Mt Sheridan (13,748), Mt Sherman (14,036), Gemini Peak (13,951) by Brian Schultz Thursday August 24, 2000
To do a more interesting hike than the simple stroll from Fourmile Creek trailhead, Gerry Roach lists a few extra credit routes and I picked the one that grabs both Sheridan and Gemini Peaks in addition to Sherman. The morning began with a drive from Frisco but even with the extra peaks, I didn't feel a super early start was necessary. Just past Fairplay I turned onto the Leavick road and drove beyond the few buildings of Leavick for another 1.6 miles, parking at a pullout on the right side of the road below the gate. The altimeter showed 11,860 feet elevation.
It was another beautiful morning for hiking when I started at 7:40 and an easy walk along the road soon brought me to the mines. Above the mines I picked a line to the left of the Sheridan-Sherman saddle and hiked up the ridge to Sheridan's 13,748 feet summit, reaching the top at 9:05. There's a nice big cairn up there and an impressive view of Sherman but windy conditions sent me descending quickly. Half-way down I sat for a break and watched hikers making their way up Sherman's ridge.
After a pleasant rest I hiked to the saddle below and at 9:45 started up Sherman. The ridge was as easy as I remembered it the first time but I forgot about the little bit of scrambling near the top and enjoyed that part very much. The huge summit had a wind-break on the other end and I made my way toward it- the register was located there also. I signed in at 10:30 and spoke with a family of three who were thrilled with their accomplished fourteeners so far. All were easy ones and they had hopes of climbing Longs yet- I told them Longs would be entirely different than what they'd done. I stayed for 30 minutes eating lunch, snapping a few pics, and enjoying the surrounding views before heading out to Gemini Peak.
Gemini Peak, elevation 13,951 feet, is less than a mile from Sherman and consists of two summits- the higher one looks like a steep ant hill. That's the one I aimed for and it turned out to be the highlight of the day- an immensely fun but short scramble to the top and not as hard as it looked from the approach. A quick descent and easy walk-up to the other peak placed me on top at 11:35 but dark clouds moving in from the west suggested I not tarry on the return to Sherman. Back there at noon, the roundtrip to both Gemini peaks took one hour. I stayed a few minutes on Sherman watching the weather before starting down and only stopped once to visit with a father and daughter exploring the mine shacks. I arrived at the truck at 1:10- the descent from the summit took only an hour and seven minutes!
Today was a fun day. The route allowed me to park high and still gain around 3500 feet elevation. Sherman truly felt more than just a walkup.
Total hiking time- 5 hours 30 minutes (including breaks)