ORC

Trip Report

Spring Break ‘03

Beginning Mountaineering/Ice Climbing

Friday March 14:  The group met at ORC/State  (Outdoor Recreation Center - Iowa State University) Gym around 3:30 p.m. to go through a final check on gear and load the trailer and make other necessary preparations for our departure. On the final gear check, it was apparent that two of the participants’ boots were not up to par.  I happened to have a couple of pair of demo boots in their sizes, and we decided to stop by my residence to pick up the boots upon our departure.  Once done, we hit the road around 5:30p.m., driving through the night to Estes Park, CO.

Saturday March 15:  We arrived in Estes Park at approximately 6 a.m. Colorado time.  We drove up to Lumpy Ridge, a climbing area just outside of Estes main area.  Here we climbed up the hill and watched the sunrise.  We took pictures and hiked around.  At about 8 a.m. we drove into the park entrance.  The Visitor center was open at this time, and we stopped in to pick up a topographical map, and see about getting a park pass in order to gain entrance for the vehicle/trailer/participants.  Matt Cohen and I talked with a park ranger and the gift shop attendant about current and previous weather conditions. 

The forecast was for cooling weather by late Tuesday, and a chance of light rain between Sunday and Tuesday.  I discussed with the ranger where the forecast actually originated from, and was told that it wasn’t Park specific, but was usually “right on”.  From there we walked down to the Backcountry permit office, where we met with a Volunteer Ranger, Lyle, after he finished filling out a permit for a group that was leaving that day for a hiking route that would take them from Bear Lake area into the Sky Pond area-the area that we were headed for- and bringing them out on Sunday Evening.  We talked with Lyle about our plans, and we again looked at the weather forecast that both rangers had in a binder.  The Forecast went through Thursday, and didn’t forecast for snow.  I had some time to discuss with Lyle our plans, and his background with the Park Service, as he was at one point a fellow Iowan some 25 years ago. 

I had the extra time to do this, as Matt Cohen had to hike back up to the car to get the License Plate Number for permit purposes.  I directly asked Lyle about the forecasting for some light rain, and had wondered again if the forecast was for the local area, as I would expect for it to more likely be snow at the elevation that we were going to, but with the weather as unseasonably warm as it had been, and the limited amount of snowfall they had had during the current year might allow for rain at that elevation.  The forecast was for temperatures in the 40s, and we did some quick math-subtracting 3 degrees for each thousand feet in elevation gain, and figured that it was more likely that we would get a dash of snow rather then rain, but not ruling out the possibility for rain just the same.  Lyle again added that we might not get any of the weather system at all if it didn’t move south of its current course it would likely pass us by completely. 

We had two permits issued, as there was a limit of 5 people per permit.  Matt took three people on his permit, and I took the other four on mine for our total of nine group members.  We also discussed with Lyle the previous weather systems, and how there would likely be no need for flotation/snowshoes, as the trail that we were planning to take from Glacier Gorge Trailhead was so popular that it would be packed down.  This combined with the limited amount of remaining snow pack would allow us to easily scramble up to our camp at Sky Pond unencumbered by snowshoes. 

I had been to this particular area, Sky Pond, on at least 10 prior occasions over the previous 11 years, in many instances at the same time of year, and had only on one occasion had the need for snowshoes.  We talked with Lyle about our plans, and goals for our time in the Backcountry, had our permits printed, and talked about parking options, as I knew from experience that Glacier Gorge Trailhead is a bit congested and small for a large Suburban and Trailer.  Lyle suggested that we park at Bear Lake, as there was ample room.  We discussed leaving the trailer parked at the Hobby Horse Motel while we were in the Backcountry, and Lyle told us that we could alter the permit to fit whatever we decided to do.  Lyle also told us during our conversation that every Tuesday Rangers hiked up to the Loch Lake to take water samples, come hell or high water.  Important information I thought.  

