PHOENIX PEAK
13,895 ft.
September 17, 2004
By Tim Briese
Phoenix Peak is a gentle summit in the La Garita Range that lies about seven miles northeast of Creede. I took advantage of a fine September day to climb this easy Centennial 13er while passing through southwest Colorado on a trip to deliver a boat to my daughter in Arizona.
I left home at 5:30 a.m. and drove 250 miles southwest to Creede, where I arrived a few minutes before 10. I drove north of town on a narrow but fairly smooth gravel road to the East Willow Creek Trailhead. There was barely enough room at the trailhead to turn my truck around with the boat in tow. I suppose the boat was a rather strange sight at this remote mountain trailhead for anyone who happened to see it that day!
I left the trailhead at 10:20 with my lab Jorie and hiked north up a rough four wheel drive road that went up the East Willow Creek Valley. This was an uncharacteristically late start for me, but the weather forecast promised blue skies and abundant sunshine all day. Flaming golden and orange aspens glowed in the brilliant morning sunshine throughout the valley. I couldn= t have been blessed with a finer day for this climb. The road soon climbed up over a ridge, where I was afforded a nice view of Phoenix Peak to the northeast. Then it descended to the vicinity of the creek before turning north and paralleling it up the valley.
After hiking nearly a mile and a half up the valley I crossed Whited Creek on a rickety little footbridge next to the four wheel drive road and continued another quarter of a mile and reached the south end of Phoenix Park. Following Roach= s excellent directions, I turned to the east and crossed East Willow Creek at this point and then followed an old trail south and then east up into an unnamed side drainage. I came to an old trailhead sign near some beaver ponds and continued up a crude trail along the north side of a tiny creek. Trails are faint and little-used in this area so I found a topo map invaluable. I enjoy hikes like this that entail a bit of a routefinding challenge. After stumbling over numerous downed aspen trees across the trail for a quarter of a mile I was guided by some cairns to cross to the south side of the creek. A trail took me along the south side of the creek and up into the woods where I picked up the old Center Stock Driveway. Occasional rusty old signs marked the Driveway, which may have been a well-used route in its heyday, but was now little more than a faint trail through the woods. Fortunately there were cairns to point out the way on sketchier sections.
After about a mile and a half the trail broke out of the woods at 11,600 feet and I presently spotted a west-facing cliff band that Roach describes. I crossed to the north side of the creek and climbed easy grassy slopes to get up onto a gentle ridge above the cliffs to the east. Phoenix Peak was a mile away to the north and Point 13,780 was directly above to the northeast. I followed the ridge north to 12,600 feet and then angled up toward the saddle between Phoenix and Point 13,780, staying on grass below rocky slopes as much as I could.
When I reached the 13,580 foot saddle I was greeted by sweeping views off to the north on the other side. After a brief rest I hiked west and then north on an easy ridge a half mile to the flat summit, where I arrived at 1:40. I was surprised that the climb had gone so quickly, considering that it entailed over five miles and 4000 feet of elevation gain. Easy grades and fine weather made for a fast climb.
A huge cairn, well over five feet tall and three feet in diameter, stood atop the summit. Views were expansive in all directions. La Garita Peak (13,710') was a mile and a half along the ridge to the southeast, San Luis and Stewart Peaks lay a few miles to the northwest, while Rio Grande Pyramid and the Needle Mountains lay far off to the southwest, deep in the heart of the San Juans. Around to the north and east I could see the Elk, Sawatch, and Sangre de Cristo Ranges off in the vast distance. I thoroughly enjoyed the fine panorama surrounding me on this beautiful day. The summit register showed that I was only the 25th climber to visit this remote summit this year.
After soaking up the grandeur for 45 minutes I left the top and began my descent at 2:25. I rapidly scooted back down the easy slopes before stopping for a while to enjoy the panorama before me on a slope at about 12,800 feet. The broad, high-elevation plain of Wason Park stretched away just below for miles to the southeast, while aspen-filled valleys lay to the southwest. Beyond in the distance was the rugged grandeur of the San Juans.
This was my third climb in the La Garita Range in the last few years, and I have thoroughly enjoyed each one of them. I like the untrampled solitude and expansive beauty of this area. I find the broad slopes and gentle terrain peaceful and inspiring. It does not have the rugged and exciting beauty that raises the pulse like the Elks and Needles, but rather a gentle and pleasant charm that soothes the soul.
After a few minutes of restful reflection I continued down the grassy ridge and soon re-entered the woods. I clipped back down the Center Stock Driveway but dramatically slowed my pace when I got back down to the yellow aspens and beaver ponds. These were especially beautiful in the late afternoon sun, and I stopped for several photos.
The sun was beginning to drop behind the mountains to the west as I hiked back down the four wheel drive road. It was rather grueling climbing back up over the ridge as I approached the trailhead. I wondered why Roach= s directions did not mention a foot trail shown on my map that started a quarter of a mile south of where I had parked, which might have eliminated the hike up over the ridge. Perhaps that alternative was worse for some reason. By and large, I felt that Roach= s directions were excellent for this climb.
I hiked back to the trailhead at 5 p.m., completing the climb in just over six and a half hours. I estimated that I hiked eleven miles and climbed 4400 feet of elevation gain on this outing. I did not see anyone else on the trail all day. It was a beautiful hike on a splendid day, with plenty of flaming yellow aspens and expansive views under the deep blue September sky.
