Last weekend was the first 13er for the Spong and the Coffin kids. We chose a relatively straightforward route up UN 13,541 that began nice and high on Independence Pass. I was a little concerned when we arrived that the clouds were looking like they might rain. We did get a little sprinkle, but it eventually burned off and made for a pleasant stroll.
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| Gloomy Castle Peak in the distance |
To keep the little ones motivated along the hike, they conveniently found little "gems" along the trail. The boys showed no sign of fatigue throughout the whole hike. Once we reached a good spot not too far from the summit at around noon, we could see the clouds beginning to build upward and knew we could soon be in trouble with thunderstorms. We decided to split up to a fast moving group that would summit and a slower moving group to stop here and then head back. The ladies decided to stop and the boys went on.
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| Girl Summit! |
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| Grizzly Peak |
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| La Plata |
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| Twining Peak |
We did get a little bit of tiny hail balls on the way down, but we were prepared to take cover in the bushes. On the drive back along the road there was a marker pole that was sticking diagonally into the road. We had to swerve into the oncoming lane in order to miss it. Whew... close one! Wait, a little while later we found T&D's sprinter van pulled over. We stopped to find out what was going on. Apparently, they didn't see that marker pole on their way down and it smashed their rear view mirror. They figured out a way to tape it back on and had a good attitude about it.
Overall it was a great hiking/camping trip with good friends and good food and good times.
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