The Sawatch Cowpoke

  I could feel the heat of the late-day sun, its rays giving a light burn to the tops of both of my arms. Below me fell away the rest of Wild Ridge for about 1000 feet with New York Peak beyond. Nary a cloud in the sky, the air was warm interspersed with the light breeze from the west. I couldn’t hear any of the cars below on highway 82. Some lady in Aspen was probably buying a martini for $35 about now. I couldn’t have been happier. For as much of the Indy Pass obsessive that I was, it had never occurred to me to give Amos Whiting’s long route “El Diablo de Oro” (5.8 III) on Wild Ridge a look. Having been established in about 2014 or 2015 or so, the route certainly wasn’t grand-spanking new, but it was definitely modern compared to the Harvey Carter classics that surrounded it. I was a fan of Mr. Whiting’s work, many of his newer additions to “The Pass” were near-perfect, with great bolt placements when needed and fantastic movement for whatever grade they went at. Sarah and I had c