{"id":5886,"date":"2013-08-26T05:38:41","date_gmt":"2013-08-26T11:38:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/14erskiers.com\/blog\/?p=5886"},"modified":"2017-07-09T17:41:36","modified_gmt":"2017-07-09T23:41:36","slug":"tr-scarps-ridge-traverse-hike-15-aug-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/14erskiers.com\/blog\/2013\/08\/tr-scarps-ridge-traverse-hike-15-aug-2013\/","title":{"rendered":"TR: Scarps Ridge Traverse Hike (15 Aug 2013)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jenny hiking along Scarps Ridge.<\/figcaption><\/figure>
\nThe entire ridge traverse of Scarps Ridge has been on my mind to do as a hike for over a year now. But, something like this is always more fun to do with a little bit of company. So, when my friend Jenny said she had the day off and wanted to go for a hike, the Scarp’s Traverse was one of my first suggestions.<\/p>\n

We did the traverse the opposite direction of most people. Instead of hiking more downhill, we hiked more uphill, traveling from east to west. We set up a shuttle the morning before our hike, leaving Jenny’s car at the Irwin Lodge, and began hiking up Red Lady.<\/p>\n

‘Tis the season for mushrooms.
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View towards town where it was sprinkling. We dodged rain all day long.
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Layers of ridge, ending in Mount Owen.
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Gothic Mountain in the distance. The haziness of our views was due to smoke from a wildfire near Glenwood Springs.
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The ridge leading to the summit of Red Lady.
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Jenny climbing Red Lady’s ridge.
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The dirt was particularly loose on the ridge.
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Me climbing the ridge.
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Looking toward Redwell Basin from near the summit of Mount Emmons (Red Lady).
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The top. Mount Emmons, or Red Lady, was our high point for the day.
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Dodging the rain once again \ud83d\ude42
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Jenny’s panorama from the summit. Click to enlarge.
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A zoomed in version showing our future path along Scarps Ridge.
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Looking back toward the top of Coon’s from where we came.
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After reaching the summit of Red Lady, we worked our way over to the top of Gunsight Pass. Here is the view of colorful Scarps Ridge from the pass.
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Not long after, the ridge changed from rainbow-colored rock to beautiful alpine tundra.
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A look back at Red Lady.
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Jenny making a fashion statement with double sunglasses \ud83d\ude42
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And the ridge keeps going, meandering through the sky with magnificent views. Peeler Lakes and Peeler Peak shown.
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The view through the gap.
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The beautiful Peeler Lakes below.
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Buckwheat of varying hues decorated the ridge.
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The amazing views did not stop.
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Lupine was changing to pods.
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And we rested among the flowers.
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Parts of our hike brought us close to the cliffs on the north side of the ridge.
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Jenny admiring the views.
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Eventually we made our way to the western endpoint of the ridge. Blue Lake as seen from the endpoint.
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Peeler Basin below.
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Richmond in the distance.
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Looking back at our day’s route.
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From the endpoint, we descended toward the Irwin Lodge.<\/p>\n

The Scarps Ridge Traverse hike is only about 10 miles, and is highly worthy with views better than most peaks in the area. Check it out on my hiking guide<\/a>. There’s still time to enjoy the season’s warm weather!<\/p>\n