CULEBRA PEAK
14,047 ft.
July 14, 1999
By Tim Briese
(Note: For another trip report on a more recent climb I have done of Culebra Peak, see the More Climbs page.)
My daughter Emily and I decided to begin our 1999 14er climbing season by tackling Culebra Peak. It is the southernmost 14er in the state and the only one completely on private land, located in the middle of the vast Taylor Ranch. Our timing was very fortunate, for a few weeks after our climb the ranch was sold and access for climbers shut off, with only very limited permission for climbing allowed since then.
We left home after lunch with our lab Allie and made the 200 mile drive south to San Luis, the oldest town in Colorado. We had an excellent Mexican dinner at a restaurant in town that was owned and operated by local Hispanics, who could barely speak any English. Afterwards we called the manager of the Taylor Ranch and told him we were on our way, and he told us where the key was to unlock the ranch gate. We followed the backroads out of San Luis to the ranch entrance, where we found the key for the big metal gate under a nearby log, and drove onto the ranch. We stopped at the rustic old cabin where the manager lived to check in. The manager was a friendly older man with a weathered appearance that spoke of a life lived outdoors, and we lingered to visit with him for a little bit. He told us that the owner of the ranch, Zachary Taylor, lived in North Carolina and did not visit the ranch very often. He said that about 300 people per year came to climb Culebra. There were no other climbers or hunting parties on the ranch now, so our only company would be the elk and bears. The most recent climber had been there the day before. He also told us that we were welcome to camp anywhere we liked along the road up to the trailhead. I signed a liability release form, paid him the required fee, thanked him and left. The total fee amounted to $60, which was $40 for myself and $20 for Emily, since she was only 12 years old.
We left the area of the ranch buildings and drove up a remarkably straight road for about three miles. Although the road was very steep, it was well graded and fairly smooth. Along the way we admired some enormous aspen groves. As we neared timberline we passed a four-way intersection and drove on a mile further to the trailhead to have a look. The steep road gained 2400 feet of elevation in four miles, from 9200 feet elevation at the ranch headquarters to 11,600 feet at the trailhead. After looking at the trailhead where we would be embarking on our hike in the morning, we backtracked down the road about a mile and a half and set up camp at a magnificent spot at 11,000 feet above a high, sloping meadow filled with gorgeous wildflowers with a stand of aspens below. There was a spectacular view of the San Luis Valley stretching off into the distance and the Blanca massif off to the north. We gazed at the sunset across the valley as we sat by our cheery campfire. As dusk ensued I admired the lights of San Luis, Alamosa, and other towns spread out on the valley floor below. When it became dark the stars in the sky above joined the town lights below to provide a grand show of lights.
This was a spectacular and inspiring place to camp, I thought, as I sat outside in the dark and feasted my eyes on the show of lights. It was quite a privilege, too, to have this 55,000 acre wilderness all to ourselves.
We awoke at dawn in the chilly 44 degree air, packed up, and drove up to the trailhead. We began the hike at about 6:30 and made a steep bushwhack up a grassy tundra slope to the southeast through beautiful stands of wildflowers. There was a trail of sorts that we could have taken up a drainage toward the ridge above to the left, but the grassy bushwhack looked more fun to us. We stopped for rest breaks a couple of times and sat on the grass amidst the wildflowers and admired the views. The sky was blue but the air was rather hazy, so much so that we could barely see Blanca Peak about 30 miles to the north. Eventually we reached the crest of a ridge at 13,200 feet near a huge cairn about five feet tall that we had seen from far below. From there we began the long, scenic hike along the curving ridge toward the summit, which was about a mile to the southeast. There was a pretty view of Carneros Lake in a basin far below to the northeast. Allie trapped two marmots in a hole in some rocks, and stood barking at them until we persuaded her to move on.
Emily was tiring, but pushed gamely on, and we reached the summit at about 10:30. We enjoyed nice views of the Spanish Peaks, the San Luis Valley, and the mountains to the south stretching off into New Mexico. We were only nine miles from the border while on the summit. Less than a mile to the south beyond a gentle saddle lay Red Mountain (13,908 ft.). If I had known that access to this area would soon be severely curtailed, I would likely have made the effort to climb it while I was there. Clouds were beginning to build up in the sky as we left the summit at about 11 a.m. It was an easy descent back down the ridge, and we decided to continue on the ridge past the giant cairn a little way to get on the trail that went down the drainage toward the trailhead. Along the way we passed through some beautiful stands of purple and yellow flowers. We spotted five elk a quarter of a mile away lying on a bank of snow at about 12,000 feet. When they saw our dog running about they decided it would be best to head down into the trees below for safety.
We reached the trailhead at 1 p.m. and headed down the road. Down lower in the woods we saw a large black bear on the road about fifty yards ahead of us, only the second bear I had seen in the wild in Colorado. He surprised us with his catlike agility as he nimbly bounded off the road and disappeared into the timber. Back in San Luis we sampled the fare at another local Mexican restaurant before beginning the drive home. It had been a unique and interesting adventure to visit the Taylor Ranch and to climb its private 14er.
