Electric Peak A (13,598)  by  Brian Schultz   Thursday June 9, 2011

Roundtrip mileage: 15.3 miles from Cotton Creek trailhead

Elevation gain: 5,100'

I drove from Alamosa to the Cotton Creek trailhead with the forecast calling for clear and sunny skies the entire day, ideal weather for this long mileage route. The last two miles of the county roads to Cotton Creek trailhead were bumpy and slow but not a problem for my car. I parked in a spacious area at the trailhead and started up the excellent trail at 7:10 AM. After hiking less than five minutes I reached the first of five creek crossings, where the water was running fast, but handy logs made the crossing easy without having to ford it. As it turned out, all the other creek crossings had similar log planks, which I really appreciated later in the afternoon when the creek was raging from snowmelt.

In forty five minutes I entered the signed Sangre Wilderness and continued along at a comfortable pace. That is, until my presence prompted a movement in the brush just off the trail. The sound was heavy and imagine my surprise when two bear cubs suddenly emerged and quickly scampered up some nearby trees. I don't know if I awoke them from sleeping but I certainly startled them. One of them was looking at me, perfectly posed for a picture, but I didn't dare take the time to get my camera out not knowing where the mama bear was. I began talking and singing to let her know I was leaving the area in case she was nearby, and as I scurried along the trail I looked over my shoulder often to see if she was coming after me.

I reached a wood box with a corrugated metal top at 8:10 and felt distant enough from the bears to take a short break. After a bite to eat, I continued to the signed junction for trail #856 and turned left. This trail is not as wide or well traveled as the Cotton Creek trail but it is defined all the way up to Horsethief Basin. It also has some incredibly long switchbacks along the way.

I exited the trail in Horsethief Basin with the summit now visible but it required a steep ascent to get there. So far, I encountered no snow on the trail but there were a few small snow patches remaining on the slopes where the drainage narrowed. I cut up the left side of the slopes after crossing the drainage, gaining elevation quickly, and contoured near the top to Electric's south ridge. I followed it to the summit and arrived on top at 12:40.

The surrounding peaks still held some snow, mostly on the north and east sides. It was sunny on top and I stayed until 1:05 but gusting winds were too cold to finish lunch.

The descent went quickly and I was back at the 856 junction at 2:45, where I finished my lunch in warmer wind-free conditions. At the highest creek crossing, the raging waters were intimidating enough that I straddled the wet logs and scooted across on my rear end. The scenario repeated itself at the next crossing.

The trail at the third creek was completely covered with water and I wasn't even sure where the trail was at first because the creek was massively overflowing its banks. I walked the logs back and forth a few times looking for a dry route around the flooded areas but to no avail. When I realized the fast flowing stream directly in front was actually the trail, I just slogged ahead and followed it for 50 yards until the water channeled away. The remaining descent went without incident and I arrived at the trailhead at 5:10, completing a long but enjoyable day in the mountains.

Trailhead to summit- 5 hours 30 minutes

Summit to trailhead- 4 hours 5 minutes

Start to finish- 10 hours

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