{"id":3014,"date":"2015-12-15T08:10:02","date_gmt":"2015-12-15T15:10:02","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=3014"},"modified":"2019-03-16T14:21:37","modified_gmt":"2019-03-16T20:21:37","slug":"buffalo-peak-jefferson-county-high-point-colorado-11-9-15","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/?p=3014","title":{"rendered":"Buffalo Peak, Jefferson County High Point, Colorado (11-9-15)"},"content":{"rendered":"

The days aren’t very long in November.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP should have gotten off to an earlier start.\u00a0 The plan was for Lupe to climb Buffalo Peak<\/a><\/span><\/strong>\u00a0(11,589 ft.)<\/strong><\/span>, the high point of Jefferson County, Colorado.\u00a0 With no trail and over 3,000 feet of elevation gain involved, it was a fairly ambitious plan for this time of year.<\/p>\n

SPHP had intended to park the G6 up at Stoney Pass, but just past Wellington Lake there was a creek running across the road.\u00a0 The creek\u00a0wasn’t very large.\u00a0 It was about a foot deep, and maybe 6 feet wide,\u00a0as it crossed the road.\u00a0 SPHP stood peering into the clear water.\u00a0 The creek bottom looked<\/em> flat and smooth and firm.\u00a0 But, what if it wasn’t really?\u00a0 The G6 didn’t have much clearance.\u00a0 If it sank another foot into mud and the engine got wet, Lupe and SPHP were in for an adventure of the wrong sort.<\/p>\n

It would probably have been fine to ford the creek with the G6, but SPHP wasn’t going to chance it.\u00a0 Not way out here.\u00a0 SPHP found a place nearby to park.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP were just going to have to walk the 1.5 miles up the road to Stoney Pass.\u00a0 The only real problem was the time it took.\u00a0 It was already 9:42 AM when Lupe and SPHP left the G6 behind.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Looking NW at The Castle<\/span><\/a> (9,691 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> near Wellington Lake as Lupe starts for Buffalo Peak.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It was a beautiful, clear and calm day as Lupe crossed the little creek, and started up the road for Stoney Pass.\u00a0 It was already 45\u00b0F.\u00a0 Back in Arvada, where Lupe was staying with cousin Dusty while on vacation in Colorado, it was supposed to get into the low 60’s.\u00a0 It wouldn’t get that warm out here, though, not way up on Buffalo Peak.\u00a0 Even so, at least weather wasn’t going to be an issue.<\/p>\n

SPHP reached Stoney Pass after a trudge up the road.\u00a0 Lupe had already been busy racing around in the forest sniffing everything of interest.\u00a0 Now it was time to leave the road together and plunge into a dense forest.\u00a0 The plan was to reach the summit of Buffalo Peak\u00a0by following a ridge from the NE.\u00a0 SPHP already knew there was no trail, that the mountain was heavily forested, and that the ridge wasn’t all that distinct.<\/p>\n

The topo map showed the climb up would be pretty relentless, although there were some flatter areas near the top.\u00a0 SPHP wondered if there would be any viewpoints along the way.\u00a0 It would sure help to be able to catch a glimpse of the summit every now and then, just\u00a0to make certain Lupe was going the right way.<\/p>\n

Despite the possible obstacles, SPHP felt pretty confident Lupe was going to reach the top.\u00a0 Lupe showed no concerns, whatsoever.\u00a0 It was just another big, fun romp in the woods to her.\u00a0 As Lupe started the climb, SPHP wondered what the summit would be like.\u00a0 Would it even be worth the effort to get there?\u00a0 From a distance, Buffalo Peak had looked like just a big forested hump.\u00a0 Would there be any place from which to get a view?\u00a0 Or would Lupe’s efforts just end at a high spot in a forest that looked like the entire rest of the mountain?<\/p>\n

