Fairchild Mountain (13,502) by Brian Schultz August 28-29, 2017

Roundtrip mileage: 19.7 miles from Lawn Lake trailhead
Elevation gain: 4,950'
Participants: Tim Briese, Brian Schultz

Monday August 28: backpack to Lawn Lake (elevation 11,000')
Mileage: 6.5 miles one way to lake from Lawn Lake trailhead (elevation ~8,550')
Elevation gain: 2,450'
Time to campsite: 4 hours 5 minutes

Lawn Lake is a popular area for backpacking, especially in the summer, and when I booked our reservation in May this was the first date available for two consecutive nights. We stayed in Estes Park last night and picked up our permit at the Beaver Meadows ranger station this morning. We also rented the required bear canisters for food storage at a nearby outfitter. The rangers advised us not to take two vehicles to the trailhead because the parking lot fills quickly but today we could easily have parked both of them. I was having car trouble and had left my vehicle at the motel, which was just as well.

We started up the excellent trail at 10:45 AM. There are some very long switchbacks initially, which didn't bother me going up but they sure tested my patience on the way out. The trail's elevation gain is gradual over the 6.5 miles to Lawn Lake and we took our time taking pictures before arriving at our campsite (photo 1, photo 2) at 2:50. Our plan was to climb Fairchild Mountain, Hagues Peak, and Mummy Mountain tomorrow and backpack out the following day.

The afternoon was relaxing and we enjoyed the resident deer walking through our camp area. They have no fear of people since they're not hunted in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Wednesday August 29: Fairchild Mountain
Roundtrip mileage: 6.7 miles from Lawn Lake campsite
Elevation gain: 2,500'
Start to finish: 5 hours 55 minutes

We started at 6:25 AM on a fine trail that skirts Lawn Lake and goes up (photo 1, photo 2) to the Fairchild/Hagues saddle. The weather was great as we headed up the slopes to the summit. The talus was a bit unpleasant but manageable and we stepped on top at 9:30.

As our half hour stay on the summit drew to its end, we both looked at each other and basically had the same thought. How about calling it a day and heading back to the comforts of Estes Park instead of staying another night at Lawn Lake? Which seemed ridiculous since the weather was outstanding and we could've easily picked up both Hagues Peak and Mummy Mountain, but when it came down to it, we decided to pack up and head out. We arrived at camp at 12:20 and were on the trail an hour later. This was a lot of miles for just one peak but we didn't care. We were motivated to get comfortable accomodations and a good meal, and I needed to get the alternator in my truck replaced.

Backpack out to trailhead: 6.5 miles
Time: 3 hours 5 minutes