This was the last day of my week-long High Plains highpointing trip, and I had spent the previous day knocking off a few highpoints in Wyoming and Nebraska. I ended up in a hotel in Laramie, Wyoming, with plans to do a big peak, Medicine Bow Peak west of Laramie, the next morning, but it became clear to me very quickly this peak was still snowed in and that the road to it was still probably closed. Instead, I chose to drive into the Denver area - a 160 mile drive - and go with plan B, a day hike up Thunder Butte, the highpoint of Douglas County. Because I had not planned on this peak, I had no map. I made the longish drive and arrived in Castle Rock about 11 a.m. where I scored a map from a sporting goods store in town, then drove another 90 minutes through winding mountain roads, eventually getting to the trailhead near the small town of Westcreek. I had my trusty copy of Hiking Colorado's Summits, by John Mitchler and Dave Covill, which was also very helpful.

The hike is mostly through forest with no trail, and the usual starting point is at a bend in a road just south of the peak. However, the large "Hayman" Fire of 2003 scorched much of the forest into black standing cinders, and closed the access road back to its junction with the main road, which meant an extra mile and a half each way. There wasn't much I could do but go with the flow. I parked and got my stuff together, and started hiking in just before 1 p.m. in cool, mostly clear conditions. The hike from my vehicle to the bend in the road was fast and easy. At this bend, I had a great view of the peak and its lower neighbor. I started into the forest, keeping a northern bearing, and staying high on a gentle ridge as best I could. There was no underbrush to speak of, largely due to the fire, and most of the trees were blackened snags. The only upside to the destruction was that navigation was easier since I could see the peak pretty much the entire way. I just made sure to be heading toward it, and I'd be fine.

The hike went quick and I had no navigation problems at all. Close to the base of the peak I had to make my route up as I went along, largely crossing in and out of various drainages so that I could get onto the main southern flanks of the peak. It got pretty steep very quickly. The mountain consists of the summit, a massive pointed rock pinnacle just to its south, and a lower southerly sub-summit with a prominent saddle connecting the two main peaks. I worked my way up the mountainside staying below and to the right (southeasterly) of the big rock pinnacle. The fire's damage was pretty severe here- everything was black, and lots of trees were knocked over. A stiff breeze caused those that were still standing to creak and sway - a rather unsettling feeling, knowing that it wouldn't take much to knock a few more over. I stepped over what I could and around the rest, and eventually worked myself up to the main ridge.

From this ridge, I found evidence of old use paths, which I followed, but mostly it was my own instincts leading the way up. I reached the summit about 20 minutes later, an overall hike of about 3.5 one way miles and 2,000 feet of gain in about 1 hour, 45 minutes. The summit is marked by a jumble of desk-sized boulders, with the tippy-top itself marked by a tall tree-branch pole. I stayed for about 10 minutes and snapped some photos, including one that really exhibited the fire's damage to the area.

The hike down went great... until I got back down onto the flats of the forest. There, I stepped on a rock that slid out from under me, forcing me to do the splits. Unfortunately, I'm not that limber, and my left knee took the brunt of the fall. I heard a pop, and immediately I grabbed it and hoped I hadn't really mangled it. I had torn my MCL in that same knee in 1996. I checked it for mobility: I had full mobility so my MCL and ACL seemed okay. The pop seemed to be from lower down, possibly in my upper shin area. In any case, it hobbled me but didn't stop me, which was great news as you can imagine! I managed to walk out the remaining two miles, going slow, limping, and using my trekking pole as a cane. From the trailhead I drove about an hour north to Evergreen and stayed the night with Dave and Beckie Covill before my flight out the next morning. It was good to see Dave and Beckie, with whom I'd climbed Granite Peak in Montana back in 2002. My knee really tightened up but some ice, a bandage and some drugs made the pain bearable. A minor blemish on an otherwise perfect week of highpoints!