There hadn’t been any snow at Stoney Pass, but as Lupe climbed, she started encountering a thin layer of snow.\u00a0 SPHP worried that Lupe was going too far to the W instead of heading SW.\u00a0 Lupe didn’t really seem to be up on a ridge.\u00a0 The blue sky seen between the trees above was always hundreds of feet higher than where Lupe and SPHP were.\u00a0 There was little deadfall timber at first, but as Lupe went on, gradually there was more.\u00a0 Most of it was pretty small stuff, though, so it wasn’t much of a hindrance.<\/p>\n

Lupe climbed a very long way before she finally came to a big rock outcropping.\u00a0 SPHP was eager to see what could be seen from the other side.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP found a way through to the SW side of the rock outcropping.\u00a0 The view wasn’t all that encouraging.\u00a0 Farther off\u00a0to the W than SPHP had been hoping was what might be a part of Buffalo Peak near the summit.\u00a0 To the SW was a little valley, and beyond it another ridge.\u00a0 Now SPHP wasn’t even sure Lupe had been following the correct ridge up.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Intrepid American Dingo Lupe reaches the first big rock outcropping on her journey up Buffalo Peak.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
This view to the W toward the general direction of the summit of Buffalo Peak from the 1st big rock outcropping wasn’t too encouraging.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The first big rock outcropping as seen from the S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

To the S of the first big rock outcropping, Lupe passed through a nearly level area.\u00a0 She headed for the next ridge that SPHP had seen ahead.\u00a0 She climbed several hundred feet up it to find a 2nd big rock outcropping.\u00a0 The views from here were a little more encouraging.\u00a0 What SPHP believed was the summit area was now at least in clear view.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Part of the 2nd big rock outcropping Lupe reached.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Buffalo<\/a>
Buffalo Peak from the 2nd rock outcropping. Photo looks SW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A<\/a>
A glimpse at mountains to the WNW from the 2nd big rock outcropping.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe had to head S down into another valley from the 2nd big rock outcropping.\u00a0 When the land started rising again on the other side of the valley, Lupe and SPHP faced another long climb.\u00a0 The snow got deeper.\u00a0 Maybe SPHP was just getting tired, but the climb seemed to go on and on.\u00a0 Except at the rock outcroppings, it was difficult to\u00a0have much sense of\u00a0where one was in the snowy forest.\"Lupe<\/a>Finally, Lupe reached a viewpoint on the N side of the mountain.\u00a0 SPHP isn’t certain about it, but this may have been the high point marked on the Peakbagger.com topo map as point 10,778.\u00a0 Wherever Lupe was, there were some impressive views to the N from this high point.<\/p>\n

\"Looking<\/a>
Looking N.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Looking NW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking down to the N toward Wellington Lake (Center) and The Castle (L).<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\"View<\/a><\/p>\n

\"Looking<\/a>
Looking NE toward Green Mountain<\/a><\/strong><\/span>\u00a0(10,421 ft.)<\/span><\/strong>. Stoney Pass and the road where Lupe came from are way back down at the base of Green Mountain.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"\"<\/a>
The Castle.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

If Lupe was at point 10,778, there was still another 800 feet of elevation left to be gained.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP headed SW still climbing, but the mountain was no longer as steep as it had been.\u00a0 The going was easier.\u00a0 The main concern was the time.\u00a0 SPHP knew that Lupe had to hurry if she was going to make it to the summit of Buffalo Peak, and still have enough daylight to make it back down to the road at Stoney Pass.<\/p>\n

After climbing and heading SW for a considerable distance, Lupe emerged into a little open area where the ground was flat.\u00a0 Here it was possible to catch a glimpse of mountains to the S between the trees.\u00a0 Lupe had to be getting close to the summit of Buffalo Peak.\u00a0 There couldn’t be an awful lot of elevation left to gain.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe emerged into this flat little clearing high up on Buffalo Peak. Mountains to the S could be glimpsed between the trees.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and SPHP turned W from the little clearing.\u00a0 Lupe hurried onward, but it was still farther to the summit than SPHP realized.\u00a0\u00a0Lupe would have to gain more elevation and cover more ground, if she wanted to reach the top.\u00a0 At a bigger opening in the forest, the summit area was still ahead and higher up.<\/p>\n

