Great Read!

If you are like me and into survival stories, I highly recommend Between a Rock and a Hard Place
by Aron Ralston.  It is his personal account of his experience in Blue John Canyon, UT.  It gives great personal insight into his experience over his 127 hour entrapment in the canyon.  He goes into detail about his experiences before the situation, and state of mind throughout the entire ordeal. His insight about mountain philosophy and way of life is incredible.  While reading this book, you can't help but want to get outside and share in his passion for the outdoors.

Jones Pass Snowshoe

1/17/2012

Jones Pass

Hiking Party:  Aaron, Dan, Chris

4mi, round trip

Moderate

This is a great snowshoe trail relatively close to Denver.  The trailhead sits at approximately 10,500' and when there's little snow in Denver, this place got it's fair share.  From the city, take I-70 west to the Empire exit.  Take US 40 towards Winter Park.  As the road makes it's first swooping right hand turn before heading up to Berthoud, turn left off of US-40, and follow signs to the Jones Pass parking lot.

There is no fee, nor any bathrooms in the parking lot.  The trailhead is clearly marked, and seemingly the trail is maintained based on the presence of a snowcat parked off trail.  Follow the trail, when it splits, bear right up a steep climb, and follow the well trodden trail all of the way to the gulley.  It was very windy and cloudy once we got out of tree cover, but from other folks' pictures, looks like great scenery on a clear day.

Mt. Elbert (14,443')

7.24.2011

Mt. Elbert, Standard Route

Climbing Party:  Aaron Dover, Amanda Harnden (1^st), Kelsey Breen, Kathryn Young, Katie Lewis, Scarlet, Henry & Oscar

Colorado High Point

10 miles round trip
Strenuous

After working a full shift at the Hyatt, left Denver at 2330 and met up with the rest of the party who had already set up camp at Elbert Creek campground, near Leadville.  After a quick kiss with Amanda, and breaking camp, we were on the trail at 3:00am.  

Smiling and pumped at the trailhead!

We quickly got on the trail, all 8 of us, and started making our way through the never ending forest.  This part of the trail is pretty daunting, and we all agreed on the way back down, its best we didn’t see this part of the trail during the daylight hours.  The truth is, it is a huge climb from the parking lot to treeline.  Without seeing the terrain too well, you just know you are climbing, and climbing, and climbing.  You finally reach treeline at about 11,900’.  Its about 2500’ vertical from where you start.  This is about the halfway point.  Luckily, we had clear skies, and a great view of nearby Leadville.  After gaining treeline, we started to see the evidence that the sun would be rising, and time to put away the headlamps and break out the cameras!  

Once above treeline, the trail starts to switchback, rather gently I might add, until you reach the eastern ridge.  Our early morning start rewarded us with spectacular views to the east as the sunlight started to paint the remaining low clouds with a red undertone that could only be described as “beautiful”.  Mt. Massive to the north looked, well, MASSIVE.  When the sun rose, it dawned on us, hey, we are going to go higher than that.  We saw what appeared to be a quick scamper up the remaining 1000’.  Most guidebooks describe this as the crux of the climb.  It is the peak that is in the foreground, and seems readily attainable after gifting your body to the mountain.  Once you get to the visible peak, you learn there is another summit to be gained, and after that, another one.  Wow, just found out my truck has a cracked head gasket.  The multiple false summits on this trail are very discouraging.  Each time you think you are at the top, there is one more summit to gain.  Repeat times four. 

Anyways, you keep climbing, and then see the summit along a ridge to your left.  It’s a quick traverse left to the summit.  What awaits? Gorgeous views all the way around, and if you have a great girlfriend, some bumps on a log!  There it is, the top of Colorado!  A view most will never see, and even fewer will see at sunrise.

X-Factor

This trip was complicated by a member of our party breaking in a new pair of hiking shoes.  The ascent was fine, but on the way down, the ill fitting shoes gave way to hot spots and blisters.  Trying to descend a mountain like this where every step is excruciating can be a very difficult situation.  It was actually more comfortable for the person to descend wearing two pairs of VERY thick wool socks.  

Lone Eagle Peak

7.19.2011

Lone Eagle Peak via Mirror Lake trail

Climbing Party: Aaron Dover, Danny Whelan and Mike Dolan

Lone Eagle Peak

I will start off by saying that an active outdoor enthusiast in our hiking party said “I’ve lived in Colorado my entire life, and have never heard of this place.”

