Pike National Forest - 2013 (Dec)
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Having failed to summit the Decalibron cluster in April 2013, we elected to return in December and finish the affair. In order to increase our odds, we elected to move our basecamp to Kite Lake. Therefore, we arrived in Denver, drove to the Winter trailhead, and hiked to the Kite Lake Campground. We arrived at the campground close to dusk, and had to get our stoves going to melt snow and make dinner. We anticipated the winds to be pretty strong, and they were consistently high the entire time we were camped there. The second day we continued our acclimatization and prepared for the summit push the following day. Although we expected high winds at the location, their continuous intensity surprised us.
The third day we started shortly after first light. It was much easier to read the anticipated trail up the Democrat-Cameron saddle having a little bit of light. As a result, the trip up to the ridge was easier than the previous April. Although slightly tiring, the trip up to the ridgeline was uneventful and straightforward. We proceeded eastward past the location where were stopped in April due to winds. Identifying the delineated trail on the north side of ridge, we continued with a good pace, and within another half hour, were on the flat plain of Mount Cameron. Due to the strong winds, it was pretty cold. We took a very small number of photographs, and decided to continue toward Lincoln. As we started descending toward Lincoln, we were struck by some very strong winds. Considering the winds, the distance to Mount Lincoln, and our remaining strength, we re-directed our attention to Mount Bross. It was a pretty short trip, and we descended back toward our camp at Kite Lake. While it didn't seem like much, we were pretty tired. Because of our troubles with the stove, we decided to use our remaining water and eat cold food. We quickly retired to our tent, and called it an even earlier night. The next morning we hiked out without much water and little food. It was pretty exhausted, but in the end a successful trip.