\"Looking<\/a>
Looking W across the 2nd larger clearing toward the summit of Buffalo Peak.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

SPHP knew it was decision time.\u00a0 Although the sun wouldn’t set for close to 2 hours yet, Lupe would need all that time, plus any twilight,\u00a0to get back down to Stoney Pass.\u00a0 Continuing onward clearly meant breaking the rule.\u00a0 The rule is that Lupe and SPHP are supposed to turn around in time to be able to reach a road or trail before dark<\/em><\/strong>\u00a0from which SHPH knows for certain the way back to the G6.<\/p>\n

As far as complying with the rule goes, it\u00a0doesn’t matter if the road or trail to the G6 is a long one.\u00a0 It’s perfectly fine if Lupe has\u00a0to spend a few hours\u00a0of the night getting\u00a0back\u00a0to the car.\u00a0 Darkness isn’t\u00a0the\u00a0problem.\u00a0 Not knowing the way to go in the darkness is….<\/p>\n

Buffalo Peak is a big mountain.\u00a0\u00a0It is heavily forested, and the\u00a0forest offers few views even in the daytime.\u00a0 There\u00a0is no trail.\u00a0\u00a0Except near the top, the mountain sides\u00a0are fairly\u00a0steep.\u00a0 It was November.\u00a0 There were a lot of good reasons\u00a0for Lupe to abandon the attempt on Buffalo Peak and turn\u00a0around.<\/p>\n

On the other hand, the summit of Buffalo Peak wasn’t much farther.\u00a0 Lupe was very close to it compared to all the distance she had already come.\u00a0 SPHP decided to break the rule.<\/p>\n

SPHP reasoned that even though it was going to get dark before Lupe reached Stoney Pass,\u00a0she would have\u00a0enough daylight and twilight\u00a0to retrace most of the way back to the road.\u00a0\u00a0Once darkness descended,\u00a0Lupe\u00a0could just head directly for Green Mountain.\u00a0 She would inevitably reach the road, even if she didn’t hit it right at Stoney Pass.\u00a0 In a sense, the route was known.\u00a0 It just wasn’t a trail or road.<\/p>\n

Lupe continued onward.\u00a0 The snow was 6″ deep in the forest near the summit.\u00a0 At first, SPHP wasn’t even certain this was the summit of Buffalo Peak.\u00a0 SPHP was surprised by what Lupe found in the forest.\u00a0 Ahead was a 30 or 40 foot high ridge of rounded red rocks and boulders.\u00a0 To the NE, the forested ground was steeper than expected.\u00a0 To the SW, there was – nothing?\u00a0 SPHP couldn’t get a clear view over there, but it seemed like there might be a cliff.<\/p>\n

The ridge ran SE\/NW.\u00a0 There was no easy way up it from the SE end where Lupe first reached it.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP worked around to the NW along the NE side of the ridge.\u00a0 Before long there was a place where Lupe could climb up.\u00a0 When SPHP got up there, the view was both fantastic and concerning.<\/p>\n

From the narrow, rocky ridge, there were fabulous views in every direction except to the NE, which was hidden by the forest.\u00a0 SPHP’s earlier concerns that Lupe would climb all the way up Buffalo Peak to see nothing but trees was totally unjustified.\u00a0 The top of Buffalo Peak offers splendid views.<\/p>\n

\"Wow,<\/a>
Wow, what a view! Lupe at the SE end of the rocky ridge up on Buffalo Peak. Pikes Peak<\/a><\/strong><\/span> (14,110 ft.)<\/strong><\/span>towers in the distance. Photo looks S.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking SW at remote snowy mountains from Buffalo Peak.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"From<\/a>
From Buffalo Peak, Lupe could see Cheesman Lake to the SE. Beyond the lake was Thunder Butte<\/a><\/span> (9,836 ft.)<\/span><\/strong>\u00a0(on L), the high point of Douglas County, which Lupe had climbed just 3 days earlier. Thunder Butte and Sheep Nose<\/a><\/span> (8,894 ft.)<\/span><\/strong> looked so tiny from up on Buffalo Peak!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The object of concern was to the NW.\u00a0 In that direction there was clearly a break in the ridge.\u00a0 Beyond the break, the ridge continued.\u00a0\u00a0What concerned SPHP was that\u00a0the ridge was clearly a little higher beyond the break.\u00a0 Lupe was not yet at the true summit of Buffalo Peak.\u00a0 It was going to take more time\u00a0for Lupe and SPHP to work their way back down and around through the snow, deadfall and boulders to reach the true summit.<\/p>\n

