American Dingo – Page 327 – The (Mostly) True Adventures of Lupe

Big Marvine Peak, Colorado (8-18-15)

Lupe left the Mount Zirkel (12,180 ft.) area early on 8-18-15, Day 10 of Lupe’s great Summer of 2015 Dingo Vacation. SPHP drove down to Steamboat Springs, and a few miles S of town turned onto Hwy 131. Hwy 131 went SW through pleasant open country with mountains in the distance in almost all directions. Lupe liked it, because there were plenty of cows and horses to bark at along the way. She was having fun.

At Phippsburg, SPHP followed a road heading SW. It was marked with a sign that just said “Forest Service Access”. In two or three miles, this paved road led to an intersection with the Flat Tops Scenic Byway, which heads 82 miles W to Meeker. Lupe was only going to go about half that far before turning SE to get to Trappers Lake in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area.

The eastern half of the Flat Tops Scenic Byway that Lupe got to see was all gravel road. She went over Dunckley Pass (9,764′), past Vaughan Lake, and over Ripple Creek Pass (10,341′).

A few miles beyond Ripple Creek Pass was the turn to head SE to Trappers Lake. The road went up a large valley, through an area where the trees were nearly all dead. SPHP drove all the way to the very end of the road. There was a big gravel parking lot, and trailhead for a trail around Trappers Lake. Nearby was a picnic ground, if it can be called that. The entire picnic ground seemed to consist of a single picnic table overlooking Trappers Lake. Lupe and SPHP immediately laid claim to the picnic table, and had lunch with a beautiful view.

Lupe reaches Trapper's Lake in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area. — The picnic ground had a beautiful view of an American Dingo. Trappers Lake in the Flat Tops Wilderness Area could be seen, too.

After lunch, the plan was for Lupe to head up to either Trappers Peak (12,002 ft.) or Big Marvine Peak (11,879 ft.). SPHP was leaning toward Big Marvine Peak, since the topo maps showed a trail to a lookout at the top. Trappers Peak was closer, but there wasn’t any trail to it. Lupe set out from the nearby Wall Lake Trailhead at 12:36 PM. It was 60°F, clear (except for a smoky haze from distant forest fires), and breezy.

As Lupe started on the Wall Lake Trail, there was a strange high-pitched wailing or whistling sound. It soon turned out that it was the sound made by thousands of dead trees in the wind. SPHP immediately dubbed this portion of the Wall Lake Trail the Ghost Trees Trail instead. Lupe, being a fearless, strong Carolina Dog, showed not the slightest concern about the possibility of meeting any tree ghosts, even if there were thousands of them.

Lupe on the Ghost Trees Trail (Wall Lake Trail officially). Photo looks SSW towards a canyon Lupe was on her way to.

Flander Mountain from the Ghost Tree Trail. Photo looks SW. — Flander Mountain from the Ghost Trees Trail. The white plume is from a jet that flew by. Photo looks SW.

The Ghost Trees Trail went E of Anderson Lake heading S. Past Anderson Lake, the trail lost elevation until it reached an intersection near the lower end of a large canyon to the SSW. At the intersection, Lupe stayed on the Wall Lake Trail. Soon the trail led Lupe up into a living forest, marking the end of what SPHP could reasonably call the Ghost Trees Trail.

Lupe arrives at Anderson Lake along the Ghost Trees Trail. Photo looks S.

The Wall Lake Trail went through the forest heading SSW up the canyon. Eventually it started climbing the canyon’s W wall. Once Lupe had gained enough elevation to get above most of the forest, there were some pretty nice views, marred only by the persistent smoky haze. The trail reached the high ground above the cliffs at the S end of the canyon.

Looking NNE back at Trapper's Lake from the Wall Lake Trail. — Looking NNE back at Trappers Lake from the Wall Lake Trail.

Lupe had gained about 1,400 feet of elevation, and was now at 11,000 feet. She came to a junction in the trail almost immediately. Wall Lake Trail went to the left (E) and Oyster Lake Trail went to the right (W). SPHP’s maps showed that she needed to go to the right on the Oyster Lake Trail to get to Big Marvine Peak.