With that we headed off to the car where the other group members had been sleeping, and drove to the Park Entrance to buy a Park Pass.  I walked up to the entrance and purchased the park pass.  We then decided to drive into the park and see what things looked like, while at the same time killing time before we checked into the motel.  Matt drove us to the end of where Trail Ridge Road was open, and we pulled into a turnoff, and had a great view of the scenery.  We broke into the food, and made cold meat sandwiches for what was essentially breakfast.  The sun came on strong, and we lounged around on some surrounding rocks while we basked in it, and stretched our legs from the cramped car ride. 

We stayed there until approximately 10:15 a.m., and then decided to drive up to Long’s peak trailhead.  Matt drove us up there, and we took some pictures of the East Face of Long’s Peak, and then made our way back to the Hobby Horse Motel to check in.  When we arrived, everyone came in and helped check in, and we went down to our large room by the pond.  We unloaded the trailer, and split up gear.  We repacked food to reduce waste and weight, and divied up group gear-such as tents, stoves, fuel, cooksets, food, etc.  We handed out avalanche transceivers, and pickets, and did one more gear check.  I went through and showed everyone how to pack their packs, and even did some custom pack fitting for those that needed it. 

We lounged in the sun, and even tried to work on our tans, as it was in the upper 60’s/lower 70’s.  It was so warm and dry that they were doing a controlled burn on the outskirts of town, as the Park Fire crew was getting ready for a high fire season.  Once everyone was finished packing, and repacking, we put everything away, and parked the trailer in the unused lot at the Hobby Horse, and drove the mile back into the heart of down town Estes.  We grabbed something to eat and did some last minute shopping, and just killed the rest of the day.  That night everyone got their last good shower, and we all went to bed early as we were exhausted from the drive. 

Sunday March 16:  I woke before 6 a.m., got a shower, and dressed for the hike in. I woke up a couple of the participants so we could start getting ready in waves, as the area was rather congested.  When everyone was ready to go-around 7:45 a.m., we tried to load all the packs into the back of the Suburban, and realized after about three, that there was no way that they’d all fit in there.  Matt and I went down and again hooked up the trailer, and brought it around to get all the packs loaded into it. 

We loaded everything and headed into the park.  When we hit the park entrance I realized that I had left the park pass in my pants pocket, which was in my travel duffle, at the bottom of the trailer-under all the packs.  I told the Ranger working the park entrance what had happened, and offered to unload the whole trailer to get it, but showing her that I had the booklet that went with the 2003 Golden Eagle Park Pass she allowed us to go in directly.  We drove to the Glacier Gorge Trailhead, where we dropped off all the participants and our packs.  Matt and I took the truck and trailer up to the Bear Lake parking area and asked the ranger that works the trail where he would like for us to park our big rig.  He had us park at the end of the lot, closest to the road back down.  Matt and I closed everything up and locked the trailer to the hitch with the lock from the jack that had been locked to the internal trailer floor.  We did one last sweep, and hiked down to the participants, shouldered our packs and started for the trail. 

I had a very lightweight fleece shirt on, and commented how most of the participants were going to be overheating shortly, as many of them were wearing full fleece jackets, and shell jackets.  They said that they were cold from standing, and felt they’d be fine.  We hit the trail at about 9:15 a.m., with me in the lead, Matt in the middle, and Adam Petts at the end of the group.  We all had radios, and tried to use them to communicate, but found that it was easier to just talk loudly as we were so close together. 

When we came to a split in the trail I put it to the group, would they rather take the easier more rolling route, or the more direct but more difficult route.  They all either voted for the tougher route, or “abstained”.  So, I turned and headed them up hill.  It wasn’t long before they were all working hard, compounded with the Sun creeping up over the hills, everyone was hot in short order.  After about ¾ of a mile I pulled off the trail to give everyone a chance to strip some layers and get some water.  We took a couple of pictures, and enjoyed how nice a day it was going to be.  From there on we kept an even pace, and moved up the trail at a fair clip.  I led up the drainage to the edge of Loch Lake.  Here I decided that it would be a great place to get a group picture of the group as it hiked across the lake.  I veered off to the side and took 4 or 5 of the groups cameras to get a shot of them hiking across in single file.  I hustled across the lake and caught up with the group in short order. 