\"Looking<\/a>
Looking NW along the ridge line on top of Buffalo Peak. Beyond Lupe is a break in the ridge. The true summit is past the break. Lupe and SPHP would have to spend more time climbing back down and then up again to get over there.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Well, there was nothing to do, but spend the time necessary to reach the true summit.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP carefully climbed back down to the NE off the ridge.\u00a0 It only took 10 minutes or so even with the snow, deadfall, and rocky terrain to get over to the higher NW part of the ridge.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP were soon up on top of it.\u00a0 SPHP was very happy to find a register and a USGS Benchmark.\u00a0 Lupe had made it to the very top of Buffalo Peak!<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe astride the true summit of Buffalo Peak, the high point of Jefferson County, Colorado. The blue top of the registry container is seen below her.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Buffalo<\/a>
Buffalo Peak is also known as Freeman Peak. This is one of two USGS Benchmarks Lupe found on Buffalo Peak. This one was near the registry container.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Lupe and SPHP were soon signed in on the registry.\u00a0 It was fun to see that Lupe’s blogging and peakbagging acquaintances Beth & Sprocket from 3UpAdventures had been here over a month earlier on 10-2-15.\u00a0 (Those two peakbagging maniacs had also signed the Thunder Butte registry the same day!)\u00a0 Lupe had the good fortune to briefly meet Beth & Sprocket in person (in Dingo?) back in the Flat Top Mountains in August, 2015.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>
Beth & Sprocket of 3UpAdventures were here on 10-2-15!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After registering, it was time for a little break.\u00a0 Lupe gobbled up most of the Taste of the Wild supply.\u00a0 SPHP hadn’t bothered to bring any human food along.\u00a0 SPHP eyed the remaining Taste of the Wild, but decided to save it for later.\u00a0 At least there was plenty of water.\u00a0\u00a0Lupe wasn’t drinking much since she prefers to eat snow.\u00a0 After a short rest, it was final\u00a0summit photos time.\u00a0 The Carolina Dog was quite willing to add a little canine interest to some of the shots.<\/p>\n

\"Looking<\/a>
Looking SSE. Pikes Peak on the R.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"There<\/a>
There wasn’t much time for taking breaks up on Buffalo Peak, but Lupe took a short one after gobbling up most of the Taste of the Wild supply.\u00a0 A dingo gets hungry climbing mountains! \u00a0Photo looks toward the wild country to the WNW.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Wellington<\/a>
Wellington Lake from the top. Photo looks N.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Looking<\/a>
Looking NNW with the telephoto lens.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe near the 2nd USGS Benchmark.\u00a0 (Near her left front paw.)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After all the time and effort it took to get up here, it was a shame to have to leave so soon, but it was important to get as far down the mountain as possible before the light was all gone.\u00a0 SPHP was glad the snow was around on the way down.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP followed their tracks back down the mountain for a long way, before SPHP lost them for the final time.<\/p>\n

The sun went down.\u00a0 The twilight faded.\u00a0 The mountain and the forest went on and on.\u00a0 The deadfall, which hadn’t seemed too bad on the way up, seemed more prevalent, larger and troublesome on the way down.\u00a0 The slopes seemed steeper in the darkness.\u00a0 Still, Lupe\u00a0succeeded in losing\u00a0a tremendous amount of elevation before it was so dark\u00a0the flashlight had to come out.\u00a0 By that time, SPHP thought Lupe must already be getting close to Stoney Pass.<\/p>\n

