MT. SHERMAN
14,036 ft.
September 14, 1996
By Tim Briese
(Note: For a trip report on a climb I did of Mt. Sherman in wintry conditions in April of 1999, see the More Climbs page.)
I picked up my young friend Caleb and headed into the mountains on a rainy Friday afternoon. We turned off the highway south of Fairplay and drove up the Fourmile Creek road toward the lofty summits of the Mosquito Range. The weather was clearing up now, just in time for us to enjoy the beautiful stands of yellow and orange aspens along the road, glowing at the height of their color. We found a splendid spot to camp in a secluded glen beside a stream with yellow aspens nearby. We started a roaring fire for warmth and then set up camp and cooked dinner. As dusk settled in we threw sticks for my lab Sadie to retrieve for a while. It was a crisp and cool fall evening in a beautiful place. I thoroughly enjoyed the smell of autumn in the air and the sound of the stream nearby. We sat around the warm fire and talked all evening. Caleb was an enthusiastic thirteen year old, and I admired his attitude about life and his worldly wisdom, as he shared with me his dream about becoming an evangelist someday. Around 10 p.m. we retired to the tent after admiring the stars glittering in the clear sky.
When we arose at 6:30 it was 29 degrees and everything was covered with a glistening coat of frost, so I immediately started my truck so we would have a place to warm ourselves as we packed up. A few minutes later we met my friend Hal who drove up from Colorado Springs that morning and who was going to accompany us on the climb. We drove a few miles further up the road and reached the Mt. Sherman trailhead a little before 8 a.m.
The trailhead is well above timberline, at nearly 12,000 feet, which makes for a rather easy 14er climb. A light shower of snow blew in around us as we headed up the trail, evidence that winter was not far away in the high country. The route took us upward past interesting old mines and rusting equipment from a bygone era, and we marveled at the old-timers’ ingenuity and tenacity in getting all that heavy iron gear up to these high elevations. We passed a bank of snow as we ascended a steeper slope and reached the saddle between Mt. Sherman and Mt. Sheridan (13,748'). As we paused to rest there at 13,100 feet, we were treated to a nice view of the Arkansas River Valley and the Sawatch Range off to the west. I was surprised to see the remnants of an old telegraph or electrical transmission line from the mining era that came up over the saddle. One could only wonder about its purpose.
From the saddle we followed a fine ridge to the northeast toward Sherman’s summit. There were several other climbers on the trail, and Sadie received numerous warm greetings and an ample supply of affectionate petting. We pushed on up the ridge and reached the broad summit at about 11:00.
The sky was overcast and it was a chilly 35 degrees on top, with a couple of inches of snow lying on the ground. There were about a dozen climbers milling about, and Hal entertained everyone with his unflappable humor. An older gentleman was writing notes about the climb in the back of a guidebook he had along, and I was impressed when he told us he had recently climbed the difficult Maroon Bells. We sat on some rocks and admired the surrounding scenery as we ate our lunch. Several climbers graciously shared portions of their food with Sadie, who always presents an appearance of being hungry.
After a half hour on top we began our descent and headed down the ridge. It was a fast, easy descent, and blue sky began to appear as we returned to the trailhead at 1:15. I thoroughly enjoyed this outing with my two enthusiastic companions, and I found it fun to share in their excitement about our climb of this gentle 14er.
