Handies Peak (14,048) by Brian Schultz Friday July 24, 1998
I had to detour after leaving the Silver Pick yesterday, stopping in Montrose to seek medical attention for what appeared to be an infected thumb. The doctor was a sadist who seemed to enjoy using a small scissors to snip the swollen bump off, which was indeed infected. If I knew that's all that had to be done I could have heated up my knife and done it myself. In my careful climbing of the last four peaks I must have scraped my thumb on a rock and a spec of dirt made its way in. I'm not surprised though- I was gripping pretty tightly on the holds. If I wore my gloves instead of letting them sit in the pack I could have avoided the whole problem altogether.
I drove to Lake City and stopped at several places looking for a room, finding no vacancy except in a B&B on the north end. It turned out to be the last available room in town so I took it. I called Tim Briese in the evening to verify meeting Saturday up at South Colony Lakes. We met on Belford last September and kept a correspondence, agreeing to get together for another fourteener this summer. The plan was to spend two nights and climb Kit Carson and Crestone Peak but Tim's schedule only allowed for one peak so we picked Crestone Peak. But for now, I was ready for an easier peak and Handies fit the bill.
I woke up early but didn't get to the American Basin until after 7:00. The road was pretty rough- I wouldn't take a car up it. I left at 7:30 on an excellent trail and enjoyed the most colorful wildflowers I've ever seen. This scenic trail was not only easy but very short. I followed the well beaten path as it circled around and gained the summit, stepping on top at 9:35. I spent a long time up there, mostly enjoying the fact that it was such a nice break from the four hard ones I'd just done.
Only one other couple was on top but I could see many others on their way up. I took my time going down, visiting with several people, including a woman on her first fourteener. A young boy asked how my legs got so scratched up. It happened from climbing Capitol and Pyramid but he got wide-eyed when I told him I was attacked by a mountain lion. I got back to the truck at 11:30 and some hikers were just starting up- the weather looked threatening but it didn't deter them. This was such an easy hike but I really needed it. I drove back to Lake City to dawdle and eat lunch at Poker Alice. The pizza was fantastic.
Total hike time- 4 hours