Mt Evans (14,264)- West Ridge route by Brian Schultz Friday July 12, 2002
Today I was going for official status on Evans and to get it, I parked 1.2 miles down the road from Guanella Pass (toward Georgetown). The elevation is approximately 11,200 feet, which I checked two days earlier with altimeter and GPS readings. I started at 6:50 under clear skies.
I walked up the road to the lower parking lot in twenty minutes and paused there to scope out a route through the willows. Nothing in particular stood out so I proceeded down and just plowed through them, keeping a bearing between the trees to the left and the lake on the right. This was the same area Tim, Jason, and I hiked out when we descended Evans' west ridge three years ago on our Sawtooth climb. My plan was to retrace the same route until I got closer to the cliffs and then look for the shortcut gully (Roach's West Ridge Variation) to save some distance. It didn't take very long to clear the willows and a pleasant surprise awaited me when I neared a small circular pond past the lake. A trail! It wasn't the same one we were on three years ago- this one was more defined. I decided to follow it and when it wound into the woods and away from the cliffs, I skipped the gully variation and kept on the trail as it worked up through the trees and topped out north of the drainage.
The trail faded out but it wasn't necessary anymore. I crossed the drainage and made my way up the grassy slopes, a steep time consuming ascent but not difficult. I dreaded the tedious ridge ahead. If I were to rate my least favorite fourteener, it would probably be Evans because of this ridge and today's third time on it didn't change my opinion. I was relieved to make the summit at 10:40, which wasn't the best timing for only 3000+ feet elevation gain but the distance was almost 6 miles. I watched many people file up from their cars in the parking lot and spoke with some of them. A woman who'd been training extensively for a Mt Ranier climb in August and would be hiking Elbert tomorrow, was here just to see if the altitude bothered her. The only other climbers I talked to were a couple and their very young son. They backpacked in last night and camped near the bottom of the shortcut gully, making their day shorter but not easier for Dad. He carried his son from camp to the summit up that steep gully.
I left Evans at 11:25 intending to return the same way I ascended. The beautiful day and uneventful descent kept my mind on other matters and after a while I began wondering why the ridge was so steep in front of me. I didn't remember it being that close when I came up in the morning. As a matter of fact, there wasn't any ridge like it when I came up in the morning. The drainage narrowed into a steep gully and I debated whether or not to backtrack. I had all day to climb back up if necessary so I descended, spotted a trail, and in the small meadow at the bottom I noticed the family's tent. I continued down with a smile, quite aware that I inadvertently found the shortcut couloir!
The trail was on stable scree and stayed within the gully but lower down I followed another trail that branched off until it dead-ended above a steep high rock wall. Reluctant to turn back, I carefully zig-zagged down on exposed ledges to the grassy field at the bottom and strolled over to their campsite. While visiting I asked how they got there from Guanella Pass. Their route didn't sound very good, so upon leaving I avoided the marshy areas by the lakes and set my bearing toward the woods again. Unfortunately, there was no avoiding the tall willows in this area and I bashed through them until reaching the trees. My legs were scratched something fierce but at least I found the hit and miss path we took in 1999. Eventually I ran into the good trail and followed it to the willows just below the pass. The final push through these willows was the worst of all but I skipped the return to Guanella Pass by angling the other way and dropping onto the road. I walked back to the car at 3:10, spending nearly as much time on the descent as going up.
This was a fun route and a good way to claim official status despite the nasty willows. For anyone climbing the shortcut gully, keep in mind a bushwhack is necessary to reach it. All in all, another great day in the mountains.
Total hiking time- 8 hours 20 minutes, including all breaks