Half Mountain

August 1st, 2007

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This was our second attempt of Half Mountain. On the first try, we started from the Bierstadt Lake TH, hiked up the Boulder Brook trail, and turned right onto the North Longs Peak trail. We left the trail a bit too soon and ended up south of the summit towards Point 11,402. It was very wind so we turned back without reaching the summit.

On this attempt, we started at 6:20am from the Glacier Gorge TH, climbed past Alberta Falls, and continued along the North Longs Peak trail from the other end. After the trail rounded the north face of Half Mountain, we left the trail and headed up. Initially we climbed through medium woods as the slope gradually increased. At one point, we found a cairn and an intermittent, faded trail that petered out fairly quickly. The middle portion of the climb was the steepest and had the toughest terrain, a mix of dense pines, fallen trees, and talus. Once we cleared the trees, the slope eased and the rest of the way was easy talus and tundra. We were all on the summit by 8:30am. The summit ridge has plenty of room and exceptional views of Glacier Gorge.

Viewed from the northeast, say from Sprague Lake, you can see some large rock fins on Half Mountains east side. On our descent, we headed down towards those fins and then arced left well before reaching them. It was a bit longer than the route up, but the lower half was less steep. Near the top, we weaved through moderate krummholz and talus which eventually turned to woods that were more open than those on the way up. We reached the North Longs Peak trail at 10:20am and the Glacier Gorge TH at 11:30am. This is a very nice hike. It's a bit of a workout on the off-trail portion, and it offers some fun route finding experience. The effort is worth it though as the summit is a prime viewing perch. I recommend it for those looking for a short, interesting hike, or those interested in trying their first off-trail adventure.

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