The high ground was gently rolling with lots of open heather. There were scattered forests and ponds, too. A big mountain was in view to the S. This was Trappers Peak. SPHP had gotten so fixated on Lupe going to Big Marvine Peak, that at first SPHP thought Trappers Peak was Big Marvine Peak. After about 30 minutes, when the Oyster Lake Trail seemed to be heading continually away from the mountain, SPHP realized the mistake.

Lupe emerges from the canyon to find Trapper's Peak in view to the S. — Lupe emerges from the canyon to find Trappers Peak in view to the S.

Trapper Peak from near the Oyster Lake Trail. Photo looks S.

So where was Big Marvine? SPHP knew it was some distance away to the W, but it wasn’t even in sight yet. Lupe wasn’t worried, she loved running around on the heather and exploring the forests. She drank from the ponds. Lupe was pretty much in Dingo Paradise.

The Oyster Lake Trail wound around to the SW, passing near a series of small ponds. From one of the ponds, SPHP spotted Big Marvine Peak for the first time.

Across the pond, like way, way across the pond, SPHP spots Big Marvine Peak in the distance. Photo looks W.

Yikes! Big Marvine Peak looked like it was a very long, long way off. SPHP suddenly wished Lupe had gotten a much earlier start. At least following the trail along the gently rolling high country went pretty fast. Lupe and SPHP hurried onward.

The last of the ponds Lupe passed was also the largest. It was the southernmost of the Twin Lakes. Although Lupe had clearly made progress towards Big Marvine, it still looked like quite a trek remained.

Even from the southernmost of the Twin Lakes, Big Marvine was still pretty far off.

After passing the Twin Lakes, SPHP started looking for a junction with the East Marvine Trail. The East Marvine Trail would head NW to pass a bit to the E of Big Marvine, while the Oyster Lake Trail would continue SW on to parts unknown. (Oyster Lake might be a good guess.)

Suddenly, SPHP heard someone shouting. A woman was hailing SPHP from S of the trail. Lupe ran over to investigate. It turned out there were two women there, along with a 12 year old brown dog named Aquila. Aquila was easy to spot wearing a red jacket. There wasn’t any trouble. The women were just being friendly. They were on the 3rd day of a 5 day backpacking trip, and hadn’t seen another soul all day.

Lupe and Aquila sniffed. SPHP chatted with the women. Their tents were pitched partway up a forested ridge to the S of the trail. The tents could be seen just above a scar on the ridge. The women seemed surprised that Lupe still intended not only to go climb Big Marvine, but then return all the way to the Wall Lake Trailhead near Trappers Lake. It was already late afternoon.

As nice as Aquila and the two women were, Big Marvine was calling. Lupe had to go. Everyone said goodbye. Then Lupe and SPHP were off. Before long, Lupe reached the junction. She turned NW on the East Marvine Trail. The East Marvine Trail featured a long line of big rock cairns with posts sticking out of them, a good thing since the trail itself soon faded away. For quite a distance, the ground was all open and treeless, so it was easy to follow the cairns. And Big Marvine was always in view. Lupe was getting steadily closer.

Getting there! Big Marvine Peak from near the East Marvine Trail. Photo looks W.

The maps showed a trail heading WSW to Big Marvine Peak from the East Marvine Trail. Lupe didn’t stay on the East Marvine Trail long enough to reach the junction. Instead she left the East Marvine Trail heading directly for the NE end of Big Marvine. There were small forested ridges to cross along the way and many bushy areas. Lupe liked exploring the maze of pathways through the bushes. To her, the bushes were practically a forest themselves.

As Lupe got close to Big Marvine Peak, SPHP ran into segments of the trail heading WSW toward it from the East Marvine Trail. There were some more big rock cairns with posts sticking out of them, but not many. SPHP followed the intermittent trail where it was present, and just headed for Big Marvine when it wasn’t clear where the trail went. Lupe ran this way and that, just excited to be roaming such wonderful territory.