We took some more pictures, as the view was becoming more scenic from atop the lake, and took a short break to look at the map, as I was now going to let the other trip leaders lead a bit so as to get them some more experience.  Adam took the first lead, and looked at the map, and I helped him to decipher what features corresponded with the topo map.  As there were a number of hard packed trials, with little or no snow pack it was relatively easy to follow.  Adam led up to Glass Lake, and on to Sky Pond.  We found an adequate camp area at about 12:30 p.m.  We started to dig in, as a light snow drifted down.  Clouds were minimal, and the light cover seemed to be emanating from Taylor Glacier proper, as it normally does.  Everyone dug in and we had a good time cutting snow blocks, and digging a kitchen area.  We finished moving into camp and  started making water and cooking up our dinner rations.  As it gets dark fairly early, we were all in bed by 8 p.m.

Monday March 17:  We woke the next morning to about 4-6 inches of new snow, which seemed marginal at the time.  We decided that we would make a day of practice rather then going straight for the summit, as it often takes at least one good day to solidify the snow pack, and more preferably three for every snowy one.  Everyone was slow to rise, as they were sleeping pretty cozy in their bags.  The temperature hovered right at freezing, and I was a bit surprised that it was snowing and not raining, as I was seldom using gloves it was so warm.  When the rest of the group did get moving a couple of them complained of a little headache.  The day in Estes was slated for acclimatization, and had helped, as well as the 4 liters of water a day that I had prescribed that they start drinking two plus weeks before the trip, but it wasn’t quite enough.  Elevation gains of 9,000+  over a couple of days are hard on anyone.  So, I decided to make it a rest day, and we hung out around camp and I pushed the water.  

Matt Cohen had said that he wanted to run down to the car and get his plastic boots, as the leather/synthetic boots that he was using didn’t seem to be doing the job up to his standards.  Knowing that there was a packed path down to the bottom, and having gone from the parking lot to the summit of Taylor Peak and back in a morning, I thought that might be O.K.  Matt asked a couple of guys if they wanted to tag along and get some exercise.  No one felt like hiking, and I wasn’t overly keen on Matt setting off alone, but we had the radios, and I had already heard two other parties over the radios hiking up on the Loch and Matt said to me that he “had his head on straight.”  So, we discussed how long it should take, and what to do in case of emergency.  With that Matt set off, and I got the group going, and we decided to dig ourselves a snow cave.  Something fun to do, that is a useful backcountry skill, and would also provide us shelter for cooking.  Warm too. 

So, Adam, Ryan, Brendan, Jake, and I found a suitable spot to dig, and started on our project.  Later on Andy and Shaun joined in.  Tim decided to stay back at the camp-some hundred yards away from the cave, and read.  We dug for a couple of hours, and by 1 p.m. had a pretty suitable little cave.  Matt returned around 2:15 p.m., and said that he had gotten to within a quarter mile of the car, and then turned back when he finally crossed paths with a particular hiker, as he had passed numerous parties, who asked him what he was doing, and informed Matt that we were expecting 1 to 3.  Matt said that he knew that we were expecting a little snow, and informed him that we’d maybe gotten six inches already.  The other hiker then informed Matt he was talking 1 to 3 feet.  Matt decided it was a good idea to get back to camp and tell us about our impending weather.  As it was only a little over three hours from dark, and it would likely take over an hour to get everyone mobilized and Matt hadn’t had a terrible time getting back to camp, we decided that we’d leave at first light.  We moved everyone into the snow cave to cook our meals, and enjoyed a warm area, even if it was a bit confined for nine people.  That night it started snowing.

