 6.10 a.m. - Shower, Packing
6.15 a.m. - Breakfast of Tea + Blueberry walnut oats
6.48 a.m. - Leave Lake City
8.05 a.m. - At Gunnison, Breakfast of Watermelon at Love’s
1.30 p.m. - Back at Home
Comments
Post a Comment