Approaching the NE end of Big Marvine Peak. The topo map showed a trail switchbacking up the slope at the NE end of the mountain (L side of photo) and then continuing to a lookout at the far W end. — Approaching the NE end of Big Marvine Peak. The topo map showed a trail switchbacking up the slope at the NE end of the mountain (L side of photo), and then continuing to a lookout at the far W end.

When Lupe arrived at the NE end of Big Marvine Peak, SPHP saw no sign of a trail. The topo map showed a trail here switchbacking its way up the mountain to gain the ridgeline, and then continuing all the way to a lookout at the far W end of the peak. SPHP saw nothing, but a steep grassy slope. It definitely looked like this was the easiest, and perhaps only way up. Lupe and SPHP started going straight up the slope.

Lupe starts up the steep slope at the NE end of Big Marvine Peak. — Lupe partway up the steep slope at the NE end of Big Marvine Peak.

Things always seem steeper when you are really there. SPHP had to keep stopping to rest, but hadn’t gotten too far up the slope when suddenly SPHP ran into a switchback. There was a trail after all! It was faint, narrow, and evidently seldom used, but it was there. The trail was easy to follow, and did make things a lot easier for SPHP.

Lupe didn’t need to use any trail. She ran all over the place exploring this and that while SPHP trudged up along the switchbacks. Lupe frequently came over to check on SPHP’s progress and offer encouragement. “See, it’s easy, just do this” and she would bolt off in some new direction to play wild Dingo.

The switchbacks ended when the trail reached the ridgeline at the extreme E end of the mountain. At first the view to the W was blocked by the rising ridge, stunted trees and rock outcroppings. It didn’t take long, though, to head W past all that far enough to see what lay ahead – the broad ridge sloping up to the western summit of Big Marvine Peak.

Looking W up towards the summit of Big Marvine Peak. The summit cairn is seen as a spec towards the left at the top. — The easy part! Looking W up towards the summit of Big Marvine Peak.

This was the easy part, a more gentle slope up to the other end of the mountain where the summit was. Lupe only needed to gain another 200 to 300 feet of elevation, and she would be there! When Lupe started getting close to the top, it started getting breezy. Up on top, it was just plain windy. Lupe didn’t care for it. Her stay on Big Marvine Peak was going to be short.

The annoying smoke haze was still around, but other than that, there were some fabulous views from Big Marvine Peak. The surrounding territory featured big canyons, distant peaks of similar height, and lots of open high ground with scattered trees and ponds at about 11,000 feet elevation. On top of Big Marvine, Lupe and SPHP were nearly 900 feet higher at 11,879 feet.

Looking NW from Big Marvine Peak toward Rat Mountain. — Looking NW. **Rat Mountain** **(11,538 ft.)** is the high point of the closest ridge.

There was a small circular two foot wall of loose rocks close to the summit cairn.

Looking back towards the summit cairn and circular rock wall. Lupe is getting anxious to head down out of the wind.

Looking N towards Little Marvine Peaks (?) — Looking N. As near as SPHP can figure out, the mountain seen towards the left is marked Plateau on the maps. It may be one of the Little Marvine Peaks.

After SPHP had spent 20 minutes enjoying the views from Big Marvine Peak, Lupe wanted to get out of the wind. It was time to go. There was maybe a little over an hour left before sunset. Lupe headed down off the windy peak. She was soon out of the worst of the wind and having a good time again.

Lupe near stunted trees lower down on Big Marvine. — Lupe sniffs around near stunted trees lower down on Big Marvine.

A final look to the N from Big Marvine before heading down.

Leaving Big Marvine behind. — Farewell to Big Marvine.

Lupe had to retrace her entire route to Big Marvine to get back to the G6. The sun was down by the time Lupe reached the Oyster Lake Trail. The two women backpackers with their dog, Aquila, were sitting up on the ridge near their tents when Lupe and SPHP came by. They shouted down to SPHP, asking if Lupe had enough food, water, and a source of light. SPHP assured them everything was fine.