We got a late start in the day, leaving Denver at 9am to miss rush hour traffic.  It worked…we cruised through the city in no time, and turned off I-70 heading west towards Lyons and eventually made our way through Rocky Mountain National Park.  Mike was visiting from Boston, and Danny wanted to show Mike RMNP.  It was pretty sweet, but a long detour to finally getting into Grand Lake.  Trail Ridge Road is a traffic jam with a million dollar view.  We stopped short of the visitor center and took the most scenic pisses of our lives off the side of the road. 

After RMNP, we got into Grand Lake, and found the trailhead to Mirror Lake, wasted no time and hit the ol’ dusty at 13:30.  The trail starts off very mellow, along the creek (which was in fact a raging class V river).  The trail is very gentle and scenic as it crosses the river several times, before leading you up a hill alongside the first set of falls.  Falls were very impressive.  The recent snowmelt lead to extremely fast running river conditions.  At this point, we recounted an earlier conversation in the car about the hiker in Yellowstone who was attacked by a bear.  The Denver Post ran a story about it and included a CGI  animated short depicting the attack.  We laughed about how ridiculous it was.  Somehow the subject was brought up again, and I advised I didn’t care what happened, as long as I wasn’t the subject of another re-enactment.  This lead to multiple jokes about a Bear/Human trilogy, commercial tie-ins, and real life testimonials from Mike and Danny. Blah, blah, blah.  It made the first mile a rollicking good time.  

Anyway, beyond the first set of falls, the trail starts to climb a little more, and the trail thins out a little bit, and leads you through open fields and corridors of Aspen trees.  The second set of falls is Cascade falls (4.7mi from trailhead).  This set of falls was just simply put, awesome.  We stopped several times to take photos and marvel at its grandeur.  As you climb up alongside the falls, there is a place where you can walk right up to the larges fall and feel how powerful nature can be!  We kept climbing, and climbing and eventually the signature Lone Eagle Peak came into view.  You cannot miss Lone Eagle Peak, however it is tucked behind a closer peak that obscures it until you round the corner.  At this point, we were basically hiking up the gut of a side stream.   We all had trail runners on, and in retrospect, I wished I had put on my hikers.  Forget having dry feet.  Between the snow up there and walking through streams the last mile or so, just try to stay comfortable.  After 7.6 miles, we reached Crater Lake at 16:30.  It’s impossible not to take pictures of this place.  

An incredible hike with a lot of wildlife, varied terrain, summer skiing, incredible views and the best part is it is off the beaten path.  I took a quick dip in Crater lake (which was snow about 15 minutes ago) and it knocked the wind right out of me.  We turned around and headed back, getting to the trailhead in 2:20.  We all lamented the fact that we forgot to pick up a 6 pack when we stopped in Grand Lake.  Beast of a hike!

Grays Peak (14,270') and Torreys Peak (14,267')

7.6.2011

Double Fisting

Climbing Party: Solo

Grays Peak and Torreys Peak as you come out of Steven's Gulch

This was one of those hikes that gets you going right out of the gate.  After arriving at the summer trailhead from Denver, the altitude is readily noticeable.  Got on the trail at 5:05 am.  The trailhead sits at 11,280’, and the first portion of the hike from the parking lot through Stevens Gulch is definitely a challenge.  It is probably one of the most gorgeous approaches I can think of, and makes you wait to see the mountain or mountains you are about to hike.  After gaining the first portion of the hike alongside Stevens Gulch alongside the Kelso Ridge, Grays and Torreys come into view.

Looking back down Steven's Gulch

The peaks appear farther away than they actually are.  Its time to put your head down and keep plugging.  Once you get to and cross a large stream, you can tell you are nestled into the shoulder of the mountain, and the hike truly begins.  At this point you are in the bowl that is created from Grays and Torreys, shielded from approaching wind.  Continuing up the trail on Grays, the switchbacks start, elevation is gained quickly, and the view increases with every step.  After several switchbacks, you gain the summit of Grays and can finally get a view off to the west, and decide for yourself if you want to start making the move over to Torreys.  When I got to the summit at 7:25am, there was one other person up there, I had been following him up, and he was eating some trail mix enjoying the early morning view.  We Bs’d a bit, and talked about the climb, start times, and other peaks we had climbed.  Turns out he was from Kansas City, and had driven up the day before to check out his parents’ new vacation home in nearby Dillon (mad jealous).  He wasn’t sure about doing Torreys, but after we talked about it, decided to make a run at it.  The ridge from Grays to Torreys is pretty damn cool.

