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The snowy shoulder and east face of Taylor Peak on August 3rd with the Taylor/Powell Headwall looking well filled-in with snow for the upper half but with a very rocky landing at the bottom.
The rock quality on this aspect of Taylor Peak (13,153') is very good and there are many unclimbed cracks waiting to be explored above the snowslopes in the center of this photo. The existing routes including Quicksilver (III 5.8) are of good enough quality to warrant a repeat in the summer months when the steep slopes on this lee-loaded massif are finally mostly free of snow.

The east face of Longs Peak and north face of Mt. Meeker after the new snowfall on August 1st, 2009. This thin coating of snow was melted off by mid-day on most surfaces but it would have made for an exciting night of sleeping out on either of these mountain sides where nighttime temperatures would have been in the teens during this cold and wet storm.

Looking across the west face of Longs Peak and the west ridge, also known as The Keyboard to the Winds. These hard to reach alpine towers are throwing down long shadows before noon on this mid-summer day in the Glacier Gorge of RMNP, Colorado.

(Upper Left) Views from below the Andrews Glacier of the Sharkstooth and east face of the Stiletto at dawn. (Upper Right) Climbers on the classic Northeast Ridge of the Sharkstooth (12,630')
Current avalanche danger overall for the high country of RMNP is starting LOW each morning, then rising to MODERATE on the warmest afternoons with most of the danger being in the form of D1 sized loose snow avalanches (point release) in the upper 3-6" of the snowpack. Although any avalanche activity other than cornice collapses (think Y-Couloir) will likely be small enough not to bury an individual, if you are unroped or unanchored on exposed terrain, a D1 sized avalanche could launch you over the edge. (Broadway, Kieners, North Face of Longs, etc.)

(Above Left) Bert following pitch 3 (10bR) and well above 11,000' on Spear Me the Details on the east face of Spearhead. (Above Right) Mike Arnold training in aid climbing in the cooler foothills above Boulder Canyon, just 15 minutes west of downtown Boulder, Colorado.

The Keyhole in the north ridge of Longs Peak hangs over the Agnes Vaile hut that shines in the morning sun on August 4th, 2009. The Keyhole route that goes continues through this gap in Longs Peak is now considered "non-technical" by the Park Service as enough of the snow has melted off of the Trough Couloir and Homestretch sections of the route to no longer require crampons or an ice axe for steep snow travel.
The north and west faces (L-R) of Longs Peak under thick clouds on the afternoon of August 6th, 2009. Abundant snow still sits in the Trough Couloir and at this rate of melting, likely some of this firm frozen moisture will last through another winter. Snow in the couloir will speed-up the accumulation process this winter of new snow filling-in this longest couloir in RMNP.
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