Lupe went on. Soon it was dark. The flashlight came out. Lupe wanted to stop. She was hungry. In addition to Taste of the Wild, SPHP shared a Cliff bar with her. Stars now shone above. The meal re-energized Lupe, and she pressed on.

Time passes slowly and trails seem longer in the black of night. Finally Lupe reached the Wall Lake Trail. She led the entire way down the big canyon, still sniffing and exploring everything, but now staying on or very close to the trail. It was 11:04 PM and 52°F out when Lupe reached the G6.

Maybe it would have been better to have just gone to Trappers Peak? It certainly would have been quicker and easier, but SPHP was glad Lupe had visited Big Marvine.

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Black Hills, SD Expedition No. 144 – Five Points (10-31-15)

What better way for a lucky American Dingo to celebrate Halloween than a day spent exploring the Black Hills? Lupe was certainly in favor of it. When she saw SPHP getting the backpack ready to go, she quickly grew impatient for SPHP to head out the door. Finally, the great moment arrived.

For Lupe’s Black Hills Expedition No. 144, SPHP selected Five Points (6,221 ft.) as her peakbagging goal. Rather than being a single mountain, Five Points is actually a series of small mountains close together along a line running N/S. Five Points is located just a few miles NNE of Hill City in the central Black Hills. Its highest peak is the highest mountain N of Hill City for quite a few miles.

At 10:30 AM, SPHP parked the G6 just off Horse Creek Road (USFS Road No. 243). It was 48°F already, and was going to be quite a warm day for this late in the season. A breeze could be heard up in the trees, but the air was pretty calm down on the ground. Lupe and SPHP headed S on an access road that leads to USFS Road No. 669. Lupe crossed Horse Creek twice along the access road. Horse Creek isn’t a very big stream, but it had more water in it than other times Lupe has been in the area.

The access road is less than 0.5 mile long, so Lupe was soon at the junction with USFS Road No. 669. There is a small stock pond near the junction. In keeping with the theme of slimy ponds like Hidden Slew from Lupe’s Expedition No. 143, here is a photo of the pond:

Lupe reaches the pond near USFS Road No. 669. This is the only pond shot in this entire post, I promise, even though she passed several more going up the valley along No. 669.

Lupe and SPHP headed W on No. 669. The road went up a small, mostly forested valley at an easy pace. There were quite a few aspen trees at the bottom of the valley, but the slopes were mostly pine-covered. There would be no traffic on the road; it was blocked in quite a few places with deadfall timber. Most of the road, however, was open for easy hiking. Lupe explored here and there, just glad to be out running around. The deadfall didn’t bother her.

Up ahead, SPHP saw something odd dangling from an aspen tree. From a distance, it looked like the size of a human head. That would fit in with a Halloween theme, but upon reaching it, SPHP saw that it was an old wasp’s nest. The bottom of it had deteriorated so there was quite a large hole in it. SPHP thought maybe the nest was abandoned, but upon closer inspection, there were still a couple of wasps flying around and entering it.

This wasp's nest wasn't very active, but there were still a couple of bees that flew up into it. — This wasp’s nest wasn’t very active, but there were still a couple of wasps that flew up into it.

Even though the hive wasn’t very active, SPHP figured nothing good could come from hanging around it. There was no reason to stay there anyway. Lupe and SPHP went on up the road. Lupe passed several more little ponds. Toward the upper end of the little valley, the tiny stream that fed the ponds was running right down USFS Road No. 669 beneath an archway of aspen trees.

Some nice tall aspens along USFS Road No. 669.

A tiny creek flows down USFS Road No. 669 beneath an archway of aspens.

The road had turned SW by the time Lupe reached the area where the tiny creek was flowing on it. Eventually the road turned S and left the bottom of the valley. Lupe stayed on a path that continued up the valley. Before long, the path turned W and climbed more steeply up to a saddle along a ridge running N/S. There was lots of deadfall timber on the climb to the saddle, so it was slow going for SPHP.

