Crestone Peak, Sangre de Cristo

Matthew 18:18-20 says, "I tell you the truth, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. Again, I tell you that if two of you on earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven. For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."

Psalm 133:1 says, "How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity."

A few years back...I thought living a life unaccounted for was good enough for me. I figured, God knows what I am up to...so no one else needs to know. As a typical male, I cared less about community and communication. I just wanted to be left alone and figure out this thing with God without anyone's intrusion into my personal matters.

On top of this, I struggle with new people...I get really uncomfortable when I meet people for the first time. I am usually outgoing, but only when I feel comfortable...So the idea of being part of a group with people I do not know, makes for an awkward time...well at least for me. So I resisted bible studies, life groups, etc for a long time.

I don't remember the day it happened, but I do know God humbled me one day and said, "Wake up man...you are missing out. You are not supposed to be doing this on your own. I did not design you this way...I want more for your life...and this starts by getting plugged into people...so make this your prayer." Of course I balked...then I heard Him distinctively say, "Grow a pair man!" Or maybe that was me...

(Above is a picture from right below South Colony Lake; Crestone Needle is the peak on the right)

South Colony Lakes
Who: Matt Fisher, Sean Moore, Bryan Wilkinson, Me
When: 8/05/11
South Colony Lake roundtrip mileage: 10 miles

8/5/11
We parked at the lower TH (8780 ft) and began our hike up to camp. We followed the high clearance road  and passed the official TH where the TH Kiosk are and the wooden bridge are, and made it up to the S. Colony trail/Humboldt-Upper Colony Lake junction trail is. We decided to take upper colony trail up because we knew it was shorter way to get to camp. We made it up to the lakes and we decided to cross the creek to find a place to camp. We found what we decided was the best spot to camp and set up shop. Our camp was at 11,690 ft and felt comfortable to acclimate. It took us about 5 hours to get to camp from the lower TH.

8/6/11
Crestone Peak
TH (where junction sign to Crestone Needle near the creek) start: 5:15 a.m.
Elevation start: 11,685 ft
Summit: 10:15 a.m.
Back to TH: 3:45 p.m.
Total time: 10:30
Rested at cottonwood lake for 45 minutes
Distance: 5 mile roundtrip
Total elevation gain +/-: 7,578 ft.
Class 3

This climb calls for a long day. We started out at South Colony Lake and started to make our way over to Broken Hand Pass (BHP). At first, it was difficult to find the cairns in the dark. So we started to ascend up the mountain up farther than we were suppose to...but we quickly caught on to our mistake since we were basically surfing on loose scree. We descended back to the trail and started to make our way on the correct trail. The sun came up, and we could finally see the cairns all the way up to BHP. The ascent to BHP is not easy...we had to go up nearly 1000' just to get to the pass, which required some scrambling on loose rock...

Once we got to the top, we could see Cottonwood lake and the trail that lead all the way around to the base of Crestone Peak. We now had to descend 1000', hike around the lake and head over the base of Crestone Peak. It took us about an hour to get from BHP to the base of the mountain...I thought the views on the West Side of the Crestones were more beautiful than the East approach...

Once we arrived to the base of the Red Gully, the Class 3 scrambling began...and it was pretty much class 3 all the way to the top of the Peak.

This mountain did not let up...it was constant. There were places where the rock was loose and you can hear people yelling, "Rock!!!" throughout the day. As we got near the top, the scrambling got a bit more difficult and the exposure more dramatic...

but the views along the way made up for the hard work we were putting in...

As you reached the summit...you become very aware of the exposure...as my buddy Sean quickly realized.

(That's Crestone Needle in the background, next day's climb)

This is me on the Summit...totally stoked that I bagged this peak. That's Humboldt in the background (another 14er I planned to summit on this trip).

As we started to make our way down, we all started to feel the fatigue...were running out of water...and were becoming dehydrated. We still had a little less than half way to go...we finally stopped at Cottonwood Lake for about 45 minutes to rehydrate, rest, and in a some cases...throw up. This day took about 10 hours and we all felt it...but it was good to finally be back down at camp where we just hung out around a fire!

 Quick note: Matt had to give Sean fluids via IV...Sean was hurting big time!

Going back to my point in the beginning of this post...God wanted more for my life. The guys in this group are men I had the blessing to be in a men's group with. They all love Jesus...and share many of the same desires as I do. God has stretched me like I could not imagine because I learned that God designed us to live together in unity. These are men God has given me that I can trust and grow with. In Matthew 18, Jesus says that when two or three come together...he too is there. So when believers connect, Jesus shows up!! And if Jesus shows up...sign me up!