Old Glory and I at the top of Torreys.

Great views to the east and west.  Breckenridge ski area was visible, and looked like a foothill compared to where we were.  The ascent up Torreys was pretty straightforward…a short, but direct route up to the summit.  On top, we signed into the register, and enjoyed a “Special Export” brought in from Kansas City.  The beer should have never been exported.  It tasted like yesterdays PBR left out in the sun.  I wish the kid brought some Boulevard.  Next time…The descent was fun.  As we were the first ones up Grays and Torreys that day, we had a bunch of people asking about the weather on top, and what was coming in from the west.  We talked about all kinds of stuff.  He was a pharmacist who just got out of school.  We talked about that, good beer, and our amazing luck with the day we ended up with on top of Grays and Torreys.  Tried glissading for the first time, and had a blast.  Only went 200’, but it was crazy!  Not sure about the couple who glissaded down the bowl with their dog.  They had quite an audience (including a park ranger) we all reveled in their stupidity.  Once back at the parking lot, it was time to take off the boots, put on the flip flops, and look for the greasiest cheeseburger on the way back to Denver.

X-Factor:

As far as hikes go, this one went right according to plan.  There were no snafus, no unexpected terrain, and was pretty damn enjoyable. 

Quandary Peak (14,260')

6.14.2011

The Eye Opener

Climbing Party: Solo

Quandary Peak seen from the road on the way home

Before deciding to try to make a run at Quandary, read the trip reports, and decided it would be best to get a pretty early start on the mountain to avoid post-holing on the way up. It seemed Quandary was in great shape and that soft snow was the big issue to look out for.

Left trailhead at 4:10 am, after arriving from Denver. It was my first time making a night hike, and it was a great experience-one I will not soon forget.

Signage at the trailhead depicting gain, taken after hike.

The first portion of the hike through the woods seemed rather tame, and I found that in the dark, the biggest problem I was having was staying on the trail! There were several places along the trail where it seemed it could've gone in 2,3,4 different directions. I soon realized that the best approach to figuring where to go was to rule out spots where vegetation was not disturbed. It worked out fine, and shortly was above tree-line.  This time of day above tree-line is great to turn off the headlamp, as there is enough light to get by without one.

The second portion of the climb was the first snow-covered slope above treeline. It was early enough, so the snow was hard, and making up was no problem whatsoever. Near the top of the first slope, the sun started to rise, and o my! Best sunrise I had ever seen. The experience was very much worth a short night's sleep, and very early morning.

Sunrise above tree line is a treat.

The third portion, the upper slope, is deceiving. After reaching the top of the 1st slope, it levels off for a bit, and you are presented with the final portion of the hike. It appeared to me to be a quick scurry up the side, and boom, done. I found that it was steeper, and making upward progress slowed substantially for me. Within roughly 200' of the summit, clouds and snow rolled in to the point where the summit was no longer visible. Clouds were thick, and there was no end in sight to the snow coming from the west.

Summit in sight....

...then this happens.

I was within roughly 200' of the summit, and it seemed the weather would not be changing for some time. I hunched over my poles, and was hemming and hawing about turning around or waiting it out. 10 minutes later, the snow stopped for me, the summit became visible once again...green light! Weather held and I was able to get up just in time for it to get socked in again. Found the summit marker at 6:50, and promptly turned around to head back.

X-Factor:  The trail.  The trail was the one element of this hike that added that certain headache sometimes associated with hiking.  On this day, I was able to follow the trail all of the way to the summit, but on the way back down, the trail disappeared as I got to treeline.  The end result was having to draw a bearing on the compass and follow that to the road.  This added an additional 2 hours to my hike time as I was bushwhacking through brush and knee deep snow in some areas.  Even though you may be hiking on populated trails on popular mountains, there is always the possibility you will get off trail, and when you do, you will be glad you packed your map and compass.

