Almost Chasm Lake
November 9, 2003
With fall in full force and winter on the way, we've spent several weekend in a row being homebodies. Anyone who knows me well knows that I get extremely stir-crazy in such a situation, so I was itching to get out one more time before winter finally set in for good. Fortunately, there was a CHAOS hike planned for Sunday up to Chasm Lake. CHAOS, the Colorado Hiking And Outdoor Society, is a large and active local group and we've been on one other trip with them.
The day was mild and sunny and promissed to be a good one for hiking in the high country. We met Alek the trip leader at Moe's Bagels in North Boulder at 9am and were soon joined by Steven, Paul and Dave. In two cars we quickly made our way to the Long's Peak Trailhead to start the hike. This trailhead services the standard route up Longs and is one of the most crowded and popular in the entire state of Colorado. On a summer weekend, if you're not here by 4:30 am, you won't get a spot. Fortunately, the situation is different in November and there were numerous spots to choose from even at 10:30am when we arrived.
The trail to Chasm Lake follows the Longs standard route for 3.5 miles up through the trees and eventually splits off at the crest of the Mill's Moraine. Chasm Lake is perched in a steep-sided cirque (the Chasm, one presumes) at the base of the famous Diamond on Long's east side. The grade is gradual and the trail well-groomed and wide. This day it was actually covered in quite a bit of packed snow and roughly a foot of snow covered the forest floor nearby. The chill in the air was more than compensated for by our exertion as we set a brisk pace upward.
 |  (above) Alek leads the way as we get into the serious wind above tree line. |
At two miles, we neared treeline and began to see that wind was going to be an issue. Great plumes of snow could be seen billowing off the ridges of Mt. Meeker and Battle Mountain to the south and north, respectively. Down in the shelter of the last of the trees, it wasn't too bad, but clearly we were in for it shortly. We paused to gird our loins in a manner more befitting winter mountaineers with shells and a few more layers.
Half a mile later we'd cleared the trees and were greeted by the full force of the wind. It's always hard to judge wind-speed, but I would guess that we had 20 mph winds with gusts up in the 40-50 mph range. The wind was from directly up-slope and often bore small snow-crystals which sandblasted any exposed skin. We paused at the junction with the Jim's Grove trail for a few photos (not the ideal conditions for photography) and then headed left up the side of the Mills Moraine. Long's Peak itself was still hidden behind Mt. Lady Washington.
Going was now definitely tougher. The trail became somewhat indistinct and occasional drifts several feet in depth blocked our way. Alek and Paul lead the way and I concentrated on moving up-hill and up-wind. Occasional blasts would force us to stop and face down-wind for a while bracing with hiking poles and each other.
 The crew pauses at a trail junction with their backs to the wind. The Mills Moraine is in the middle-distance with Mt. Meeker, Longs Peak and Mt. Lady Washington farther back (l-r). |  |
Eventually, we climbed up a couple hundred feet of snow slope (postholing occasionally) and reached the crest of the moraine. The view here was fantastic: we were looking right up the Chasm with the steep walls of Mt. Meeker on the south and the slopes of Mt. Lady Washington on the North. Below ran the frozen course of the Roaring Fork Creek. The head of the cirque was formed by the dramatic Ship's Prow and Notch. But everything was dwarfed by the huge Diamond rising nearly a thousand feet right up to the summit of the peak itself. Small lines of white against it's grey surface showed snow and ice-covered ledges. Very impressive!
Unfortunately, Amy and I were both cold and tired and we'd taken three hours to get to this point instead of the projected two. Everyone hunkered down in the lee of a large rock and had some lunch. Plans were discussed. Alek and the others were resolute to push on to the lake despite the dire reports we'd received from other parties on the mountain. Amy and I elected to turn back here and meet the others down at the cars. In all likelihood, we could have made it to the lake and back, but it doesn't pay to take chances above treeline in November.
 A hurried lunch in the marginally-effective lee of a huge rock. Mills Morraine is in the background. |  The view toward the Chasm Lake cirque, the Ships Prow and the Diamond. |
Downhill was much easier than up and we quickly made our way down snow slopes, through rocks to the trail. Knowing that the others would probably take a while getting to the lake and back, we took our time enjoying the wind at our backs and the dramatic views of Twin Sisters Peak to the east and the smaller mountains in the foothills. Behind us the weather started to deteriorate and thin snow-bearing clouds obscured the sun. Once we dropped below treeline again, it began to get rather dark and it started to snow lightly. It was unclear if this was actual snow or simply fallout from the snow blowing off the ridges above. In any case, we trudged down the trail stopping frequently for snacks and rests. We reached the trailhead just as Alek and the others caught up to us. They had been successful and noted that the wind completely died once they neared the lake. Oh well. Some other time.
A very nice trip with a fine bunch of people. Also a great taste of what winter is like in the high mountains.
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