Lincoln, Bross, Democrat and Cameron
Planned a trip to go for this trifecta (Cameron is technically not a 14er) near Fairplay, CO. Barry Graham and I had decided to go without much planning the week he was in Colorado Springs. On the day before we were going to leave we also got 2 others to go with us, Frank Delall (TBMCS Program Manager - LM) and John Shafer (TBMCS Program Manager - USAF). We worked it out to spend the night in Fairplay so we could get an early start. Barry and I discussed the possibility of camping at the trailhead but decided not to on account of the weather. Barry and I got done at work first and arrived at Fairplay around mid afternoon. After checking in at the hotel we drove to the trailhead near Alma, about 10 miles away. The road going to the trailhead was rough but uneventful. We did see people camping but it was already turning cold.
The next morning we started before sunrise with the 4 of us having breakfast in Fairplay. We made the trailhead just before the sun came up and started out.
The area we actually parked in was just past the camping area. After crossing a small stream (no bridge) we parked the Jeep in a small area with several other vehicles. This is a very popular weekend destination and we would see LOTS of people throughout the day. After getting loaded up made our way the face, towards the saddle of Cameron and Bross.
Heading up the mountains (from Kite Lake)
After a short trek, about halfway up, we turned to our left and started up towards Democrat. From here we had an excellent view of where we started, Kite Lake.
See why they named the lake Kite?
From this point we experienced strong, very strong winds the remainder of the day. One person we spoke with stated the winds were in excess of 40 MPH. While the wind made the day somewhat uncomfortable and cold, the few times when it died down it would be come quite warm, very quickly.
Just before reaching the summit of Democrat we traversed a short time at just over 14,000 feet. I thought it odd to walking on relatively flat ground yet walking about 14,000 feet. The actual summit isn't much more than a small pinnacle which extends up a couple hundred feet or so.
Myself, Frank Delalla, John Shafer and Barry Graham on the summit of Democrat
After resting and taking photos we started towards Lincoln via Cameron. Part of this required us to backtrack but soon we were on new ground. Mt. Cameron is not considered a "true" 14er because it is not far enough from other 14ers (must be greater than 300 between another 14er). However, we did pass over this "summit" in order to reach Lincoln. Once we were back on the saddle we reached this summit. Once here we took an extended break to eat and take photos.
Resting on Lincoln (not much wind on this side of the mountain)
Myself on the summit of Lincoln (very bright!)
Barry Graham on the summit of Lincoln
Making our back to Cameron (and on to Bross)
After our break we started our way back towards Cameron in order to reach Bross. Just before leaving John said he was feeling nauseous. John was in probably as good as shape if not better than most of us. However, coming from the east coast, he was not at all acclimated to the altitude. I was worried but thankfully nothing more came of his illness. The trek to Bross was uneventful but we did see something unusual. A pickup truck was parked just below the summit. I had heard that people had driven up on the summit of Bross but had to see it to believe it. There is also a story of a plane crash (when?) once upon a time also on the summit. While there is a road to the summit it is not like the road leading up to Pikes Peak.
Once we got to the summit we took another break for a short time and then headed down. The summit of Bross is definitely different, by that it is very large and flat. We did sign-in at the summit near the rock shelter.
Barry signing the summit log on Bross
Heading back down the mountain
The trek down was very tricky. As we had already heard, once you commit to Bross you really are almost forced to go down the face of Bross vice going back down the way in which we initially ascended, from Kite Lake to the Cameron/Bross saddle. The so-called "trail" wasn't much more an a slide or rocky climb on no trail at all. John was the smartest of all. He donned a pair of gaiters which kept the rocks and junk out of his boots.
Conditions in which we hiked down (this was the good stuff!)
Approaching the trailhead (looking back towards the saddle between Cameron and Bross)
After reaching the Jeep we loaded up and started back towards town. Total time from start to finish was about 9 hours. The ride back to town was uneventful except for our hitchhiker. A young man from Italy was hiking back towards his car. He had flown into Denver and was doing some hiking. Apparently he had communicated correctly to the rental car company because he wanted a car for hiking and ended up with a convertible with low-clearance. He was able to make it until about 1 mile before the trailhead. After squeezing him in and out we made it back to town for dinner. From there Barry and I headed back to the Springs.
Great trip!
