Starts with a few pre-climb pics and then video of the BHP accent, ridge walk, east and west couloir and the final accent to the needle.
Archive for the ‘14er’ Category
Longs Peak – Loft – 08.21.2010
22
Aug
Brenda and I climbed Longs Peak via the Loft route last Saturday. The trail looked like I-25 on a Friday night. Head lamps littered the trail up to tree line and to the first privy. The turn off to Chasm Lake is when we finally got some of the peace we were seeking that morning. We filtered water and had hot oatmeal and coffee at the base of Chasm lake. The hike up the first gully was steep but fairly straight forward. Know where to exit was very helpful. Once we reached the saddle we quickly climbed to the top of Mount Meeker for a great view of Longs. We cut down Meeker to the backside of longs. Soon we saw Clark’s Arrow and began the down climb. This is the fun part and we only saw two other groups of climbers until we reached the home stretch. And that’s where we met up with “I-25″ again. Luckily we were able to start the home stretch 15 feet to the climber’s right and simply walked up to the summit. The summit of Longs is like a foot ball field, it is huge compared to other summits. One climber we ran into in the Loft describe it a Super Walmart. And sadly it was. It is really amazing how clean and well maintained the trail is with the amount of people that attempt this peak every day. On the way down we stopped at Chasm Lake for more water and a nice snack. Weather was perfect. Finally after being stormed off and snowed off I bagged Longs, and even better, with Brenda.
Crestone Needle 08.2010
19
Aug
Matt Lee and I climbed Crestone Needle last Sunday. I know why everyone we passed that day agreed that this was their favorite 14er to date. The only appropriate way to describe these two 14ers is as The Mighty Crestones! Crestone Needle is 14,197′ (19th tallest) and Crestone Peak is 14,294′ (7th tallest).
When you reach the lower South Colony lake you believe you will see those Mighty Crestones! Like last weekend when we climbed Quandary, we were treated to fog first thing in the a.m. When we reached the first lake we didn’t know which peak we would be climbing. And then like Lamont Cranston, we saw the Needle break through the clouds. There was no question.
This is the funnest 14er I’ve done. It has just the right amount of technicality and exposure. The lakes are visible throughout the hike. When you reach the summit you immediately notice it isn’t very roomy, hopefully you have it to yourself like I did.
Snow in August! Longs Peak 2008
26
Aug
August 18th, 2008 I made another attempt at Longs Peak. I say another attempt because exactly one year ago I made my first attempt. We were stormed off about 3 miles in. It was about 2am and we were at tree line when lightning began to strike near us. We waited for about 30 minutes at tree line before turning back.
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This year we started on the trail about the same time. 12:45am. By the time we hit tree line we were walking on the crust of the frozen snowfall from a few days before. The moon was full and the snow glitter making it very easy to follow the path. The “dreaded boulder field’ really wasn’t too dreadful. The snow created bridges between the boulders and the two parties that hiked up before us made good tracks.
We could sense the sun was about an hour from the horizon as the moon set closer to the west above the key hole. The most amazing site ever. We were sitting on the key hole as the moon set over Glacier Gorge and the sun rose behind Mt Lady Washington.
We met some guys that had camped at the boulder field and were attempting their first 14er. We warmed up in the shelter before crossing the back side to the trough. The path seemed difficult at first. Some of the normal routes, indicated by red/yellow bulls eyes on the rocks were inaccessible due to ice. Another obstacle was making room for another hiker who turned back at the trough.
It was light enough out but we were still in the shade by the time we ascended the trough. Much like the boulder field, the path up the trough cut strait across the rocks. The temperature was slowly increasing and the snow was getting softer. We made it to the top of the trough where we were hit with a wall covered in ice. We tried to pass this wall for about 30 minutes when we decided the path wouldn’t be safe without crampons.
The hike back was as described in other blogs and trip reports…. long! So this was the second attempt at Longs Peak. I don’t think I’ll try to climb it again this year. Although we didn’t summit and came with .25 miles of it, it was the prettiest climb I’ve done. Enjoy the pictures!
14ers to come
01
Jan
Over the next month I plan to add my trip reports for the 14ers I’ve climbed. I started last year (2007) on the 4th of July. The first mountain I climbed was the tallest 14er in Colorado and second tallest in the United States. As of last year I climbed: Mt Elbert, Mt Bierstadt and Mt Evans, Mt Massive, Greys and Torreys Peak, Quandary Peak, Mt Lincoln, Democrat, Cameron and Bross, and we attempted Longs Peak but got stormed off at the boulder fields. This year we climbed Mt Sherman. Next on the list is Mt Oxford and Belford.
With these trip reports you can expect the corresponding galleries to grow. We probably take way too many pictures. 