Tuesday March 18:  At first light we mobilized the troops, and found ourselves rather buried by 3+ feet of snow.  The cave that we had dug was nearly completely filled in.  When Brendan walked out to dig out the cave and retrieve our cook gear and such, he found himself wading through snow waist deep or better.  We got everyone packed up and started moving by 8:30 a.m.  The going was unbearably slow.  Matt and I did most of the trail cutting.  Wading into snow that was waist deep or better.  By the time the third person walked up the trail, they couldn’t understand what was taking so long. 

Matt and I cut a swath to Glass Lake, where I decided that we needed to expedite the process and keep people moving to keep them warm, as it had now cooled down to 20 degrees or so.  I had the idea that we’d just do it as an Indian Run, where the first person just goes as hard as they can, until they’re tired, and warm, and then moves to the side so the next person can move on, and they initial first person would just wait for the group to pass and rest and have easy going until it was once again they’re turn to be in front.  We started covering ground at 4 to 5 times the rate we previously had. 

Even so, we were moving slowly, and the snow continued to fall.  We moved on with the intentions of getting out that night.  I was thinking it was likely that as Lyle had told us, there would be snowshoe/ski/hiking tracks from the Loch down, as they had to come up and do water samples-“come hell or high water”.  We made it only to just above the Loch by 5:30, and I decided that we needed to stop for camp, as we were struggling along, and were definitely not going to make it out that night.  We were passing a prime camp spot so I put it to the group, and asked if they wanted to keep pushing, or set up camp while we still had some light.  We opted to set up camp.  Just under the camp we found an excellent cook spot, as it was nearly protected by a rock face and large trees. 

I could tell that everyone was a bit disappointed that we’d stopped, but it wasn’t long before everyone was again in good spirits, and joking around.  We hadn’t planned on starting out until the following day, so we had plenty of food left, and feasted on soup, potatoes, and a main course, with cocoa and marshmallows for dessert.  Even though we were in a fairly sheltered area we found ourselves completely inundated with snow in no time.  We had to get up and dig every couple of hours or risk having the tents collapse.  I checked our progress with the GPS, as I had tracked our route in with it, and found we were still just above the Loch, and had more then 3 miles to go. 

I had hoped that the weather was rather localized, as it is often much more brutal above the Loch, and almost an entirely different world below it.  I had also hoped that there would be little or no snow on the Loch itself, as I had never seen a deposit of snow atop it as it is so windswept that even in the heaviest of winters it has remained relatively free of snow.  The weather however was very unusual, as it was not only snowing, but also dead calm.  There was relatively no wind, and it contributed to the snow being incredibly unconsolidated.  That night we dug out repeatedly but had difficulty keeping up.

Wednesday March 19:  The morning of the 19^th we woke to find that the other two tents had been completely buried.  Jake, Ryan, and Shaun’s tent was almost undetectable from only two feet away, and had I not known that it was there, would not have believed that it was.  I dug everyone out, and got everybody up and moving.  Matt and I got packed up quickly, and started cutting trail ahead of the pack. 

The going was so slow, and the snow so unconsolidated that we were at it for 45 minutes, and hadn’t left sight of camp.  We started a system whereby we would work ahead and pack the trail, and the next couple of guys would walk the trail and pack it down, and then ferry packs to the front of the path.  Not having packs on let us move considerably quicker, but still that going was slow.  After about 1 and ½ hours of doing this we made some headway, but not enough that the rest of the group didn’t walk right up in a couple of minutes.  We again started plowing through in the Indian Run style, only without packs, so we could keep moving longer and quicker.  This was working better, until we rounded a corner where we just couldn’t get any decent steps packed.  Jake Ingman came up with the idea of just crawling along the top of the snow pack by packing it down with the shovel while on his knees, and then having the person behind him fill in the snow that he was churning up with his feet. 

We found that three people crawling, and the next packing in steps was working rather well.  We were all super motivated, and actually having a good time testing ourselves.  Every time that things got a little tense, or seemed tedious, someone would crack a joke and we’d fall right back into having a good old time.  We had talked about making snowshoes out of tree bows, but hadn’t followed through, as the lost time it might take to attempt making them could be better used making progress.  Finally, while Matt and I were up front again, Jake came to the front, and threw down a couple of sleeping pads and said that he’d found something that worked.  The sleeping pads had created enough flotation that after a couple of people moving on top of them, other could walk along behind. 

