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Posted by Ballpark Frank (24.237.94.196) on 10:33:08 06/04/14
In Reply to: Day Hikes posted by JimR
Hi Guys,
Regarding Avalanche, I want to add that there is a fairly easy, straightforward way to loop the top of the mountain, particularly if you are comfortable with deviating from the "norm". Once you are on top, continue north along the ridge to where the "north summit" (barely recognized as such) is. One of the distinguishing features, other than relative elevation, is the presence of several wind breaks created by folks piling up rocks around ledges just below and to the west of the summit. Once you are standing in that area, above treeline, look to the northeast, and you will see the social trail that people use as an alternative to backtracking. The initial stretch is over small boulders and through some loose scree, but eventually, you reach an obvious trail on the ridgeline (visible from the summit). Once you are down off the mountaintop, you will be in a valley that lies between Avalanche and the mountain directly east of it. It is easy walking, with plenty of open areas, heading south to where you rejoin the formal trail, right about the one mile mark, where it emerges from the thick forest, before heading into semi-open, and shortly thereafter, totally open terrain above the trees. With the morphology of the mountains and valley, this is one of the safest off-trail mountain walks I've ever seen, in terms of route-finding. The loop probably adds between a half mile and a mile to this four mile jaunt.
Know that Rob and his siblings are accomplished young mountaineers. There is a less exposed route to the summit of Electric by losing a bit of elevation to swing further west once you are up near the false summit. There are social trails that will take you that direction. Unfortunately, if you are up there a bit early in the season, or even mid-season in a big snow year, you could run into a hairy snowfield. Crampons and an ice axe would be nice to have if you wanted to negotiate that.
Jim, if you want to work your way up to Electric, try Mt. Holmes and Mt. Sheridan first. They both offer great 360 degree views from their summits, and are worthy destinations. I've done Holmes as an overnight and a day trip. It's a plenty doable day trip, as long as you get an early start. A few hardy souls, mostly of the youthful persuasion, do Sheridan as a day hike, but that is way ambitious for us older folks. When we did Sheridan, it was with an overnight stay at Heart Lake.
Rob, does your journey to Colorado involve the likes of Eldorado Canyon, the Diamond on Longs Peak, and the north wall on Hallett Peak?
Ballpark
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