Climbing Colorado’s Fourteeners

Before I lived in Colorado I hadn’t spent any length of time in the mountains and the world of climbing high peaks was unknown to me. Then I went to an evening talk at Neptune Mountaineering in Boulder given by Ed Webster on Mongolia of all places, and I was hooked. Colorado’s 54 Fourteeners as they are called, may not be Mongolia but now they beckoned. Climbing as many of Colorado’s Fourteeners as I could was now a my goal.

You don’t have to be a mountaineer to climb many of the peaks. Some are little more than walk-ups – under the right conditions. All can be deadly if you’re unprepared. Many trailheads are within 2-3 hours of Boulder and Denver. The closest trailheads have the largest number of visitors. If you can hike on a weekday or get to some of the more remote southwest peaks then chances are you’ll have very little company.

I’ve climbed 35 of the peaks but almost none of the really difficult ones. The likelihood of completing all 54 of them diminishes every year. I don’t know if I’d have the guts now to do the knife edge traverse on Capitol Peak or the wherewithal to try the crumbling but beautiful peaks known as the Maroon Bells. What I do know is that each and every climb was memorable and well worth doing.

Here are my favourite fourteeners

• Long’s Peak especially heading through the Key Hole – exhilarating and a tad scary.

 

• Quandary Peak but as a snow climb in the spring. I have NEVER had so much fun on a mountain. In under 10 minutes I glissaded 2600 feet to the base. Do not attempt this without knowing how to self arrest with and without an ice axe.
• Snowmass Mountain near Aspen is beautiful and can be done as a two to three day backpack. Expect world class scenery through here.
• Mount Sneffels near Telluride is a stunning peak.
• La Plata Peak has fantastic ridges and beautiful cirques.
• Mount of the Holy Cross near Vail is a beautiful mountain with a tough climb at the end of the day of almost 1000 feet.
• Mount Elbert is the highest peak in Colorado and the second highest peak in the contiguous United States. It calls you. Views from the top are amazing.

I’d love to return to Colorado to climb the Wilson Group of peaks down in the southwest corner of the state and Uncompahgre and Wetterhorn Peaks are still on my list. I think I could be happy holding at 40 summits.

If you’re going to start hiking and climbing Colorado’s Fourteeners, get a very early start so you’re heading down from the summit by noon. Thunderstorms are exceedingly common in the early afternoon. And don’t forget your 10 essentials. Happy climbing.

Leigh McAdam

www.hikebiketravel.com

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