Matt and I took three pads, and started a process that had us moving along quick.  Quick for moving on our knees.  In the first 30 minutes we covered almost as much as we had in the 2+ previous hours.  The others worked on ferrying packs and packing trail.  In short order we were at the Loch, and much to my chagrin I found that the lack of wind had the lake completely covered with 7-8 ft of snow. 

I knew that it was 7+ ft, as I had accidentally stepped off one of the sleeping pads and sank in to my neck while my feet still did not touch.  We found that if Matt crawled and mashed down the snow pack initially, and then Jake and I stomped on the pads, following behind Matt, and then handing the last pad to the front and repeating add infinity it seemed.  In less then an hour we were across the lake. 

It actually stopped snowing, and the sun came out, and things were looking up.  It was actually enjoyable to be out in the mountains regardless of our current situation, a feeling shared by everyone in the group.  We made it to the drainage, where I knew it would be the most avalanche danger at approximately 5 p.m.  By the time that everyone had moved the packs to the front I decided that we would pull up and set camp for the night, much to everyone’s chagrin.  I explained to them the avalanche risk, and pointed out the signs that made it dangerous, and definitely not a good idea to take on at night.  It turns out that even if we had pushed on, and made it to the car, we would have been in no better position, as the truck and trailer were buried by 109” of snow in the Bear Lake parking lot. 

We decided to look across the center of the drainage to see if there was a more suitable sight to set camp.  I rigged an anchor in the ice that covered the face of the rock on the right side of the drainage.  Roped, Matt moved across the drainage on pads, and scouted the other side.  Space was limited, and one of the guys said that he had liked a spot on the top of the hill above the drainage.  We told everyone to get plenty of water made, and eat up, as we were going out the next morning bright and early.  Matt, Adam, and I set our camp on the high side of the drainage, and tied the tent off for safety, and worked a little on the trail, as well as just scouted it repeatedly, looking for flaws and weaknesses.  That night it was very clear, and extremely cool. 

Thursday March 20:  At first light we woke up and got rolling.  We packed up our camp, and told the upper camp to start moving.  I had been fairly sure that our best approach was to traverse the gully, and move to a high spot from which we would repel down in to the lower part of the gully.  It was much steeper on the far side, and had more protection by trees.  Matt and I started out on belay by Adam and worked our pad system across the gully, and found that the snow pack was surprisingly stable.  We fixed anchors to trees as we passed by them. 

The going was much better then we expected, and we kept on, then tying the two ropes together into one long rope which we were both attached to, while I carried the third rope in backpack style to use when we were literally at the end of our rope.  Everyone was in really good spirits when they finally came down and saw the progress that we were making.  We affixed the Third rope to the last big tree that sheltered our route.  The trough we had cut was some three feet deep, and relatively easy to travel, with the ropes left there as a fixed line. 

As we approached the last 70 feet of the Gully, and were nearly into the woods, a chopper flew overhead.  I had told the group that this might possibly happen, as we were now over our permit return date.  In most cases, the park service usually waits at least a day or two past your prescribed return date to even start the process, but unbeknownst to us the park had been closed for two days, we’d gone to war, and they’d had four feet of snow in town.  I-70 had closed, I-25 had closed, and parts of I-80 had closed.  The storm of the century was much further reaching then anything we had even fathomed. 

The chopper buzzed us, and I waived to them with one hand over the head making a broad sweep –the sign for O.K.- and even waved them off, as everyone had said that they wanted to make it out of there on their own, under their own power, and without outside help.  They had even conceded that if it took two more days that they’d camp, and stretch the food and fuel just to do it on our own.  I was incredibly impressed by the group’s tenacity, and proud to be in the backcountry with these guys.  I said jokingly that it was actually a Weight Watcher’s trip, and we all had to lose 5-10 lbs before we were allowed to come out of the backcountry.  Jake said “I never thought fat camp should be so hard,” with his usual upbeat bravado. 

