Summit Peak (13,300) by Brian Schultz Monday September 2, 2013
Roundtrip mileage: 6.6 miles from Treasure Creek trailhead (elevation 11,010')
Elevation gain: 2,500'
Start to finish: 5 hours 35 minutes
Participants: Tim Briese, Brian Schultz
Tim and I departed Monte Vista at 6:00 AM and drove the following roads to the trailhead: County Road 14 south of Del Norte, Forest Road 14, Forest Road 330, Forest Road 380, and Forest Road 243. All the roads are two wheel drive to this remote trailhead and it took an hour and thirty minutes to reach it, including photo stops at Summitville, the lake on Forest Road 243, and a preview of Summit Peak near the trailhead. There is spacious parking at the trailhead. After readying our packs, we began at 7:50 by crossing Treasure Creek to the trail on the other side.
The unfavorable weather forecast called for 60% chance of thunderstorms/showers again, just like yesterday when I climbed Hunts Peak. We talked of climbing "The Unicorn" and Montezuma Peak today also but between the crummy weather forecast and Tim's ailing knees, we agreed to settle for just Summit Peak. We followed the defined trail into the valley and as we neared the west end of the valley, populated with lots of sheep, the trail disappeared. It supposedly picks up in the woods to the right but we never found it and decided to just head north up grassy slopes past the woods to a conspicuous notch at the top. This worked out well and after reaching the top we turned left toward the peak, which was still hidden from view.
After gaining a bit of elevation we were rewarded with an awesome view of Summit Peak and shortly found the trail that we would've been on had we found it in the trees earlier. We followed the trail as it connected to the Colorado Divide Trail and continued south to the backside of Summit Peak. We climbed easy grassy slopes to the summit and arrived on top at 10:40 under sunny skies, and sat down for forty five minutes to enjoy the peaceful surroundings and views (photo 1, photo 2, photo 3). By the time we departed at 11:25, clouds were building and getting dark in the distance. Lightning flashed too.
When we connected with the Treasure Creek trail again on the descent, we decided to follow it and see if we missed an easier ascent route. By the time we emerged from the woods into the valley, we both agreed our ascent route was much better because the Treasure Creek trail often disappeared, even in open areas, and completely stopped at the edge of the woods.
Dark clouds were everywhere when we returned to the truck at 1:25. Instead of driving back the way we came, we took Forest Road 380, Forest Road 250, and Highway 15 back to Monte Vista. Rain showers, heavy at times, made for a wet drive much of the way.
