Hiking in Breckenridge: Quandary Peak

On August 10, 2015, almost a month after my Sherman trip, I was finally able to make the journey back to the Mosquito Mountain Range; this time, my destination was the 14, 265’ summit of Quandary Peak. The mountain is considered to be a Class 1 climb with no major route finding required. As with any of Colorado’s 58 14er’s, a day climb up Quandary Peak requires trip planning, proper gear, and careful knowledge of the area. During summer months, June through mid-September, Quandary has relatively easy terrain and is highly populated with locals and tourists all striving to summit Breckenridge’s local peak. Winter adventurers, however, should be aware that the typical summer route over the East Ridge will require hikers to slog through several feet of snow; because of this, mountain experts will suggests that hikers plan their ventures for the summer months. Whille Hiking in Breckenridge durin the summer, the average climber should expect to summit Quandary Peak in no less than three hours

I was fortunate enough to gain two new climbing partners for my Quandary adventure: Chloe and Kristin, two of my good friends and former coworkers. Because the peak lies in the northern extension of the range, just south of the heart of Breckenridge, the three of us decided to turn our trip into a two day excursion. We departed from Fort Collins mid-afternoon on the 9th and arrived at a quaint mountainside lodge just a mile away from the trailhead. On the morning of the 10th, we left our vehicle shortly before 7AM, excited and ready to hit the trail head.

The morning weather was considerably colder on this trip than it was when I climbed Sherman; thankfully, we all were dressed in layers and ready for whatever the mountain had in store for us. Of course, we were not prepared for what we had in store for ourselves. In complete disregard to my brother’s recommendation to know your trail ahead of time, none of us thought to look up any information about the trailhead. Still juvenile to the ways of 14ers, I assumed that the Quandary “trailhead” would be like Sherman’s: more of an open base area that would require us journey up a dirt road. So, we walked, and walked, and walked up a long and winding road. We were unsure of our surroundings but because we found ourselves venturing deeper into the mountains we believed to be on the correct path. Well, approximately four miles later we came to a dead end. We had just hiked up an exhausting trail in the complete wrong direction for over an hour. Insert profanity here. Thankfully, we were able to convince a middle-aged man to let us hitch a ride back down the mountain in the back of his SUV. Turns out, he was just as concerned about us being serial killers as we were about him. Funny how that works out; maybe he noticed the eight inch hunting knife that Chloe had attached to her backpack. Our new favorite person delivered us safely to the trailhead, but not before pointing out the clearly marked sign that we so easily missed earlier that morning.

Finally, around 830AM, we hit Quandary’s trailhead and the next half hour was laborious. We wandered around in the White River National Forest lost and confused, desperately searching for a clearly marked trail. Finally, we tagged up with two fellow adventurers who were kind enough to point us in the right direction. We followed the heavily wooded trail for quite some time before deciding to stop for a quick snack-which ended abruptly when we tried to feed some very aggressive and hungry birds. We continued our ascent west until we emerged out of the tree line and were greeted by a plethora of other groups, whom we ended up beating to the summit. I thought that “the Trail of Blood and Tears” on Sherman was rough; oh, was I mistaken. I would consider what we did to be light bouldering. It was tedious, exhausting, and slightly sketchy at some of the steeper points; but the local Mountain Goats sure made quick work of it. Also, because half of the ascent was above the tree line, finding a private area to use the restroom was not an option.
We reached the saddle sometime around 10AM, completely exhausted from our detours but eager to reach the summit – which turned out to be false. I had to remind myself to stop every now and again to take in the scenery. At one point, we ventured to the edge of the mountain and found ourselves looking down a sheer drop-off; at the bottom we could see several small lakes and a beautiful, untouched forest. Near the end of our climb we had to stop every fifty steps, take a brief moment to mentally recharge, and force ourselves to continue onward and upward. Then, sweet relief. We had made it to the top of Quandary! The weather, which was now much warmer, turned quickly. With dark clouds looming overhead, we devoured our lunches and began our descent. The journey back down the rocks was even more dangerous than the journey up; I think that we all stumbled once or twice. I also managed to startle a baby Mountain Goat by accidentally kicking a loose rock. Thankfully, its mother decided not to charge. I should mention that at this point I had depleted my camelbak, but at least I remained hydrated on the way up and successfully avoided another round of acute mountain sickness.
Once we reached the treeline we were able to make quick work of the rest of the descent; although for a while we had convinced ourselves that we were following another wrong trail. Upon arrival back to the car, we congratulated one another on a successful trip and headed back to good old Fort Collins. Overall, this trip was much longer and more physically demanding than Sherman. Nonetheless, the mountain was conquered and we were counting the days until the 2014 season.

©Jenna Lowery

Driving directions: From Breckenridge, drive 8 miles south in Colorado 9 and turn west on 850 Road (Blue Lakes). Continue to drive a couple hundred yards and turn right on 851 Road (McCullough Gulch) and drive 0.1 miles to the small parking area. If this parking area is full, hikers should park in the overflow lot. Travelers should please note that parking along the side of 850 Road is prohibited.