As the chopper buzzed over repeatedly, I took some pictures, and they moved in to throw a bag down that had water, a radio, a heat compress, and some info.  Matt and I kept on, as Brendan and Adam worked the trail into pack carrying consistency.  When we were within 150’ of the bottom of the drainage we heard other voices coming from the bottom of the gully.  Adam piped in on the radio that the chopper had thrown down a bag, and we were working it down to me.  The chopper continued to hover over.  When I finally got the radio, I flipped it on, and read the enclosed instructions.  I could hear the other communicating groups, but couldn’t broadcast out.  I found the toggles switched into the wrong position, and remedied the situation, and made a call out. 

The chopper was worried that they only counted eight in our party.  I radioed in that we were “nine and fine”.  They asked if there were any medical conditions, or injuries, and if we needed anything.  I said that we were all fine, that one guy (Jake) maybe had a bit of frost-nip, and that we could use a beer, or possibly 9 pair of snowshoes.  Just about then the voices that we’d heard materialized on the slope above us.  In about the worst possible place that they could be, even after I’d told them we were 100’ from the bottom of the drainage they continued above us, putting us in more jeopardy then we were on our own. 

I continually asked that they just cut us a path with their skis from the bottom of the drainage to us.  The leader of the ground group yelled down to us-“you’re in a danger zone, there’s heavy slide potential there.”  To which I replied “No Shit, and if you’d have listened to me, you wouldn’t be above me right now.  All we want is a path for the last 75 ft.”  As they floundered around on the top of the hill, Matt and I made a bee line to the bottom of the gully. The above “rescuer” told us not to move, and I told him that we were getting out of his potential slide path.  To which his partners responded they were going to make us a path. 

In a matter of minutes we were meeting up with a couple of guys from CMS (Colorado Mountain School), and moving into the protected trees.  Thereby the above rescuer tried to ski down, and went ass over tea kettle.  We got some good pictures of it, as well as the other “rescuers” that skied the fat powder with little success.  It’s hard to free heel ski that much powder, but was entertaining to watch just the same.  By the time that the rescue group got to us, all but three of us were at the bottom of the slope.  We had shuttled the packs, and moved into an open area.  Some of the park people came in and helped us pack down the area, so that we could regroup our nine.  We drank some water, and ate some granola. 

One of the guys in the rescue party was a friend of mine, and we caught up on what we’d each been doing.  Wilbur-the group leader-came over to check on Jake’s allegedly “severely frostbitten” feet.  Wilbur and I examined Jake’s feet together, and found that his feet were fine, but he needed a new pair of socks.  Wilbur had a spare set, and we got his feet dried out and I put his feet inside my jacket on a heat pack and got them warmed up again.  I had suggested that Ryan and Shaun do the same for him and each other the night before when Jake said that his feet were a bit cold.  We determined that Jake had good “Cap Fill,” and wasn’t in need of an airlift, so we could continue out. 

There was some talk of the chopper coming in and airdropping us some snowshoes, but we were anxious to keep moving rather then sit around and plot.  We discussed how we might be able to hike the trail out if the “rescue” party went ahead and packed out the trail for us.  While we waited for the CMS crew to bring the ropes down that we had used for fixed lines we got everything situated to get on the move again.  One particular ranger-Mary Beth-was very cheerfully curt with me.  Under the pretense of being very nice and inquisitive she battered me with questions of essentially how I could be so dumb.  She of course told me that they’d known that they were supposed to get the storm of the century for over a week, and that there was no way that I could not have known and that RMNP “was a very serious alpine environment, and that it could be easy for people from the Midwest to underestimate.”  I felt she was rather patronizing, especially for someone that had not spent as much time in this particular part of the park as I had I would later come to find out. 

