Castle Peak - northeast ridge route

Climbing Castle Peak, the highest mountain in the Elk Range of Colorado,, from the Castle Creek trailhead on August 31, 2023. The aptly and descriptively-named Castle, which lies within a range of aptly and descriptively-named 14ers, was so-called mainly for the series of rock towers that make up the peak's south ridge. Though easier to negotiate than most other Elk Range fourteeners, the mountain nevertheless still partakes of their characteristic ruggedness and looseness, and presents would-be climbers with class 2 to 2+ difficulty on its standard northeast ridge route, as well as lurking route-finding hazards that can quickly present one with more difficult terrain. The route takes me from the Castle Creek trailhead, up 3,000 vertical feet of the Castle Creek road, up a snow-occupied talus headwall, and finally up and along an airy stretch of rugged ridge to the top. The summit vista is especially encompassing, affording views of more distant peaks and ranges, as well as striking scenes of neighboring Elk Range 14ers Capitol Peak, Snowmass Mountain, The Maroon Bells, Pyramid Peak, and Conundrum Peak. In this video, I provide statistics, maps and description of the route, some bits of history about the overall range, and about peak's naming and mining history. Thanks for watching! For all videos of high mountain climbs on this channel:    • Mountain Hikes and Climbs  . Contents and chapters for this video are as follows:

0:00 Opening scenes, different views of the range and the mtn, and its naming, surveying, climbing, and mining history.
3:08 Route overview and statistics.
4:00 Directions to the Castle Creek TH.
4:23 Lower road stretch, TH (~9,800') to Pearl Pass road junction (~11,150').
10:14 Upper road stretch, Pearl Pass road junction (~11,150') to the road's end (~12,800').
16:00 Headwall, from road's end (~12,800') to ~13,300'.
21:35 NE ridge, from ~13,300' to the summit, 14,274'.
38:19 Views at the top.
41:56 Descending.
47:31 Final thoughts and images.

#14ers #colorado #mountains #hiking #aspensnowmass #aspen #nature #rockymountains #climbing #mountainclimbing #mountainscenery #naturedocumentary

Music selections:
1) "Imperial Forces" - Aaron Kenny (YouTube audio library)
2) "Spirit Riders" - Telecasted (YouTube audio library)
3) "Inconsciousness" - Mini Vandals (YouTube audio library)

Additional sources:
1) For maps: U.S. Geological Survey - USGS
2) "A Climbing Guide to Colorado's Fourteeners" by Walter R. Borneman and Lyndon J. Lampert. Pruett Publishing, 2nd edition, 1988.
3) "Colorado's Fourteeners - From Hikes to Climbs" by Gerry Roach. Fulcrum Publishing, 3rd edition, 2011.
4) 14ers.com: Castle Peak/routes/northeast ridge route
5) "Colorado's Highest - The History of Naming the 14,000-Foot Peaks" by Jeri L. Norgren. John Fielder Publishing, 2020.