Culebra Peak is perhaps the most historical and controversial of Colorado's 14ers. A trip report would not be complete without a brief mention of the history of the peak as it relates to climbers. An excellent historical account of Culebra is given in this link.

In 1960, North Carolina lumberman Jack Taylor purchased the 120 square mile tract of land covering the west side of Culebra Peak. Ignoring the local residents' claim to use of the land as a condition of the original land grant, Taylor completely closed off access. Confrontations between Taylor's men and the locals were often violent, and Taylor himself was shot in 1975. In 1988 Jack Taylor died and his son Zachary took over the estate. Zachary Taylor offered restricted climbing of Culebra and surrounding peaks during the summer months, charging fees ranging from $25 to $40.

In 1999, former Enron executive Lou Pai purchased the ranch from Taylor. He completely cut off access and no hiking was allowed until 2001, when the Colorado Mountain Club was able to negotiate a single climb with 25 people. In August 2002 the CMC was allowed 2 hikes of 25 people, and a third was added in September. In August 2003 the CMC did 3 hikes of Culebra, and one of the hikes was allowed to add the Centennial peak Red Mountain. In August 2004 the CMC organized the same deal as 2003, but the ranch was sold to new owners Bobby and Dottie Hill, along with partners Richard and Kelly Welch. Their plans for future hiker access are still unknown, but the 2004 trip was a go. Note that the landowner on the east side of Culebra has never allowed any access.

I entered the CMC lottery in 2002 and 2003, without success. In 2004 the CMC decided not to allow new lottery applicants, instead choosing from those who had entered in the lottery in previous years and had not yet been picked. The CMC called to determine my interest and availability for the Culebra climbs on August 28 and 29. August 27 also included a climb of Red Mountain and was restricted to those attempting to finish the Centennial peaks. This was the last chance I was giving myself to win a Culebra climb by the lottery system before judging the peak inaccessible and moving on to finish the 14ers with a final climb of Capitol Peak. The CMC called a couple weeks later to let me know I had been picked to climb Culebra on August 28.

I had planned to leave work on Friday, August 27 and camp by the Como Lake Road, but stopped in Colorado Springs to visit my friend Mitch. I ended up crashing on his couch for a couple hours before heading off at 02:00 to meet the CMC group at 05:30 in San Luis. After a long and sleepy drive I made it in time to meet the group and we carpooled to the ranch. In Chama the leader vehicle was stopped by a truck, and the driver told him "They're waiting for you at the ranch". I think they thought we were lost and sent someone to look for us. We were let through the ranch gate and continued to a group of buildings where we met with Alonzo, one of the ranch employees. He gathered our paperwork and told us we could drive up to Fourway and park.

The previous CMC climbs had to start from the ranch buildings, so being able to start from Fourway was a treat which knocked off 6 miles roundtrip and about 2000' of vertical. We drove up the steep dirt road and reached the road junction called Fourway at 11,220', and prepared for the climb. After a few words from Gene, the trip leader, we started hiking up the road at 07:00.

Hiking in a tight group of 24 people (one had cancelled at the last minute) was a strange experience, and I didn't enjoy it at first. There was so much chatter from many of the hikers and everyone was so close together. At the end of the road Gene encouraged us to spread out to minimize our impact as we climbed the steep and grassy hill to gain the ridge. This quieted things down and the climb became more of an individual effort to gain the 1500' to the ridge. Climbers were strung up and down the hill for several hundred feet as the fastest climbers took the lead and the slower climbers dropped back, followed by Gene's wife Suzan who brought up the rear. This was the hardest part of the climb and I climbed and rested alternately, maintaining a position near the middle of the group. The lack of sleep was hurting my performance but I knew if I kept pushing I would have no problems reaching the summit. As we climbed higher the views of the surrounding valleys opened up, including an excellent vista of the Blanca group to the north.

Foto ©2004 by John C. Maki

We reached the ridge and followed it to a huge well-built cairn, where we stopped to rest and regroup. The weather was holding up nicely at this point, but the view of the summit ridge indicated that we would be in clouds for the rest of the climb.

Foto ©2004 by John C. Maki

We left the cairn at about 09:00, and descended to a saddle then started up Culebra's west ridge. Sure enough, clouds began to envelop the group and the wind picked up, but no precipitation developed. This ridge is very long with many false summits, and I thought we had arrived at the summit a couple times but the group kept on going.

Foto ©2004 by John C. Maki

I reached the summit at 10:00. Most of us sat behind rocks to stay out of the chill wind and had a bite to eat. A few of the group had finished the 14ers and we all congratulated them. For a large group hike, this was a very experienced group - most were nearly finished with the 14ers - and we had no problems with lack of preparation for the hike. At 10:20 Gene signaled that it was time to go and we headed back down the ridge. Occasionally the clouds lifted, presenting excellent views in all directions. Culebra Peak really is a very scenic and pristine area, and I would probably return if not for all the red tape. However, the red tape is the reason for the pristine condition of the area. Even in this large group I was able to feel quite alone, knowing that nobody else was on the mountain. We reached the giant cairn and regrouped again before the descent, and many took this opportunity to eat and take some photos.

Foto ©2004 by John C. Maki

On the descent into the bowl we tried to traverse as much as possible as it was easier on the mountain (and our knees). We spooked a couple ptarmigans, but other than a few marmots and birds, I saw no wildlife on this hike. By the time we reached the road I was in a bit of a haze from sleep deprivation, and I was glad to see the vehicles. We packed up, drove down the road, checked out of the ranch, and drove back to San Luis. As we drove through Chama I remarked on the number of broken-down adobe buildings, a reminder of the multi-generational Hispanic and Indian influence on the area - San Luis is the oldest town in Colorado.

Thanks to Gene and Suzan Gebow for doing an excellent job leading us on Culebra Peak, and thanks to the CMC for making this possible! Only one more 14er to go for me, if the weather cooperates I should be able to climb Capitol Peak within a couple weeks.