USFS Road No. 249 was not very far W of the saddle, but Lupe did not go to the road. Lupe and SPHP turned S and followed the ridge. From the top of a small high point along the way, a considerably higher hill with a rocky top could be seen ahead. Lupe and SPHP climbed it. There was quite a lot of rock as Lupe drew near the summit.

From the top there were really nice views all around from the SW to the W, N, and NE. This high up, the wind was really roaring in the trees. The big rocks at the top were an effective barrier against the wind, which was coming out of the SW. Lupe liked it down out of the wind, but SPHP persuaded her to go up on top for a few photos.

Nearing the rocky summit of False North Point.

Lupe at the summit of False North Point. Photo looks N.

Lupe had been here before, but quite a long time ago. Her first trip here had been on her first Black Hills expedition of 2013 on New Year’s Day. (Expedition No. 42, 1-1-13) Back then, SPHP had thought Lupe was up on the northernmost summit of Five Points. Accordingly, SPHP had named this mountain North Point.

Lupe had returned to the same area just 5 days later on Expedition No. 43 on 1-6-13. She had actually climbed up to the highest point of Five Points on Expedition No. 43. SPHP realized then that this mountain was not part of the Five Points grouping. This mountain was too far to the NNW. So SPHP changed the name to False North Point. The topo maps on Peakbagger.com show its elevation as 6,130 feet.

Lupe near the highest rocks on False North Point.

The view to the SSE from False North Point toward Five Points was partially blocked by the forest. SPHP snapped a quick photo in that direction, and then Lupe was ready to get out of the wind.

Lupe and SPHP headed back to the NE end of the summit area on False North Point, which looked like the easiest way down to the saddle over to the ridge N of Five Points. Before Lupe lost much elevation, there was a place where an opening in the forest permitted a look to the E toward Boulder Hill (5,331 ft.).

Looking SSE at Five Points from False North Point. The real North Point is hidden behind the trees at the L side of the photo. The true summit of Five Points is in clear view. To the right, Harney Peak is seen in the distance. The road is USFS Road No. 249, which is coming N from China Gulch.

Looking E from False North Point. A portion of Sheridan Lake is in view. Beyond the lake, the rocky high point is Boulder Hill.

Lupe and SPHP headed down from False North Point. SPHP led Lupe down a bit farther N than would have been ideal. She had to go S climbing up through an aspen forest just to reach the saddle over to the ridge N of Five Points. Instead of climbing up onto the ridge, Lupe and SPHP stayed W of it, gaining elevation slowly. SPHP was hoping to arrive at the saddle along the ridge just N of the real North Point. That’s exactly where Lupe did arrive, too.

The climb up the N face of the real North Point was the most challenging of the day. Near the top was a big boulder field. It was fairly steep. Lupe and SPHP went straight on up it, but repeatedly came to false summits. Each time it looked like Lupe was about to come out up on top, another set of rocks going 20 feet higher appeared.

The roaring wind made the climb seem more daunting than it really was. SPHP climbed slowly and carefully. Lupe wished SPHP would move in a more lively fashion. She had no trouble maneuvering among the rocks.

Lupe climbing North Point, the real one, not the false one. She isn't really as close to the top as this photo makes it look. There are more rocks higher up than seen here. — Lupe climbing North Point, the real one, not the false one. She isn’t really as close to the top as this photo makes it look. There are more rocks higher up than seen here.

Looking NW during the climb up North Point.

Finally, Lupe and SPHP were within 10 or 12 feet of the top of the boulder field. The last part of the climb was a rock wall. It looked like there were plenty of hand holds, but SPHP decided against it. Lupe had to go back down about 20 feet to get to a shelf that led around to the W side of the mountain. Over there she came to an easier way up.

The actual summit of North Point was still a bit S of where Lupe and SPHP came up. Before going over there, though, Lupe and SPHP went N to the top of the rock wall which SPHP had decided against climbing. There was an excellent clear view back to the NNW of False North Point where Lupe had just come from.

