02/06/14 Unnamed 7231 #17

Unnamed 7231 from the Hewlett Gulch Trail

On the 6th of February I drove up the Poudre Canyon.  Having climbed the peak next to it in December with Carrie I wanted to come back and climb the other peak on the west rim of Hewlett Gulch.  This particular day was very cold and I remember the temperature hovering around 0 degrees and was probably on either side of 0 depending on where I was on the mountain and the time of the day.

View up canyon of the Cache la Poudre

I left the trailhead and followed the trail to the spot Carrie and I had come down Unnamed 6485.  I followed that drainage up the hill toward the saddle between the two peaks.  There were deer tracks crossing the bottom of the gully from both sides.  As I neared the saddle I aimed a bit more toward Unnamed 7231 and ended up on the slope above the saddle.  In the crisp air everything could be seen very clearly and I took many photos of the snowy peaks on the east side of Hewlett Gulch in the clear, cold light.

Not far above the saddle I saw a group of bighorn sheep.  They watched me for a bit and when they saw that I was headed higher they turned and ran into the next drainage to the west.  I carried on steadily climbing as that was all that would keep me warm.  Everything was too cold and the snow I walked through was not melting on my shoes and making them wet.  This was a nice thing about the extreme cold.  My feet were dry.

Even the dead trees looked cold

After about 1000 feet of climbing from a bit above the saddle I reached the summit.  I took in the views and snapped photos for as long as I could handle the cold.  There were many peaks I had climbed and even more that I wanted to climb that I photographed.  After a short time I decided I should continue on my journey.

Greyrock Mountain from Unnamed 7231

I had chosen not to just go up and down the mountain.  Instead I wanted to hike a ridge from the summit out to the end of the Hewlett Gulch Trail and walk that trail all the way back to the trailhead as I had not hiked more than about half-a-mile of the trail.  I followed a ridge east off the summit as I descended and then followed as the ridge turned northeast.  At the bottom of the ridge I was deposited out onto the trail very near its northern terminus.

As it was getting later and since I had descended into the shade the temperature must have dropped below 0 degrees.  I now had to hike the nearly three-mile trail before it became dark.  It was a nice trail and I was able to see many of the spots that were impacted by the September 2013 floods.  It was impressive what water could do--it seemed whatever it wanted--and how the land or anything in its way had little if any say in the matter.

Feeling cold back at the trailhead

The trail traveled near the creek and even crossed it a few times on its way down the gulch to the trailhead.  I was able to stay dry on the crossings due to the creek not being too high.  Some spots there was plenty of ice to walk across and others I found rocks or downed trees to use as "bridges."  I made it back to the car before dark and had thoroughly enjoyed the grand tour of Unnamed 7231 and Hewlett Gulch.

Elevation gain:  1535'     Total gain:  24,135'