The route starts on a slab with many fractures. Follow the slab to the second crack from the right side of the slab, then top out.

Snowblind

King's Crown

The Golden Goat Buttress

Beardsley Route

Second Reincarnation of the Golden Goat

Uncle Andy

Inwood Arete

*Whoever has inevitably climbed this before, feel free to take credit.**

This is the steeper, more interesting alternative to the long slog that is the Cristo Couloir. Begin in an inset, slightly left-trending, 15 foot wide constriction to the west of the entrance of the Cristo. Climb easy snow to the base of the constriction, where there may be a nice snow ledge/crevasse on the right side that makes a good place to set up. Continuing up the couloir earns you 60-65 degree snow for about 400 feet or so before spitting you out into the snow slopes above, at which point you should continue up for roughly 600 feet before traversing right on solid rock until you reach the Cristo, where you may join the line of people trudging slowly up for the last 1/3rd of the couloir.

This was named after Brigadier General Andrew Armacost, Dean of Faculty at the US Air Force Academy.

This is a nice route that protects well. Start at the base of the smooth grey slab, aiming for the diagonal hand crack. Then head left to keep the route clean and avoid the the wildflowers (king's crown) above the hand crack. Belay on the large, tundra flower ledge.

Scramble up to the base of the diagonal, golden band of rock. The climb is 2 pitches and follows the golden band as it trends west with good belay ledges. It has easy route finding.

To descend, traverse west and cross the Goat Piss gully and pick a couloir to go down.

This route is located climbers right of the

Inwood Arete

. The route ascends up the left 5.8 hand crack that dissipates into 5.10 slab climbing, protected by a few sparse bolts. There is a two bolt anchor, and it is easy to continue on the

Inwood Arete

.

From the parking lot, ascend the scree and talus slope to the climber's left of the Golden Goat Buttress.

P1. Start at the obvious weakness and climb easy, low angle terrain to the big ledge.

P2. Climb up the featured black and gold face. Pro is scarce and the holds can be crumbly, but it is good alpine fun. Climb up some 3rd class terrain until you can cross the Goat Piss Gully and traverse west until you find a good gully to descend.

From the trailhead described (known as the McCullough Gulch Trailhead), hike for a mile to a small lake.  The route is directly above the south end of the lake.

Climb a clean but hard to protect 5.4 slab until it turns into a loose rock pile.  Scramble up the rock pile to the base of a steeper wall leading to the upper ridge, and climb a short 5.3 pitch to a grassy bench on the ridge crest.  Walk a few hundred feet along the grassy bench on the left side of the ridge to the base of a steep gully.  Climb a long hard to protect 5.4 slab in the gully and set a belay wherever possible.  One more pitch leads to easy but loose rock.

Scramble up easy 3rd and 4th class rock to the start of a menacing looking chimney.  One pitch that felt like 5.6 to me climbs inside the chimney with bomber gear in interesting horizontals.  Once on top of the chimney, the rest of the orute is an easy 3rd class scramble to the east slopes trail, and then follow the hordes to the summit.

Descent: Descend the east slopes trail.  We bushwhacked down through trees and steep scree to get back to the McCullough Gulch trailhead, but this was incredibly unpleasant.  A better option is to just take the normal route down and walk or hitch along the road back to your car.

Route finding on this can be a little difficult, and an easier way is almost certainly possible (though some summit register entries complained about the 5.6 chimney also).  It is great fun to be totally alone on a technical route, and top out in the middle of hordes of tourists.

Description

Location

Protection

Routes in Quandary Peak