Castle Peak (14,265') & Conundrum Peak (14,060')

Date Climbed:  August 9, 2014
Climbing Party: Amanda Harnden, Aaron Dover
R/T Mileage:  8 miles
Elevation Gain: Approximately 3,900'

Leading up to this weekend, this summer had been really busy for the two of us.  When we finally caught a break from everything and decided to take a weekend and go hike/camp in the Elk Range.

Our sights were set on Castle and Conundrum Peaks.  The two peaks are connected by a very thin ridge line, and can be done in one hike.  So, after work on Friday (literally…at 4:10) we booked it up 285 to Buena Vista and over Independence Pass, through Aspen and into the woods to get ourselves ready for the early morning.

The road in is actually the trail…it's conceivable to drive all of the way to 12,800' where the road ends. From there, your round trip hike distance would be 2 miles.  We camped at about 11,200' on a ledge overlooking a valley below.  It was a precarious spot, as it felt if we leaned too far over in the tent, we might roll off!

At 4:15 AM we were on trail.  We hiked the initial 2 miles to the basin in the dark, and by the time we reached the basin at 12,800' it was light out and we ditched our headlamps.  From the basin, the trail traverses a snowfield and a few boulder fields. Once you get to 13,000' a trail up to the summit ridge comes into view.  Follow the trail a short way and the scramble begins!

The ridge to Castle's summit, to Conundrum and back consists of extremely loose rock and scrambling.  There are some sketch areas with big drops, so keep an eye on your footing.  There is plenty of solid rock to be found to make the scramble, but you do have to double/triple check all handholds and footholds before committing.

After summiting Conundrum, there is the option to descend down gully, backtracked over the top of Castle.  As we were going back up Castle, a rock came hurtling down towards us, and luckily I was able to catch it in my chest.  Be extremely cautious of rockfall on this trail.

We summited Castle at about 8AM, Conundrum at 9AM, Castle again at 9:45, and back to the car by 12:05, asleep for a nap at 3:00PM:)