Ice Mountain (13,951 ft) & North Apostle (13,860 ft) by Brian Schultz Saturday August 23, 2003
Tim and I left Buena Vista at 4:30 a.m. and drove to the 4WD South Winfield trailhead, elevation 10,600 ft. Several other vehicles were also parked near the gate but we didn't see anyone on our branch of the trail when we left at 5:50. A quick pace brought us to Hamilton and the signed junction at 6:25, with the sign pointing to Lake Ann on the right and Apostle Basin to the left. We took the left turn to Apostle Basin, even though the Roaches' route description says to stay on the Lake Ann trail, because after exasperating attempts to find their route last year and giving up, we found that this way worked.
We followed the Apostle Basin trail for about 400-450 feet before exiting the trail to the right. Locating the turnoff is critical, especially in the dark, because it cuts through the trees and it's not well marked. Although there was a small cairn here that Tim fixed on our return, I wouldn't count on its future existence. After leaving the trail, we crossed the stream and followed a faint path a short distance, then began a steep ascent to the left. This is the elusive Three Apostles Trail that goes directly to the basin. The trail becomes much clearer higher up and we followed it until emerging from the trees into the open basin at 11,300 ft. We descended from the woods, crossed the stream, and sat down for a break at 7:00, pleased with our easy progress compared to last year.
Ten minutes later we proceeded into the basin and worked our way through willows to a boulder filled drainage, where last year we struggled through deep snow to 11,500 feet before turning around. We easily made it up the rocks this time and angled to the left of the cliffs on a grass and rock slope, then followed a cairned route to the top. It positioned us above a small lake but instead of dropping down to it, we contoured to our left, then descended on steep rocks before scrambling up to a high wall. We slowly picked our way over talus and boulders to a high notch on the steep slope, relieved to be within grasp of the Ice-North Apostle saddle. The climbing here was grueling, even without snow, and I couldn't imagine doing it with the snow cover we had last year. We made our way up the remainder of the steep boulder filled slope and reached the saddle at 9:25.
During our 20 minute break at the saddle, we watched fog drifting in and out while trying to get a good look at Ice's ridge. We thought it prudent to climb Ice first in case the storms came early, and while sitting I thought about the 60 ft gully that Gerry Roach says is the crux of the climb. I've read reports of climbers turning around there because of bad conditions in the gully but a very recent trip report stated it was clear of ice and snow and for that reason, I expected all to go well.
At 10:45 we started up the ridge on a well cairned route. The scrambling was fun class 3 and moderately easy until reaching the crux gully. I could see why climbers wouldn't continue across it if it had ice or snow in it but the steep gully was completely clear. We compressed our trekking poles, lashed them to my pack, and crossed the gully with little difficulty. But from the right side the climb took on an entirely different feel. The route narrowed and required careful holds, with long reaches necessary in a few spots to gain upward progress. Some of the footholds barely had enough room to step on and though relatively easy to go up, I was really worried about coming down. As for the exposure, the same recent trip report indicated it was minimal but from my viewpoint it was just the opposite- our entire left side was all air, especially on one particularly narrow ledge where one wrong step or missed hold could result in a deadly fall. It was intimidating. We topped out of the gully onto easier terrain and a few minutes later reached the summit, at 10:35.
I was grateful for good weather while on the summit but couldn't keep from worrying about the descent. Shortly after our arrival, a group of four climbers from the Colorado Mountain Club came up the other side. They were fully equipped with climbing gear and I felt embarrassed as they jingled their way to the summit because I didn't even have a helmet with. When they said they might descend our route to climb North Apostle, I pleaded with them to wait until I was safely down the gully. Tim and I left 20 minutes later, he smartly with his helmet on.
I got spooked immediately in the gully. The four trekking poles were sticking out below my pack and catching on the rocks, and I was afraid they'd wedge in and catapult me over the side. I was cussing something fierce at the poles because I had to reach back and push them up every time they caught. It distracted my focus and I was mad for not leaving them at the bottom of the gully earlier- I really wanted to toss them overboard but I knew I'd never see them again if I did. Tim was handling the descent fine but on a couple of the long foot reaches I was so unnerved that Tim had to stop and talk me through them. I finally calmed down and we descended the remainder of the gully without further incident.
We reached the saddle at 11:45 and took a short break. Eager to get going because of the building clouds, we wondered how long it would take to climb the remaining 400 feet to North Apostle. I guessed 40 minutes and Tim guessed 30. We made the summit at 12:10, taking only took 17 minutes! Upon opening the register, we noticed the paperwork was singed and figured lightning struck it, but the container itself wasn't burned at all. Very strange! We stayed until thunder began rumbling at 12:37.
Around 1:00 on our descent we passed by four hikers heading up to North Apostle. Tim and I thought they were taking a chance with the storm rolling in, especially since they weren't even at the notch yet. When we got back above the cliffs, we ended up on some ledges that couldn't be downclimbed. It was the only time we got off route the entire day but we were rewarded with a nice photo of the basin before huffing and puffing back up to find the correct trail.
Safely down in the basin at 2:30, we took a fifteen minute food break and put on rain gear just as it started raining. Our remaining hike out went quickly and we reached Tim's truck at 3:55. This was a long tough day and I was glad to make the difficult Ice summit but I was cold and wet. I had little desire to climb again in the morning but after we ate dinner in Buena Vista, Tim went home, and I drove back up the same road we'd just left.
Trailhead to Ice Mountain- 4 hours 45 minutes, including all breaks
Ice Mountain to North Apostle- 1 hour 15 minutes, including breaks
North Apostle to trailhead- 3 hours 18 minutes, including all breaks
Start to finish- 10 hours 5 minutes