Quandary Peak, CO -- An Easy and Popular 14er

Overview of Quandary Peak

Quandary Peak, at 14,272 ft., is Colorado’s 11th highest mountain with a prominence of 1,125 feet. This peak became the most hiked 14er, in Colorado, during 2019. For the first time surpassing Mount Bierstadt which was the most hiked 14er prior to 2019. On a weekend day this mountain often hosts over 900 hikers due to the easy trailhead access and its proximity to Denver. So if you dislike crowds, try to arrange this hike during the week. This is a dog friendly trail.

We climbed on Sunday, July 29, 2018. So the above photo provides a glimpse of what you can expect on a weekend. Even with the crowd we had a great hike and great scenery while hiking and lovely views from the summit.

Trailhead at 10,920 ft (3,330 m)	Summit at 14,272 ft (4,350 m)
Total elevation gain of 3,420 ft (1042 m)	Round trip of 6.2 mi (10 km)
Time from 5 to 7 hours	Class 1 trail

The trail classification system used in this blog is the YDS, Yosemite Decimal System

https://www.devilslakeclimbingguides.com/blog/understanding-climbing-ratings

The easily accessed trailhead is only nine miles south of Breckenridge and ninety miles from Denver. This is a relatively easy 14er via the standard route, that follows the eastern slope/ridge to the summit. Mountain goats are a common sight on this hike, so look around as you hike.

Remember to start your hike early, afternoon lighting is the biggest killer each year on Colorado’s 14ers. https://americanhiking.org/resources/lightning-safety/

Directions to Quandary Peak

The trailhead is 88 miles via I-70 from Denver and 9 miles south of Breckenridge, all on good roads that require only 2WD. You depart Denver on I-70 and travel west for just under 60 miles. Leave I-70 at exit 203 and turn south on CO 9.

Follow CO 9 for just over 18 miles to CO 850 and make a sharp left turn.

Soon after the left turn onto CO 850, you will pass a large overflow parking lot on the right side. Continue to follow CO 850 for a short distance and then make a right on CO 851, McCullough Gulch Road. Follow CO 851 about 0.25 miles to the small parking area on your right side. The trailhead is just past this parking area on your left side.

Since this is a very popular hike, the two parking areas fill up fast, especially on weekends. We parked near the trailhead on the side of CO 851, this maybe your best option if the parking lots are full. Try not to park on the side of CO 850 past the turn off to CO 851. There are homes on this stretch of CO 850 and owners have complained about hikers parking in front of their homes.

Trail Info for Quandary Peak

This is a relatively easy 14er via the standard route, but still a difficult hike. The trail is well maintained and easy to follow to the summit. This class one trail follows the eastern slope/ridge to the summit. The hike takes from five to seven hours, covers 6.6 miles round trip and has an cumulative elevation gain of 3,420 feet.

This hike begins in a conifer forest on a well maintained trail with a gentle incline. After 1.1 miles you will find yourself above timberline and about 2.2 miles from the summit.

Once you exit the forest at about 11,700 feet, the trail trends ENE to the summit. About 0.3 miles after leaving the forest, you will encounter a talas slope on the south face of Quandary Peak.

Above, Aubrey and I taking a rest before continuing on up the talas slope behind us, at this point we were just under 2 miles from the summit. This south facing talus slope steepens as you approach the ENE trending ridgeline, but the trail is easy to follow and exposure is minimal.

Above, my friend Aubrey hiking along the lower part of the ENE ridge line. The mountain in the background is separated from this ridge line by a fairly large valley that contains the Blue Lakes reservoirs.

Above photo taken at 2.7 miles just after the trail steepens for the final slog to the summit, just over 0.5 miles away. This is a good class one trail all the way to the top, see above photo.

Fortunately the summit covers a fairly large area, so even with a large crowd there are places to sit and enjoy the view.

Below, a well prepared couple enjoying some quality time on the summit with their dog.

Numerous 14ers can be seen from the summit; to the north-east are Torreys Peak and Grays Peak, Holy Cross can be seen to the west and the closest 14ers are the Democrat Group to the south. This Democrat Group contains four mountains over 14,000 feet; Mount Democrat, Mount Cameron, Mount Lincoln and Mount Boss. What is great about the Democrat group is they can all be done as a single hike that is only a 7.5 mile loop with only 3,700 feet of elevation gain. Parts of this trail, however, are on steep talas and Mount Boss has sometimes been closed to the public since it is on private ground. https://www.14ers.com/route.php?route=bros6

The crowds did not distract from our enjoyment of this hike, in fact they added some humor, as we encountered some characters along the way. We even saw a small group who had biked/hiked to the summit. Actually when I saw them as they were carrying their mountain bikes down from the summit.

Camping Near Quandary Peak

We elected to camp on pre-summit nights during this nine day trip. Luckily we found a nice spot just a couple miles NNE of the Quandary Peak trailhead. Access to these unimproved campsites is via a rough dirt road.

