Full Version James Peak

Full Version James Peak


Yesterday I did the "full" version of James Peak. I like doing full versions of peaks (here is one for Byers Peak), starting from the lowest point - usually the valley floor - as opposed to driving up to a high trailhead as is often possible on most peaks. The full version adds miles and vert, plus it feels good to have run a mountain from bottom to top. The full version of James Peak starts in Winter Park at the resort, goes up through Lakota to the waterboard road, hangs a right for a bit to Buck Creek, then up that to Corona. Once on Corona, the route follows the road for about .5 miles to an old closed jeep road that turns into a hidden trail angling straight up to about 10,500' where it re-connects with the Corona road. From there another .5 miles will take you to the Rogers Pass trail, which takes you along the Divide and up the north face of James Peak (13,294'). The full version of James Peak is 16.4 miles roundtrip, with ~4,800' up and another 4,800' down. It took me 3:23 to do the entire run - a decent time coming off a 25K the previous day (in 2:09).

 Looking southeast from the summit

Looking north along the Divide from the summit

Mountain Running James Peak from Rogers Pass via the North Face

Mountain Running James Peak From Rogers Pass Via The North Face 

An excellent way to run James Peak (a local 13er) is via the North Face and the Rogers Pass trail. You can do it from the east side via St. Mary's Glacier, but that way usually has a few people on it. Running James Peak from the north, however, is great because the trail is clear and very runnable, and there are usually no people. There are two options: you can run it from East Portal/Rollins Pass up to Heart Lake and Rogers Pass, then south along the Divide to the top. Or, you can start on the Corona Road and run the Rogers Pass trail the entire way. We did a 9 mile version a couple days ago running from the Corona Road up that a little, to Rogers Pass and then along that to the top of James and back. 100% runnable, not a soul to speak of, and even a decent time at 2:17 roundtrip. 

Heading up... 

View from the top 

Cruzing back down...

Mountain Running Parry Peak, Mount Bancroft, and James Peak: Quiet Trifecta on the Continental Divide

Mountain Running Parry Peak, Mount Bancroft, and James Peak: Quiet Trifecta On The Continental Divide 

The other day we went out to do another link-up of peaks in the Colorado Rockies. Setting out for a good mountain run with both on-trail and off-trail terrain is always exciting. The Parry/Bancroft/James link-up is a perfect example. With some 4wd road to start, some nice single-track to end, and a bunch of off-trail terrain in between this is another classic - and it is on the Continental Divide so the views and position are spectacular. 

Tara on the run up, Alice is down and in the distance... 

To do the link-up, drive up to St. Mary's Glacier and turn off at the town of Alice for the Loch Lomond trail and lakes. You can drive up this road for 2 miles to Loch Lomond proper, but we decided to park early to get in a little more mileage - and save our car's shocks! 

Elk carcass on Bancroft's slopes... 

Run up the road to Loch Lomond - as you reach the Loch you can begin to orient yourself - Parry (13,391 feet) is on your far left, Bancroft (13,250 feet) is straight ahead, and James (13,294 feet) is back and to your right. At the Loch, there is a closed jeep road that quickly turns into a trail on the west side right before the dam. Take this as it will get you onto Bancroft's southeast ridge. Follow this up for 2,000 feet keeping to your left as you go up. This will put you just below Bancroft's summit proper, and allow you to cruz over and tag Parry's summit. From here, follow the ridge - Continental Divide - back north over Bancroft's summit and then down into the saddle between Bancroft and James' east slopes. 

Tara on Bancroft - Parry in the background... 

Once in the saddle, pick your way up onto James' east slopes, tag the summit, and then follow the single-track trail as you run back down through Jamaica Plateau. Keep your eye on the Loch below as you stay on the righthand side - there is a trail that you can pick up and which will drop you right onto the far side of the dam at the base of Loch Lomond. From here, run the road back the 2 miles to your car. On this day it took us 3 hours and 39 minutes. 

James Peak - the final peak of the day from Bancroft... 

On James, ready to head back down... 

And of course, flowers... 

The numbers for those who care.... 

Beginning Elevation: ~10,600 feet 

High Point: 13,391 feet 

Total climbing and descending: ~ 6,200 feet 

Mileage: ~9 miles roundtrip from the Alice

Other People Factor: minimal Time: 3 - 5 hours depending on how often you stop to enjoy the views...

Backcountry Telemark Skinning: Video and Trip Report

Last week Tara and I skinned up Grizzly Gulch to the southeast side of Grizzly Peak (here is a little trip report plus video from the backcountry outing). Well, we finally got around to putting the telemark footage to music and editing it. Below is a little video from that backcountry trip. As you will note, there was quite a bit of wind up high (classic Colorado conditions), and hopefully we captured it.

Today, as a way of ringing in the New Year and saying googbye to 2008, we skinned in to the base of the north side of James Peak (13,294). Again, there was some wind blowing - short gusts filled with wicked micro-snow crystals. However, just down below treeline the conditions were really pleasant, and the snow was deep and soft. Perfect for making some smooth, arching tele turns in deep powder. We got a little footage of the backcountry day, and hopefully I'll post it soon. Until then, enjoy the movie. If you want, you can also check out this other telemark video we recently did. I'd love to hear feedback...