To my pleasant surprise, all of the group that was present rallied to my side.  Even a number of the “rescuers” sided with me that had I got the weather report when I did there’d be no way I could have known that the impending weather was so serious, as they themselves hadn’t heard anything until Sunday night, or even Monday morning.  When we did finally start moving again, we were doing fine, until Mary Beth fell to the middle of our group.  We had a system where the lightest of the group was moving towards the front, as they could pack the steps down, and the next would come along, and kick a little snow on top, and fill it in, and so on and so forth until the last and heaviest guys-Jake and I got to the more solidified steps.  With Mary Beth moving to the middle of the group, in her snowshoes, she unintentionally masked the prints where the previous un-shoed hikers had walked, and of course the rest of our group Ryan, Jake, Matt, and I found ourselves post-holing up to our waist all over again. 

This was more then a little frustrating.  To their credit, a number of the “rescuers” either traded packs with us, or took some of our weight in order to make our ability to float a little better.  We moved on at a faster, but not as fast as the “rescuers” pace, and before we knew it, they were halting us mid trail. Apparently they had decided to call in the chopper and long line us the nine pair of snowshoes that I had originally said was all that we really needed.  When they finally did arrive, we were quickly into them, and hiked out the last 1.25 miles.  When we arrived at the Glacier Gorge Trailhead, we were greeted by a number of big wig rangers, and coordinators of the “rescue”. 

We actually made it out before a couple of the “rescuers” did, as one of them broke a ski binding in the last ¾ of a mile.  Matt went up to get the truck and trailer while we packed up the snowshoes and stripped out of our parkas as it was now heating up in the afternoon.  Matt came back with the trailer, and we got all of our gear situated as I was introduced to a number of different rangers like Joe Evans, one of the head rangers at RMNP.  I was told that I’d need to be debriefed following our return to the park entrance.  We followed four park Jeeps to the park entrance and drove down to be debriefed.  I had thought that the rest of the group could go on and find something to eat, as they had only asked that I be debriefed initially.  Upon arrival however they decided that they wanted to talk to the entire group. 

During the drive from Glacier Gorge trailhead to the park entrance everyone discussed how we felt about the “rescue”.  It was a consensus that we were all frustrated by the situation, and that we had wanted to get out on our own.  We hadn’t felt “rescued”, and if anything felt like we’d been put in more jeopardy during parts of the “rescue” attempt.  As we’d been a bit separated by direct line of sight while everything occurred we then recounted to each other what had actually transpired.  Apparently when the chopper had flown over, Shaun, Ryan, and Jake were blasted by snow from the whirling chopper blades.  They ducked down and when Shaun looked up he saw that someone from the chopper was leaning out and looked as though they might lower something down. Then, in rapid fashion the potentially lowered item came ripping down and nearly caught Ryan in the head. 

They hadn’t waved at the chopper, as they didn’t want to be rescued, and didn’t really want anyone else’s help any more then anyone else.  I had jokingly said that if they did come in with a chopper that I’d likely give them the bird before I’d get flown out as I was determined to be self-sufficient, one of the most important qualities to maintain in the mountains.  Adam said that from his vantage the chopper was stirring up a bunch of snow that looked like it was about to slough off and head down the slope towards Matt, Brendan and I.  When the “rescue” team got to the upper members of our group they told them not to worry about the ropes, and to just go down, as the slope was fine. 

These same “rescuers” had just skied up the middle of the slope-through the most dangerous avalanche terrain, and started removing the ropes and anchors that I had set previously.  They told the remaining ISU participants that they didn’t need to worry about staying on the trail, and should just “walk down”.  They didn’t understand that the snow was too soft to just walk down, or we would have been out already.  As Adam cleaned the ice anchors the CMS crew said they’d take it from there, and started to pull the ropes.  As on of the “rescuers” cleaned the anchors, the other insisted that the remaining ISU participants walk around him, as he stood in our trail, and Adam reassured him that if we could just walk around, we’d be in Estes by now.  To which the “rescuer” reluctantly moved over, and fell into the deep powder, unable to right himself.   It was only after the CMS “rescue” party had already skied out that we realized that they’d accidentally taken one of our ropes with them. 