The road from the Quandary Peak trailhead to these campsites is a dirt road, see Google Earth image below. You take a right turn after the McCullough Gulch trailhead. At this turn the road degrades and more importantly clearance becomes an issue. Our Subaru Outback had no issues with this part of the road, but a low clearance 2WD car might scrape bottom on this road.

Another option is Breckenridge, about ten miles to the north, where you can get a nice room with a nice bed. The drive, to the trailhead, is only about twenty minutes to the trailhead.

We arrived at our campsite at about 5pm on a Saturday night. We were lucky to find an unoccupied campsite this late, as all the others we passed were occupied. We got up at 4:30am the morning of the hike, had breakfast, broke camp and drove the trailhead, allowing us to start hiking by 7am. We tend to move a bit slow in the mornings, what with coffee, etc., so a 4:30am wakeup worked for us.

Quandary Peak - Area History

Mount Quandary is the highest peak in Summit County, Colorado. This county was inhabited by nomadic indigenous people for several thousand years, prior to the arrival of the white settlers. From the sixteenth century until they were forced out in the late 1800s the indigenous people consisted primarily of two Ute bands, the Parianuche (Elk People) and the Yampa (Root Eaters).

Miners began arriving after the 1859 gold discovery in Georgia Gulch, northwest of Breckenridge. The federal government signed a treaty with the two Ute bands in 1868, removing them from the area. In exchange the Utes were granted a significant portion of Colorado’s land west of the Continental Divide.

The Utes revolted in 1879, killing several Caucasians. As a result, the federal government forced the Ute people to sign a new treaty in 1880 and moved them to eastern Utah.

Millions of dollars of gold and silver were mined in this county in the late 1800s. These mines, however, had significant negative effects on the environment that still lingers. The various type of mining created vast amounts of mine tailings that leached minerals such as cadmium and arsenic into the watershed. The processing of the ores further polluted the environment with both mercury and arsenic. Peru Creek, a tributary of the Snake River, is still heavily contaminated from the nearby abandoned mines. In 2009, the EPA began monitoring pollution levels in the Snake River, since Peru Creek is one of its tributaries.

Summit County’s first ski resort, Arapahoe Basin, opened in June 1946. The effort to open the resort was led by members of the Tenth Mountain Division who had recently returned from WWII. Today the county is famous for its skiing at Arapahoe Basin, Breckenridge, Keystone and Copper Mountain.

Quandary Peak - Flora and Fauna

When you arrive at the trailhead, you are in the upper part sub-alpine zone. This zone goes from about 10,000 to 11,700 feet, with the hike starting at 10,920 feet. In the sub-alpine zone most

precipitation is from snow fall with snow packs lasting into the summer months. Temperatures are normally cool to very cold, but summer days are usually pleasant. This zone has a short growing season and in the upper part the trees are often stunted.

This subalpine zone is dominated by meadows and pine trees. The Englemann spruce is common and the bristlecone pine is found in many of Colorado's subalpine zones. The bristlecone habitat includes parts of the Tenmile range.

At 1.1 mile up the trail you find yourself above treeline in the alpine zone. This zone is prone to high winds and is usually cold, with an annual mean temperature of less than 50°F (10°C). Precipitation averages between 40 to 60 inches per year, almost all from snow, which can last into the late summer in some shady patches. Plants in the zone, while diverse, are short of stature, but the blossoms can be a good size. Common plants are grasses, moss, cushion plants and lichen.

Mountain goats are fairly common sight while hiking Quandary Peak, although we did not see any, we spoke with hikers who did. Mountain goats are not native to Colorado, they were first introduced in 1947 and the program stopped in 1972. They are now common in many of the mountain ranges of Colorado and in some areas are displacing the native big horn sheep.

Geology of Quandary Peak

Quandary Peak, located in the southern part of the Tenmile range, contains sedimentary layers from Cambrian through Cretaceous resting unconformably on a Precambrian core, with the youngest rocks found on the flanks of the range. The valleys are often filled with Pleistocene age glacial till. At Quandary Peak, you walk on this glacial till from the trailhead to about 11,300 feet

At about 11,300 feet you transition from glacial till to Devonian age dolomites, shales and sandstones. As you proceed to the summit the rock layers get older until you are standing on Cambrian age quantize at the summit, the oldest rocks you will encounter.

Located just north of the Tenmile Range is the Gore Range. Both ranges have a similar geological history up until the Pliocene and Pleistocene. During that time the Gore Range was heavily glaciated, resulting in large U shaped valleys and craggy peaks. The Gore Range also experienced significantly less economic development and today is predominantly designated as wilderness.

For some reason the Tenmile range was only moderately glaciated during this time. This resulted in much smoother topography for the Tenmile Range. This smoother topography and the fact that the Colorado Mineral Belt intersects the Tenmile Range destined the range to become a mining center and later a major ski destination.

You pass near one of these mines, the Monte Cristo Mine, which is located about 300 yards south-east of the Quandary Peak trail at 11,400 feet. The mine produced lead and a moderate amount of associated silver. Unfortunately, due to the trees separating the mine from the trail, it is not visible as you pass by.