Bison Peak

February 27, 2021

Bison Peak 12,432'

Snow and avalanche conditions are terrible in much of Colorado right now so we opted for a safe, lower elevation peak with a south facing route this weekend. Laura and I met up with our friends Isaac and Nicole at 7 am and headed west for the mountains. About 15 minutes into our drive I realized that we did not bring any milk for Hazel and since she would be with grandma in Woodland Park all day, we would need to turn around to get her some food for the day! Nearing 8 am and we're off again! We successfully dropped off Hazel, with her milk and made it to the Ute Creek Trailhead around 9:30. Having hiked and backpacked the area in the past, I was familiar with the beauty of the Lost Creek Wilderness and was now excited to stand on the highest summit in the area. The first several miles went by smoothly as we steadily gained elevation on a lightly snow covered trail. As we gained elevation, the snow depth increased too so we added microspikes and continued on. Laura was in the lead so we maintained a swift pace and quickly neared treeline. The wind was ferocious and the only other group we had encountered all day was turning back since the conditions were not very nice and visibility was very low. 

We continued on into the unique boulder strewn area. It's such a neat place that the weather didn't really bother us. We were just excited to experience the area. As we neared the summit, the skies cleared some and we were rewarded with some views of the wilderness area and south to Pikes Peak. I signed the summit register and we snapped a few pictures before heading down and racing to get back out of the wind. 

Trailhead to summit - 3 hours 45 minutes

Summit to trailhead - 2 hours

12 miles, 3,700' elevation gain