Looking NNW at False North Point from the top of the rock wall on the real North Point. — Looking NNW at False North Point (above Lupe’s head) from the top of the rock wall on the real North Point.

False North Point (L) from North Point. Photo looks NNW.

After taking a look back at False North Point, Lupe and SPHP went to see what the true summit of Five Points to the S looked like from North Point. Lupe also visited the summit of North Point.

The true summit of Five Points is now in view from North Point. Photo looks S.

Lupe very near the summit of North Point. Photo looks S. The small patch of open ground in the distance is part of Hill City.

The summit of North Point was along the W side of the mountain where the highest ridge of rock provided a commanding 180° view to the W. North Point also featured a slightly lower and wider ridge that extended out to the E. Lupe and SPHP explored this lower ridge to its eastern end.

The E ridge was forested, but there were some openings in the forest. Several rock outcroppings provided great views. Most views were to the N, but it was possible to see to the SE in a couple places, too. There was even a clearer view to the S toward the true summit of Five Points than Lupe had found near the summit of North Point.

From the E ridge on North Point, Lupe found this view of the True Summit of Five Points. It can be seen that there are actually two of the Five Points over there. The high point on the left is South Point. South Point is not quite as high as the True Summit on the R. Photo looks S.

After exploring North Point, it was time for Lupe to head over to the True Summit of Five Points. Although the way initially looked steep, it really wasn’t hard going down North Point into the saddle to the S.

SPHP expected another rocky climb up to the True Summit. Lupe stayed mostly to the E of a spine of rock heading up the N slope. The way up was pretty steep, but Lupe didn’t have to climb any big boulder fields to get up on top. It was an easier climb than going up North Point had been.

Looking N back at North Point (R) and False North Point (L) from the N end of the ridge on the True Summit of Five Points.

Up on top of the True Summit of Five Points was a rocky ridge oriented N/S, just like on the other peaks Lupe had already climbed. The rocks toward the S end were much larger than at the N end. Lupe had to pass just below the big rocks on the E side of the mountain to work her way over to the S end of the ridge. Near the S end, she found a steep grassy ramp that led right on up to the very top of the mountain.

Separated by less than 100 feet, there were two high clusters of rock. The grassy ramp brought Lupe up between them. Lupe went first to the S rock cluster. It had a great view toward Harney Peak (7,242 ft.). The N rock cluster was the very top of the mountain, and the True Summit of Five Points. It was only a few feet higher than the S cluster. There were views to the W, N, and E from here.

Since the most impressive view was to the S toward Harney Peak (7,242 ft.), Lupe and SPHP returned to the S rock cluster to take a break. SPHP had carrots and apple crisp. Lupe had Taste of the Wild and plenty of water. She got to lick the remaining apple crisp sauce out of the plastic container, too. Carolina Dogs like apple crisp!

Looking S toward Harney Peak from the S rock cluster at the top of the True Summit of Five Points. This photo shows two more of the Five Points. They are the rocky hills in the foreground L of Lupe. Both are clearly lower. Lupe did not go to either of those summits.

Lupe up on the North rock cluster. These are the very highest rocks on the True Summit of Five Points. Photo looks N. — Lupe up on the North rock cluster. These are the very highest rocks on the True Summit of Five Points. Lupe reached her Five Points peakbagging goal here. She had been here once before on Expedition No. 43 way back on 1-6-13. Photo looks N.

It was still windy out while Lupe and SPHP were taking the break on the True Summit of Five Points. However, the wind had shifted a bit and was now coming out of the W. It finally seemed to be weakening a bit. After eating, Lupe curled up for a few minutes in a spot where the rocks protected her from the wind.

Lupe had now climbed North Point and the True Summit of Five Points to achieve her peakbagging goal for the day. There were still 3 of the Five Points unclimbed. False North Point didn’t count, since it wasn’t really part of the official group. The sun was starting to get low. SPHP debated whether or not Lupe should climb any more of the Five Points mountains.