Mt. Bierstadt (14,060')

8.12.2010

Mt. Bierstadt (14,060’) and the Sawtooth Ridge

Climbing Party:  Aaron Dover, Lauren Voelker

Had been hiking in the 8,000-12,000 range since moving to Colorado in November 2009. I finally decided I wanted to try a 14er and did my homework and thought that Bierstadt/Sawtooth/Evans would be a good route to do. I recruited a friend who hadn't climbed a 14er either and we decided to give it a go. We made one attempt two weeks earlier and were forced to abort the mission due to heavy thunder and lightning activity on the summit. We swallowed our pride and returned back to the Guanella Pass parking lot. Two weeks later, we returned to the TH better prepared and earlier in the day. We started on the trail at about 6:15 after waiting out a threatening morning cloud.

The trail through the willows over the boardwalk was rather uneventful, crossed the creek without incident, and made our way up onto the ridge of Bierstadt. Summitted Bierstadt at around 10, and contemplated moving onward across the Sawtooth over to Evans. 

We decided it was a go and set off across the ridge. Aside from some wind, the weather had not been an issue up until this point. Traversing just below the ridge, we did not see the fast approaching storm until it was almost on top of us. It started to hail and then snow, with high winds. We took shelter behind some of the larger boulders on the ridge. 

After 30 minutes, the storm cleared, and gave way to a bluebird for the remainder of our day. We were on our way again. The ridge was not all that intimidating until we got to the ramp that leads you up and around the Sawtooth itself. It was the most exposed part of the trip, and the loose rock made it extra interesting. Once we cornered the Sawtooth, the trail gave way to to a wide open ridge with ample room to move around. The trail was not too well defined here, and so we set off for Evans along the ridge. It was around noon, and we thought given the day so far, it might not be wise to move on to Evans. We were feeling the altitude, and the winds were making things even more difficult.

We made our way to the gully on our descent, which was very well marked with cairns and a stream to follow. Down the gully was steep, but manageable. Then came the willows....ahhhh the willows. Felt we were heading to Mordor looking for the "Ring". Deep mud, and thick brush made it slower going. Several offshoots to the main trail made it hard to follow at times, but as long as you stay between the lakes and the hillside, you'll reconnect with the Bierstadt trail. We eventually made the trail, and got back to the parking lot at 3pm.

Although we didn't make it all of the way to Evans, it was a great trip, and an experience I will not soon forget. Great views, not crowded, and an introduction to 14ers. Can't wait to get out there again!

X-Factor:  The weather.  This is supposed to be one of the easier fourteeners out there, and its’ proximity to Denver makes it an attractive mountain to hike.  For the most part, the weather rolls in from your backside.  It’s easy to gauge the weather on this hike.  Once you get on to the Sawtooth, your view of the west is hidden, as the trail ducks below the ridge, obscuring your view to the west.  If you are able, try to get up on the ridge periodically to see what’s coming your way.  Once we were on the shoulder of Evans, after crossing the ridge, the wind became an issue.  We turned back from Evans after a ¼ mile from the summit because of such high winds. 

Colorado Way of Life

So, I am new to blogging, and had been keeping a running journal of some of my mile high (or higher) exploits.  After seeing what others were doing with blogs, I thought this would be the best way to share some of the adventures and discoveries made in this wonderful part of the country, and encourage others to do the same.

I came to Colorado in the fall of 2009, lived in an apartment in Capitol Hill and instantly grew to love the city of Denver.  I weighed in at a portly 230lbs, which was not worn well on my 5'10" frame.  I distinctly remember being given a walking tour of the city from my room mate and great friend Wil.  After the two mile walk downtown, my feet were tired, and blistered from a routine walk into the city and around the neighborhood.  Apparently my body was not used to such activity, and was more accustomed to a more sedentary day job and activity regiment.  Everything in my new life was an exercise, from lugging groceries home, to walking everywhere, to hiking and exploring.  I was in love with my new environs and new lifestyle.  In the winter of 2009, logged 26 days of snowboarding, and hiking in the summer.  Within a year, I had dropped my weight to 176lbs.  Have not had cable since moving here, nor do I plan on getting it ever again!  I started to keep a journal of some of my trips and experiences.

I dedicate this blog to the wilderness, and the magic and inspiration that can be found within it.  Some of these posts are catch up reports, and are drawn on memory and may lack photos, but I hope that you enjoy them just the same!