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Tag: sangre de cristo range

Sangre de Cristo Mountains: Hermit Pass PeaksSangre de Cristo Mountains: Hermit Pass Peaks

Sangre de Cristo Mountains: Hermit Pass Peaks

Rito Alto Peak & Hermit Peak | Saturday & Sunday, September 4-5, 2021

After spending the last couple days hiking high points in Arizona and New Mexico, it was now time to start heading back home through Colorado, but of course I planned to hike at least a couple more peaks on the way back! As I followed the Sangre de Cristo Mountains north out of New Mexico and into Colorado I thought it would be a good time to hike some peaks in that range since it’s been quite a while since I’ve spent any time there. Originally, I was considering continuing my quest of the The Four Sacred Mountains of the Navajo by hiking Blanca Peak, but didn’t think that would be a good place to find much solitude now, especially in the middle of a holiday weekend. I think I’ll save the last two Sacred Peaks for a little road trip next summer. Instead, I decided to head up the road to Hermit Pass near Westcliffe so I could not only hike some high 13ers, but also so I could drive up to a pass that I had never been to before. The road was not difficult or dangerous, but it was very bumpy, slow and annoying. I found a place to spend the night above Horseshoe Lake and then spent the rest of the evening relaxing at camp and watching the clouds move through the sky as sunset approached.

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The Serpent of The Sangres: Culebra PeakThe Serpent of The Sangres

The Serpent of The Sangres: Culebra Peak

Culebra Peak | Friday – Saturday, July 28-29, 2017

Last year after hiking my first 14er in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains I thought it would be nice to come back again this year for another one. After looking at my options earlier in the year I decided to try and get two permits to hike Culebra Peak (14,047) at the southern end of the range within Colorado. Culebra, which translates to serpent or snake in Spanish, is most likely named for the long snake-like ridge that leads up to its summit which is visible from the west. For those not familiar, Culebra Peak is the southernmost 14er in Colorado (only about 9 miles from the New Mexico border), the highest point in the Culebra Range, and is completely on private property which was originally part of a large Mexican Land Grant that dates back to 1844. This area of Colorado has a very unique and controversial history and I highly recommend that you check out this page on Summit Post to learn more about the timeline of this property. What pushed me over the edge to try for Culebra this year was the fact that the ranch it is located on has been for sale for a while and there is no guarantee the future owner of the property will continue to allow access. I figured that I’d like the opportunity to try and climb this peak now with it’s uncertain future.

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Sangre de Cristo Mountains: Humboldt PeakHumboldt Peak

Sangre de Cristo Mountains: Humboldt Peak

Saturday & Sunday, August 27-28, 2016

Since Diane enjoys going backpacking with me, it’s been a few years since I went on a solo trip. But since she was busy this weekend, I thought it would be a good time to go on an overnight trip by myself. I have been wanting to climb my first new 14er of the year and one of my goals for the summer was to get over to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, so I thought climbing Humboldt Peak (14,064) from the South Colony Lakes sounded like a perfect trip for the weekend. I’m a bit late getting started hiking new 14ers this year because of our traveling back to the Midwest during July and a few other planned trips during August, so I probably won’t get many new ones in this year. I do hope to at least attempt another one or two this year. Though, I did enjoy the repeat of Uncompahgre Peak a few weeks ago.

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