Mt. Audabon (Indian Peaks Wilderness Area)

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Although I had planned on hiking one of Colorado's 14ers this summer, I didn't actually get around to it. However, this particular hike brought me pretty darn close to the 14,000 foot mark. Mt. Audabon is one of the tallest mountains in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area at 13,200 feet, and presents a fairly challenging hike. After the first mile or so, the trail climbs relentlessly up to Audabon's rocky summit. The hike starts in dense forest and then proceeds to climb up a sharp cliff. By the time you reach the top of the cliff, you are already essentally above tree line and the views are amazing. From this vantage, you can see the craggy peaks I talked about in the previous hike as well as several of the highest peaks in Rocky Mountain National Park. To the north is the imposing summit of Longs Peak and the surrounding mountains of the southern portion of the park. Not surprisingly, there was still quite a bit of snow on the ground and the combination of strong winds and overcast skies made for a fairly chilly climb. The trail eventually (mercifully) levels off in a saddle a few hundred feet below the summit and provides some more stunning and perhaps vertigo-inducing views. The climb up to the summit involves a bit of scrambling on all fours and it is very easy to loose the trail. There are cairns at various places along the climb, but I found that they weren't terribly accurate. In the end, I found it was best to just head straight up when possible! It should come as no surprise that the summit provides more great views and there are some small shelters (in a manner of speaking) that have been built up out of the rocks. I considered this to be a very challenging hike and I would probably try to get in better shape before doing it again. That said, the sense of accomplishment was really strong and I am very happy I made it to the top!

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Comments

[Auntie K]

Wow Dave!
I had to take a few deep breaths just looking at your photos-- with these views, I can see why you've become an obsessive Colorado hiker. Next stop-- the peaks of the world!