Roundtrip Mileage/Elevation Gain -- 10.0 miles/4,450 ft.

Ian and I left Salida at about 5:45 a.m. on Saturday, the day after we had climbed Mt. Antero from Baldwin Gulch.  My stomach felt a little bit better than it had the day before, and a full night's rest was helpful.  However, I was still pretty tired from the previous day, and had a bad "mental attitude" to start the day.  I didn't say anything to Ian at the time, but had I been by myself, I probably would have headed back to Denver.  However, I figured that I'd be fine once we got on the trail.

We drove up the Missouri Gulch Trailhead and got started on the trail at about 7:00 a.m.  My legs felt pretty heavy after the previous day's 16-mile hike.  Like most Sawatch Range 14'ers, the trail provides a pretty relentless climb right out of the parking lot.  The Missouri Gulch trail is pretty steep all of the way to treeline and the trail junction where hikers much choose between the Mt. Belford and Elkhead Pass trails.  I had climbed Belford a couple of years ago, so Ian and I decided on Missouri Mountain.

We had a really efficient one hour climb up to treeline, and then another 20 minutes to the trail junction.  There were numerous columbine flowers throughout the meadow and along the trail.  I was feeling pretty good by the time we got to treeline, but still feeling the effects of the previous day.  I would find out later that Ian was struggling to "get going" on this morning -- fortunately for him, that feeling would abate soon. 

We took the trail headed for Elkhead Pass and Missouri Mountain.  Gerry Roach's 14'er book seems to indicate that the route isn't particularly easy to find, and as a result we almost made a navigational mistake.  However, the trail is actually marked with a sign where climbers are supposed to head up to the saddle.

Just before we got to the point where we needed to start heading up Missouri's slopes, I started feeling poorly.  I think that part of was the carryover fatigue from the previous day and the other part was that stomach was starting to bother me again.  I started having a bit of trouble keeping up the pace, and Ian darted ahead a bit as he began to settle into a groove.  As I started up the saddle, I could see him still gaining on me, and it was at that point that I really began to doubt that I was going to be able to summit.  I was running out of energy, and I knew that I needed to save up something for the descent.  About halfway up the slope, Ian waited for me, and I told him that I should probably take his car keys in case I decided to head back.  He told me that he "had the spirit" and needed to keep going, so I told him to head on up and I'd either meet him on the summit or back at the car.  Ian took off up the trail and I decided to see if I could make it up to the ridge.  I was pretty sure that if I made it to the ridge, I'd make the summit. 

After what seemed like an eternity of upward hiking on the frustratingly eroded trail, I finally made the ridge at about 10:45 a.m.  I was certainly off of my normal pace, and really exhausted -- both mentally and physically.  I was pretty sure that Ian was a good distance ahead of me on the ridge, and so I decided to keep plugging away.  I knew that I was less than 1/2 mile from the summit, and perhaps 300 vertical feet or so.  I immediately noticed how hot it was on the ridge -- there was very little wind, and the sun was REALLY beating down.

After getting over the first bump in the ridge, I really began to consider turning back.  It seems odd to be that close to the summit and not make it, but I was just so tired.  My philosophy is that the mountains are always going to be there, so there's no use in getting "summit fever" and making bad decisions.  I was also worried about the hike down, as I knew that we had a long hike back in the mid-day sun.  It was not going to be fun.  About 1/4 mile from the summit, I realized that I was done.  I sat down, finished my Gatorade, and chatted with a passing hiker.  I told him that I was hiking with a friend, and that if he encountered him on the summit to let him know that I had turned back. 

I turned back and headed back down to the saddle, where I waited for Ian.  We worked our way back down the trail and back to car, where we arrived at about 2:00 p.m.

In hindsight, I regret that I didn't enjoy this hike a bit more, but there's really nothing you can do when you don't feel well.  I am admittedly growing a bit weary of the Sawatch Range, with its eroded trails and 4,500 feet climbs.  However, that doesn't take away from the sheer beauty of the Missouri Gulch area.  I look forward to going back at some point, preferably when I'm not exhausted from hiking the previous day!

Mt. Belford (right) from the trail junction. A look back down into Missouri Gulch. Looking up toward Missouri Mountain (the summit is actually out of the frame to the right). A look back down into Missouri Gulch from Missouri Mountain's slopes. A look up Missouri's slopes toward the saddle. A view from the saddle -- the summit is the smaller bump to the left of the larger bump in the foreground. The eroded trail on the ridge. The trail is frustratingly slippery in places. A look at the summit from where I stopped. Imagine my frustration...