This was the first climb on my 6-day climbing vacation. I was planning to climb Wetterhorn, Uncompahgre, Wilson Peak and Castle Peak if I could handle climbing that many... and with the cooperation of the weather. It turned out that the limiting factor on this trip was the weather... so I cut it short to 4 days and 3 14ers, one each from the San Juan, Elk and Sawatch Ranges.

I drove out to Lake City Wednesday afternoon to find a camping spot near the Matterhorn Creek trailhead. I found a nice spot just off the road a little above the turnoff for the 4X4 road that leads to the trailhead, and set up camp. It rained a little that evening, was clear at midnight, and cloudy again at 05:00 when I awoke. I was having my doubts about the weather conditions but drove up the 4X4 road to the trailhead and started hiking at 06:15. The trail follows an old Jeep trail, now gated off at the trailhead, as it works its way above the trees. At 11,200' the trail leaves Matterhorn Creek and switchbacks up on the east side, then enters the basin below Matterhorn and Wetterhorn Peaks. Roach's directions have you leave the trail at 12,040' and cross the basin toward Matterhorn, then curve around toward a saddle beneath Wetterhorn's southeast ridge.

Foto ©2001 by John C. Maki

I was hiking behind a man and his son, and followed them as they made their way across the basin. They stuck to a slope below Matterhorn with the intention of contouring around Matterhorn Basin above a boulder field, which made sense to me as I followed. Before they entered the boulder field they stopped to rest and I continued on. I crossed the boulders and eventually found myself on the path to the saddle - along with a few people who were behind us on the trail. The correct way to the saddle is to head toward a creek drainage below Wetterhorn and pass beneath the boulders - there is a faint trail in places. I met up with the man and son below the saddle and we exchanged notes about where we went wrong in taking the "scenic route". At least it was clear which path to take to the summit from here.

From the 13,060' saddle, you follow the ever-steepening ridge to the Ship's Prow, a prominent tower below the summit. Stay on the right side of the Ship's Prow, then enter the smaller of two notches (the Keyhole) and encounter the final 150' summit pitch. Before the Ship's Prow are some towers that can be bypassed on the west side of the ridge. I was climbing up the ridge along with the father/son team, and a group of four guys who carried a rope. At the first set of towers I looked for an easy passage on the west side of the ridge and spotted a large cairn marking a notch about 100' below the ridge. I thought I'd try this notch, even though it meant I had to descend then regain my altitude on the other side. The others took the high road. We ended up on the other side of the towers at about the same time, and joined up on the ridge again. My side was easy but involved a steep ascent up a loose dirt slope, so I think the high road was better.

Back on the ridge, we headed for the right side of the Ship's Prow - only the Ship's Prow was hidden from view at that point. We found a trail heading up the ridge on its far east side, so we followed that. A steep scramble up from that trail and we all found ourselves below the Ship's Prow and the Keyhole. One of the four guys climbed up into the Keyhole and checked it out, said yep, it's exposed all right.

I put on my helmet and decided to climb to the summit before the others, so I wouldn't have to wait in line. Through the Keyhole I stepped upon a rock slab that led down to the final pitch, which is a steep climb up a gully consisting of many narrow "steps" covered with sand. Below the gully the slope drops down hundreds of feet, but it's not a cliff. On the other side of the gully is a sheer cliff. I have read a lot about the sensational exposure on this pitch, but I really didn't think it was that bad. You would have to make a major mistake to fall off this pitch. Of course, rain or snow/ice would present a different set of circumstances to deal with...

          
Fotos ©2001 by John C. Maki

          
Fotos ©2001 by John C. Maki

In a few minutes I topped out on the summit, 3 hours after I had left the trailhead. I signed the register, and the other parties joined me momentarily. The weather was very nice while we were on the summit, clear skies to the west for several miles, though some dark clouds were farther out. We could hear some bleating noises coming from the other side of Matterhorn Peak, and one of the party of four said they saw a flock of domestic sheep when they climbed Matterhorn the day before. After 30 minutes on top, the dark clouds were getting closer and I thought I should head down. It took me a minute to find the best point to enter the gully, which turned out to be a better spot than where I had left it! Downclimbing the gully presented no problems for me, real or imaginary, and I exited the gully onto the slab and climbed back through the Keyhole.

Foto ©2001 by John C. Maki

I considered climbing Ship's Prow for a moment, but thought it looked trivial after the summit gully and decided to pass. This time I held to the ridge most of the way down and found it more interesting, if not easier. Next time I climb Wetterhorn I'll stick closer to the ridge. After passing a few climbers I made the saddle and hiked down into the basin. I found the trail that led down the creek and across the grass of the basin, and it eventually disappeared and I just hiked across the grass until I joined the trail again. I saw more marmots than I think I have ever seen in that basin. I reached the trailhead at 11:30, giving me an ascent time of 3 hours and a descent of 1:45 hours.

I was very excited to have climbed Wetterhorn, and considered the climb a great success. I was pleased that the weather held out long enough to give me a safe summit shot, especially considering that it would rain that afternoon and most of the night. The next morning I decided to save Uncompahgre for another time, and I packed camp and headed across Engineer Pass.