Kristine & I were trying to come up with a peak to climb on the way down to Denver for our friend Jesse Hill’s annual summer solstice party and the high centennial 13er, Pacific Peak, fit that bill perfectly.
I had always wanted to climb the classic steep north couloir of Pacific Peak, but this day was just as enjoyable and fun as that climb would have been since we could take the dogs and we wouldn’t have to get up as early to hit the snow conditions just right. Plus, with a late night solstice party to follow, the more we could sleep in, the better. Rainier was somewhat sick last week (upset stomach), which made Kristine & I worried. After some new food, which was hopefully easier on her stomach, she got better. The realization I came to while debating the normal route vs the north couloir climb was that I want to spend as much time with Rainie as I possibly can in the mountains and on adventures because you never know how much time left you have with your loving pet. The steep, technical stuff can wait. Obviously, Kristine & I will still do these kinds of routes (to keep the blood flowing), but if there is a Rainier-friendly peak we can do and she is healthy and up for it, we will continue to do just that. Spending time with her in the outdoors and on adventures has been one of my most favorite activities in the past decade – something I will not always be able to do. The north couloir of Pacific can wait. We already have it on the agenda for next spring.
After sleeping in a bit, the four of us began hiking at the alpine start time of around 9am. Pacific Peak and the Mohawk Lakes basin was all new terrain for us, except Kona, which was a fun aspect of this hike. Kona had climbed Pacific with our group of friends last summer while Kristine & I were in Australia. The Mohawk Lakes Basin is gorgeous and there are numerous lakes along the way making this a great basin for the pups to keep cool. The route then ascends up to the east ridge of Pacific Peak via a 30-35 degree snow gully where Kristine & I donned our microspikes on our trail runners and used our ice axes. From the top of the east ridge, it was a simple hike alongside the highest lake in Colorado (and possibly the entire United States), Pacific Tarn (13,420′), followed by some class 2+ scrambling towards the summit. Total stats for the route from where we parked was about 7 miles roundtrip and about 3,000′ of elevation gain. It was a really fun 5 1/2 hours of hiking with Kristine and the dogs and I was proud of Rainie. She had an absolute blast and still has the peak bagging mojo. And, yes, the dogs were pooped for the party, which was all part of our plan as well. Enjoy the pics of our hike up Pacific Peak below: