Crestone Needle
H I G H C A M P
Oh, but wait! Before we can go hiking, Rich needs rain gear. The dressing rooms at the local grocery store all being full...
Okay, now we can climb. My goal next year is to have a pack that engulfs me by at least a factor of 3, and not merely by a paltry 50%. Notice that Rich is taking full advantage of his newly purchased rain gear. Of course, he's actually the smart one. Despite the cold, damp conditions, my glasses started to fog as soon as the climbing began, and we were all disrobing before too long...
Jim, again rejoicing in the flora. Kenn, again rejoicing in, well, *ahem* . . .
Rich and Ned.
Adam munching on his usual array of wholesome, organic, vegetarian snacks. This was his final year to serve as chef to the crew.
I don't know how I did it, but somehow I at least had Dan sold on the notion that we were going to traverse from Crestone Needle to Crestone Peak, which apparently involves a C4 rappel. I paid for all of the necessary gear, and, God love him, Dan helped me to carry it. Hence the extra 10 lbs of rope on his pack.
Lunch on the trail. Can't remember why Rich felt the need to strip naked at this point.
By the way, if you're thinking of four-wheeling this bad boy, this is one of the good parts of the trail.
Ned at high camp. We came up the traditional South Colony Lakes route. If you've got a good 4WD, I highly recommend just even visiting this basin for the scenic value alone. The campsites themselves were nice enough, but a good five minutes from the stream.
The annual attempt to light a log with a cigarette lighter.
More fire engineering.
Kenn and I got caught up on life, the universe, and everything down at the stream. Behind him is the beast, and in that general direction are the lakes. There were a number of folks camped out up there just for fishing.