The 2nd highest mountain of the Five Points group was separated from the True Summit by a saddle extending off to the SE. SPHP was calling this mountain South Point, even though there were two lower points of the Five Point group farther S. South Point really wasn’t very far away.

The saddle to South Point didn’t lose much elevation, but there was a lot of deadfall timber and some pretty big rock outcroppings visible along the way. If Lupe could get by the rocks and deadfall, it wouldn’t take long for her to reach the summit of South Point.

As always, Lupe was willing to try it. So Lupe and SPHP went back down the steep grassy ramp and headed SE toward the saddle to South Point. It really wasn’t hard to cross the saddle area. The deadfall timber was more of a problem than the rocks were. Lupe succeeded in reaching the top of South Point. She found the highest rocks near the SE end of the ridge. The best views were from a rock platform at the very SE end.

Looking S from South Point. Harney Peak (L) and Hill City (R) are in view.

Lupe on the rock platform at the far SE end of South Point. Photo looks SE.

Harney Peak from South Point. Photo looks S. — Harney Peak from South Point. The two points of the Five Points group that Lupe did not climb on Expedition No. 144 are seen in the foreground. (Only the rocks at the very top of the lowest point are seen at the lower R.) Photo looks S.

The summit of South Point. Lupe is surrounded here by the highest rocks on South Point. Photo looks NW. The True Summit of Five Points isn’t very far away to the NW, but is hidden by the forest.

When Lupe reached the summit of South Point, she had climbed the 3 highest mountains in the Five Points group, plus False North Point. It was time to start heading back to the G6. Somewhat surprisingly, it wasn’t difficult to just continue down off South Point continuing to the SE.

Lupe was losing a lot of elevation. As soon as the terrain permitted, SPHP led Lupe to the SW and then W. Lupe was going to go clear around to the W of the True Summit and North Point. It was a fairly long march through the forest, made longer by the steepness of the slope, deadfall timber, and big patches of thistles and thorny plants. Lupe had a great time, though. There was now room to run around in the forest. She sped around, happy to not be so confined up on high rocky places.

When Lupe had gone quite a long distance to the W, she came to a big square-shaped rock outcropping, which SPHP promptly dubbed Block ‘O Rock. Not too long after reaching Block ‘O Rock, the terrain leveled out and Lupe was able to head N. She was far enough W to see USFS Road No. 249 down the hill to the W, but she did not go down to the road.

Lupe continued N through the forest until she was just S of False North Point again. There a faint road went almost all the way up to the saddle she had crossed earlier in the day heading for North Point. Lupe continued N over the saddle and descended into an aspen filled valley. At first there was a path, but as Lupe continued on, the path became choked with deadfall timber.

A look back at North Point (L) and the True Summit (R) of Five Points. Photo looks SE.

It really wasn’t terribly far (0.5 mile?) to reach another saddle NE of False North Point that would take Lupe back to USFS Road No. 669. The forest was a mess, though. The deadfall was so thick it even slowed Lupe down. The sun disappeared. A little later, the last sunlight remaining on the peaks disappeared. It wouldn’t be good to be stuck out in this tangle at night. The moon wasn’t due to rise for several hours.

SPHP was confident, though. Lupe made it to the saddle while there was still twilight. She picked up USFS Road No. 669 again. Once on No. 669, it was easy to just retrace the early part of the day’s journey back to the G6. The stars were out by the time Lupe got there at 6:39 PM. It was 38°F. The wind was almost gone. A slight breeze was heard in the treetops.

Lupe and SPHP stood under the stars for a few more minutes. Then it was time for Lupe to go to her Grandma’s house for Halloween. When she got there, Lupe raced into the house, and up the stairs wagging her tail and whining in excitement. Grandma was very happy to see her! Time for ice cream!

The pathway into the aspen filled valley before it becomes choked with deadfall timber. — Heading back. The pathway into the aspen-filled valley before it becomes choked with deadfall timber.

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