Chris Before Moscow

Well, this morning our time, my good buddy Chris landed in the Capitol of Russia to begin his study abroad. The lucky Devil will be there until December 20th, so hopefully he comes back only with a lighter wallet and not missing any limbs.

Before he left, though, we were able to hit the southern end of the Sawatch Range with a jaunt up Mt. Shavno and Tabagueche Peak last week, a day after Zack and Sara finished up the Grand. Lucy tagged along, and despite weather concerns, we fought the humidity to the top of Shavano in a little more than two hours.

From the top of Shavano, Tabagueche peak is only a quick mile-and-a-half saddle traverse away.

It was interesting being at the southern end of the Sawatch because we had views of Antero, the San Luis Valley, and most of the Colorado Sangre de Cristo mountains instead of the usual Sawatch views of the Collegiate Range and the Elks. More climbing for the the next nine months!

When we summited “Tab” peak, it was Chris’ final peak in the Sawatch Range that he summited this past year. I gave (and still give) mad props to him, which he accepted by showing of his massive “Sawatch Muscle.”

Tabagueche Peak is a funny peak because I have never met someone who knew the correct pronouncement of the name. I called it “Tab-a-Gucci” peak for a while, but someone told me on Huron it was actually “Tab-gwe-cha.” Most everyone I know just calls it “Tab” and that we did the “Shav/Tab” combo.

We hustled back over the saddle to Shavano, and then the clouds cleared for a while, making for a sunny alpine decent. When we were in the forest, however, the skies dumped rain on us for a while, creating a trail of mud, much to Lucy’s enjoyment.

We were back at the car in about six hours, making for a successful day and one final climb with Chris before he gets to see what the color Red means. I wish him luck and I know he’ll have a blast, but I hope he stays in shape so he can keep up this winter!