LoJ: #311 (Pre-LiDAR #314) / 13,419' Navajo Peak

A few points first: A. Though we list Arikaree and Kiowa as neighbors to Navajo, they both fall within the City of Boulder Watershed and are thus, "forbidden fruit." Enter at your own risk. B. As mentioned with Apache Peak, we were climbing these two summits without much beta/help. Wish we had known about Gerry Roach's book. It would have saved us some grief which leads to the third point. C. The actual route we took from Apache to Navajo was more of a mistake than a route. While we don't necessarily recommend this route, having completed the standard Apache to Navajo traverse using the NW couloir on Navajo, we've decided that this alternate route is really not that much worse. Lastly, Navajo Peak is sequenced with Apache. One-way mileage and elevation gain are measured from the summit of Apache. Round-trip mileage and elevation gain assume completion of the sequence.

From the summit of Apache, we headed south along the ridge crest on talus and scree. The immediate destination was the false summit of Apache along this ridge. After about a third of a mile, a sharp drop on the ridge tempted us to head down on the east side and onto the "glacier." We had to jump from a rock face across the "berschrung" and land on a flatter spot on the snow. From there, we wanted to go up the west or northwest side of Navajo, by traversing back to the Apache/Navajo saddle (which would have been the standard traverse route had we known) but a group of roped up climbers convinced us that perhaps that way was more technical than it appeared and we didn't want to be stuck behind them with no gear of our own. So... we began a long descent down the glacier of about 600 feet in elevation before contouring east on a lot of snow to some sloping rock benches below the north face of Navajo (perhaps 12,600 ft.). At one point on this descent, Carrie lost control and had to self arrest. These sloping benches led us over to the two main, north-facing couloirs that lead up from the 12,100 bowl to the saddle on Niwot Ridge. One source we had recommended using the eastern gully (which turned out to be "airplane gully"), but we decided to go up the first or western one. It wasn't long before we encountered a cliff and a waterfall. Not good. So we got out of the gully on the west side and clambered around (3rd class with some exposure) on fairly stable rock for a while before re-entering the gully higher up (about 150 feet) above the waterfall. Now the gully became steeper and was filled with snow. So we forged our way on up making use of our ice axes until we finally reached the saddle on Niwot Ridge. Hurray! Now on the ridge, we headed west on broken rock and climbed up the remaining 400 feet to the Navajo summit. This last 3rd class scramble was the delight of the day. When we arrived at the summit, the rope-using group had arrived before us from the ridge traverse and were now departing. Another group of climbers then arrived having just completed the traverse without needing rope. Bummer! If only we had known. So there's our route. A photo in the gallery shows our approximate route. Now for a couple more reasonable suggestions.

In the summer of 2016, we returned to do the Apache/Navajo climb by what has become the "classic" route so we could write this up from first-hand experience. We ascended Apache using the Class 2+ "ledges" route. So, from the summit of Apache, walk south on the connecting ridge to Navajo over easy Class 2 talus heading for the two false summits along the ridge. You can bypass the first false summit on the west, (makes little difference in effort) but it's not advisable to do so on the second because of steep drops and gullies. At the second false summit, the ridge narrows and heads down steeply. It can be a little intimidating at first, but goes as a Class 3 downclimb if you remain on the ridge crest. Some may be tempted to take a steep, loose gully on the left to sandy looking benches below but the ridge crest appears to be the best solution. The route on the left (east) will likely force you out onto a section of the Navajo Glacier. Continuing directly down the 3rd class ridge crest, at the last 15 - 20 feet, there will be a broken rock face to downclimb the remaining last bit to the saddle and Dickers Peck - a rugged pinnacle and from the convoluted name, you can guess what was really imagined when named. We used a cleft on the left to make the downclimb. This was a 4th class move that required proper facing-in technique, but did not require protection because exposure is minimal. From the saddle, walk around the east side of the pinnacle and past a "tunnel" that looks down to the west, then scramble up (there's one little 3rd class move to get onto the ramp) to an obvious ramp that heads right (SW - 3rd Class). This ramp takes you to the "West Chimney"/couloir. There are actually two couloirs here. The left one is the first and obvious choice. Sources say the chimney ascends about 100 feet. It seemed like and appeared to be more. It's a 3rd class climb with at least two short sections that require a 4th class move. In early summer (June), this chimney may still be filled with snow, in which case ice axe and crampons are required. Later season, it can still be wet in here thus requiring greater care. In our mid-July 2016 ascent, there was no wetness, ice or snow to contend with. Though the chimney has its share of loose rocks, the holds and footing are generally secure, but the chimney is quite narrow. There are really no places climbers below can get safely out of the line-of-fire of the lead climber. So bring & use a helmet! Do you need a rope & protection for this couloir? It will definitely depend on your comfort level in such situations. I would not bring a novice in here without some back-up gear. But for us, we did not use a rope or any other protection other than helmets. While the couloir has a very vertical feel to it, the narrowness of it makes you feel less exposed - kind of like a slot canyon.

Once out of the chimney, you are still below the summit block of Navajo. There's more than one way to finish from here. One source says to head right toward a "platform" on the skyline. This was to us, the obvious choice and it followed a "ramp" of sorts across the head of the couloir. Once on a ridgeline, we scrambled back to the left some and basically followed the easiest path or path of least resistance. This connected us with the route that comes up from Airplane Gully, not far from the summit.

If you're coming from the summit of Navajo to Apache, as you descend to the connecting ridge, the gully described above will be the northernmost of the gullies on the west side. Many seem to view going down this gully as more difficult than going up. That makes some sense since downclimbing is almost always more intimidating. This is when you may really want a rope for some protection or rappel.

For Navajo alone from the basin at 12,100 feet, you'll need to ascend up "Airplane Gully," for the standard route. As you stand in the basin looking south toward Niwot Ridge and Navajo, you'll see two distinct couloirs. Airplane Gully will be the couloir to the left. The one to the right is what we ended up in in our 1998 climb. The "Airplane Gully" is so named because of the wreckage left behind of a crashed C-47 aircraft from the winter of 1948. Parts of the wreckage are still strewn all along this route. Head up the talus cone into the loose, rock-filled gully. About half way up the gully, it forks. Either fork will work. The left one becomes quite narrow. There's more wreckage in the right fork. Coordinates for the head of the eastern most fork are: N 40° 03' 13.9" W 105° 38' 31.9"

From the top of "Airplane Gully," head west up along the ridge crest toward the summit on Class 2, 2+ broken rock and ledges. The summit is protected by a rocky cliff band. There are at least two ways through. One route goes right onto the north face and heads up a Class 3 chimney to broach the cliff and comes out very near the summit. There's something of a trail to guide you up through here anyhow. There is also a Class 3 broken chimney on the SE side of the summit cliff band. We also found a Class 2+ way utilizing various ledges to descend on the SSE side and then work back over to the east ridge. There's more than one way to skin a cat here. Make it as fun or as easy as you prefer. This final 3rd class summit scramble is the best part of the day. Enjoy it. It will end all too quickly. Please visit our photo gallery for pictures taken of our 2016 ascent of both Apache and Navajo.

Of the various sources consulted, this link provided some good route detail and excellent route photos of some of the key sections: http://indianpeaks-runner.blogspot.com/2013/09/apache-peak-13441-navajo-peak-13409.html. There are plenty of other reports on SummitPost as well and on Lists of John. In conclusion, just hiking back into the basin below Apache and Navajo peaks offers stunning mountain views, scenery, flowers, waterfalls and glaciers and snowfields. Don't miss this hike!