Mt. COPELAND

Other times I've been to Ouzel Lake: 
Category: Colorado (RMNP)Wild Basin Summer Trailhead Elev: 8,500 ftOuzel Lake Elev: 10,020 ftMt. Copeland Elev: 13,176 ftRock Type: Granite
Date: June 19, 2024 (Wed)Trip Report #: 701Partner: solo

Northeast Slope (2nd, ~14 miles, 4700 ft gain/loss)

A great all-season fitness scramble up a 13-neer in RMNP.

Intro

Mount Copeland is a huge, bulky mountian that dominates the heart of magnificent Wild Basin. It stands between the drainages of Cony and Ouzel Creeks and is the major peak visable when entering Wild Basin on Wild Basin Road. With a summit elevation of 13,176, Copeland is one of the higher summits in RMNP.

There are two main ways to get to the summit, both just 2nd class scrambles: the NE Slope from Ouzel Lake and the East Ridge from Pear Lake. These two routes merge on the upper slopes of Copeland. Via Ouzel Lake is a bit shorter, so I decided to go that way. It still makes for a pretty full day with 14 miles and nearly 5000 feet of elevation gain.

I had considered climbing Copeland all winter and then all spring, but other objectives, conditions, or weather prevented it from happening. Now it was the last day of spring, and snow had by this point melted off of most trails, but still remained on some slopes up high. I felt like a good day of exercise, so tagging the summit of Copeland seemed like a good plan for the day. I left the trailhead just after 5am, starting early because of forecasted afternoon rain and thundershowers. Even in the early morning hours, clouds were forming. My round trip time was 8 hours and 16 minutes (4 hours 20 minutes up, 3 hours 40 minutes down, 16 minute break on the summit). The rain started a bit after I got home.

Below are some photos of my last-day-of-spring climb of Mt. Copeland.

MAP

Photos

Sign just after trailhead. I hiked to Ouzel Lake, and from there headed up the NE Slope of Copeland.
The first mile or so of the trail is flat and parklike. 
St. Vrain Creek was raging due to the spring melt.
Upper Copeland Falls.
Ouzel Falls.
Mt. Alice to the north.
Mt. Copeland as seen on the hike to Ouzel Lake.
Trail junction for Ouzel Lake.
Marsh marigold.
Ouzel Lake. At the head of the valley is Ouzel Peak.
Mt. Copeland as seen from Ouzel Lake.
Mt. Copeland reflection in Ouzel Lake.
I waded across the outlet stream. My feet went numb.
The ascent of Copeland started with some mild bushwhacking on the slopes directly above Ouzel Lake.
The bushwhacking became milder as I ascended.
The snow made for quick travel.
Hail from the previous evening.
Breaking above treeline. At this point, I still had about 2000 vertical feet to go.
Cute purple flowers.
Different cute purple flowers.
Temperatures had reached freezing overnight. Afterall, the summit elevation of Copeland is just over 13,000 feet.
I ascended gentle slopes like this for a long time.
Yet another false summit.
The actual summit.
The summit.
The summit register. The most recent entry before mine was from the previous September.
A view southward towards Elk Tooth and Ogalalla Peak and Cony Lake below.
A view north looking down on Bluebird Lake.
A view towards Longs Peak, shrouded in clouds.
Some snow slopes expediated the descent.
My track between Ouzel Lake and Mt. Copeland summit.
A new summit pin to add to my RMNP map!
The "50% thundershowers after noon" materialized around 3:30pm.

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