SPHP was wrong.\u00a0 Down, down, down went the dingo in the dark.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP headed for the black outline of Green Mountain against the stars.\u00a0 It was the only thing that showed the way.\u00a0 Once SPHP\u00a0distinctly heard\u00a0voices.\u00a0 SPHP must have been losing it.\u00a0 There was no one out here.\u00a0 Suddenly a big bird flew away with a great deal of noisy fluttering.\u00a0 Lupe had passed beneath its perch.<\/p>\n

Finally the steep slopes grew less steep.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP emerged from the forest into a small grassy and level valley.\u00a0 A low dark ridge loomed ahead.\u00a0 There didn’t seem to be a road.\u00a0 Green Mountain was out of sight.\u00a0 Just great!\u00a0 No telling which way to go.\u00a0 It didn’t make sense.\u00a0 SPHP shone the little flashlight around.<\/p>\n

A\u00a0small patch of light similar to others on the aspen trees nearby looked a little different.\u00a0 It looked a little like it was reflective.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP headed toward it.\u00a0 Soon it was clear that it\u00a0was\u00a0indeed reflective.\u00a0 There was some kind of sign.\u00a0 Before\u00a0SPHP even reached it, Lupe found the road.\u00a0 A little wandering around in the grassy valley brought Lupe to a familiar spot.\u00a0 She had come down the huge mountain\u00a0in the darkness to arrive just 150 feet NW of Stoney Pass.<\/p>\n

No worries now.\u00a0 Everything was\u00a0cool.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP headed NW down the road.\u00a0 Although it was only 1.5 miles back to the G6, it seemed to take a longer than it should.\u00a0 Time always seems to go by very slowly in the dark.\u00a0 Lupe crossed the little creek that had prevented the G6 from reaching Stoney Pass.\u00a0 In just a couple of minutes, she was at the G6.\u00a0 It was 7:17 PM and 30\u00b0F.<\/p>\n

It was after 9:00 PM by the time Lupe and SPHP were back at cousin Dusty’s house in Arvada.\u00a0 SPHP served up some Alpo for Lupe and Dusty.\u00a0 Andrea had a roast, potatoes, carrots, and onions ready and waiting\u00a0in the crock pot.\u00a0 SPHP wasn’t going to have to finish Lupe’s Taste of the Wild after all.<\/p>\n

\"Lupe<\/a>
Lupe on Buffalo Peak, the Jefferson County, Colorado high point.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Links:<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Prior Adventure<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

Prior Dingo Vacation<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 This Dingo Vacation<\/span><\/a>\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Next Dingo Vacation<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

Want more Lupe adventures?\u00a0\u00a0Choose\u00a0from\u00a0Lupe’s 2015 Arvada, CO Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>,\u00a0Dingo Vacations Adventure Index<\/strong><\/span><\/a> or Master Adventure Index<\/a><\/strong><\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0Or subscribe free\u00a0to\u00a0new Lupe adventures<\/span><\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/em><\/span>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The days aren’t very long in November.\u00a0 Lupe and SPHP should have gotten off to an earlier start.\u00a0 The plan was for Lupe to climb Buffalo Peak\u00a0(11,589 ft.), the high point of Jefferson County, Colorado.\u00a0 With no trail and over 3,000 feet of elevation gain involved, it was a fairly ambitious plan for this time … Continue reading Buffalo Peak, Jefferson County High Point, Colorado (11-9-15)<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3002,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[438],"tags":[105,452,106,296,26,453,454,104],"class_list":["post-3014","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-2015-arvada-colorado","tag-american-dingo","tag-buffalo-peak","tag-carolina-dog","tag-colorado","tag-dingo-vacations","tag-freeman-peak","tag-jefferson-county-high-point","tag-lupe"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/adventuresoflupe.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/11\/P1070553.jpg?fit=1651%2C1238&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3014","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=3014"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3014\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":20842,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3014\/revisions\/20842"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/3002"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=3014"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=3014"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/adventuresoflupe.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=3014"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}