At the debriefing they pulled the majority of the participants and other leaders into groups of two, except for me and two others, who were debriefed in a one on one situation.  Apparently they were trying to ascertain whether or not I had been some kind of sadistic leader that knowingly looked at the potential of danger that we were facing, and was overly motivated by reaching the summit, or even worse, that I was some kind of dumb flatlander that shouldn’t be leading trips into the backcountry of CO. 

Everybody told it like it was, and I heard from a couple of the interviewing rangers afterwards that more then a few had said that they were disappointed to see the rescuers, as they were determined to get out on their own.  We then left the debriefing, and I made some calls to find our missing rope, and left the “rescue” crew to debrief.  The Rangers gave the crew what was left of their Veggie Pesto Pizza, and they devoured it.  We made our way back to the Hobby Horse, where I was told we had a room booked for the night, and checked in.  I made the call to Mike Harvey, and to my parents and instructed the rest of the group to do the same.  I called my friend from Estes, and he came out and took us for dinner.  I also called Brian Faith who was part of the rescue crew, and offered to buy him dinner, and pick his brain about how their debriefing had gone, and find out what the events were that head led to our “rescue”.  According to Brian, the group as a whole was pretty impressed with us, and were actually amazed that we were doing as well as we were. 

In Conclusion:  The trip obviously didn’t go according to plan, but as I had stressed in the pre-trip meeting, flexibility was going to be the key to enjoying this trip.  Alpine climbing/mountaineering is an exercise in problem solving, part of which includes adapting to changes in weather and handling the unexpected.  To their credit, this group of young men was absolutely amazing.  Just as in a chain, you are only as strong as your weakest link.  There were no weak links in this chain.  I firmly believe that had they not come in to “rescue” us we would have been out that same day regardless, and smiling from ear to ear with our accomplishment.  What we did accomplish in the interim was nothing to sneeze at, but I think all would agree was a bit tainted by the would-be “rescue”.  I can easily say that I could not have chosen a better group of guys to tough it out with. 

Ryan:  Ryan was a real trooper.  Sitting out doing the hard and thankless job of making water on one of the stormiest nights of the trip.  Ryan was always looking out for the other members of the group, and was an asset in every way.  His hard work may go unrewarded, but not unnoticed.

Jake:  Jake was the ideal participant.  His upbeat attitude and quick wit helped to save the group’s morale on more then a couple of occasions.  Jake was always taking initiative and putting it upon himself to help make the group better in every way.

Shaun:  Shaun was great.  Shaun’s flexibility made it easy to keep things going in the right direction.  His positive and upbeat attitude, as well as his seeming inability to be phased by the elements made him a cornerstone of the team.

Andy:  Andy was a real surprise.  The first day that the going really started to get tough and it was make or break for the team Andy bucked up and seemed to “flip a switch” into the go mode.  When you’ve seen so many people fold at that same breaking point it’s awesome to see someone rise above it.

Tim:  Tim was a real trooper.  Even when I could see it in his eyes that he wanted to fold he’d just buckle down and grind it out.  His ability to overcome so many obstacles is a testament to his bright future.

Brendan:  Brendan-what can I say?  Brendan was a real workhorse on the trip.  If ever anything needed to be done, all I had to do was ask, and normally I didn’t even have to as he was already on task.  Never afraid to take the lead, even helping me to stay strong by himself being a pillar of strength, Brendan is destined for great things.

Adam:  Adam was great.  I can’t think of a time that Adam wasn’t ready to shoulder his responsibilities and help make the team better.  Adam was an integral part of us getting through some of the most difficult sections of our escape from RMNP.

Matt:  Matt was awesome.  It’s not usual that you get the opportunity to work with someone that is both so naturally gifted and so motivated to learn.  Matt was a real workhorse scratching, kicking, and crawling at the front of the team in an effort to lead us out.  Matt is well on his way to becoming a great trip leader in his own rite.