First time with skis on my feet, and let me tell you, it didn’t go unnoticed. Riveted with frustration, fall after fall, I still managed to see the beauty in a snow covered Colorado. Turns out you don’t need to be ripping down a mountain side to eat powder. Topped off with a mellow trek back to the car and a thermos full of hot chocolate, the adventure couldn’t have been any better.
My trusted climbing partner, his dog, and I went on a camping and climbing adventure in Crested Butte, Colorado. With the majestic Mount Crested Butte towering over us and the ever expansive Front Range sprinkling the background of most every picture, we enjoyed what the area had to offer. Although we attempted some rock climbing in Taylor Canyon, the mood wasn’t striking us so we settled for frisbee and coffee at the near by reservoir. That sure was one happy dog.
My first family member to visit me in Colorado was my cousin Adam. We traipsed throughout the Springs and made our way to Boulder to hike these iconic rock features. The trails were bustling, but the hike was worth it. Then we hung out on the Pearl Street Promenade, had lunch with a Dead Head, and ate Voodoo Donuts in the park.
A light afternoon hike to a relatively empty reservoir. Reservoir is definitely one of my favorite words.
There is an monolith-like rock that hovers above a local Colorado Springs college campus, so Amanda and I scrambled to the top of it.
This was my 3rd multipitch and probably my second most stressful. There’s something to be said for trusting your climbing partner so utterly, so completely. To have to fully trust someone you cannot see or hear for the majority of your time on the wall, when every choice they make directly affects both their safety and yours is an uneasy feeling. As a pretty amateur climber, I don’t have to be on the Dawn Wall to learn the philosophy, fear, mystery, and grandeur of adventure. Looking forward to expanding my mental and physical game for our next time around.
Not two weeks later, I hiked to the top of my second 14er. However, I’m choosing not to count this one as I did not complete the descent on foot. As a supporter of Colorado’s Brain Injury Alliance, m
y coworkers and I hiked 13 miles to the top of Pikes peak in approximately 6.5 hours. Per the event, we were shuttled in vans from the summit to the base, but not before enjoying some summit donuts – as for some wild reason, there is a cafeteria on the summit of this peak. I plan to complete a full round trip 26 mile hike on the Barr trail with a pit stop over night at Barr Camp…or I’ll just hit the opposite face for a shorter more scrambly approach through the Crags. Either way, this was my most rigorous hike yet and the last 2 miles to the summit made me just about want to cry.
Colorado 14ers, as they call them, are quiet a thing. With over 50 mountain peaks in Colorado that survive the ranks of being dubbed a 14er, its a hobby and passion of many. Mt. Bierstadt, arguably one of the easiest and most highly trafficked 14er was my first. 7 miles round trip and 2,850ft of elevation gain makes for a pretty simple excursion – but alas, my first one is in the books.
Of note, there was a Coors Lite representative running up and down the mountain with a cape – so we got a free beer at the summit. Also, we shared our summit sign with two young lads and and invited them to post adventure pizza at a rad little mountain town joint.
Spend a morning climbing in Elevemile Canyon again. Did my second ever multipitch with a party of 4 on Pine Cone Dome – 5.6 Jolly Jugular, 2 pitches. Quickly understanding why this is a favorite spot.
Ute Valley is a nice, easy hiking spot in Colorado Springs. A good amount of people on the trails on a nice evening after work, hikers and mountain bikers mostly as its full of dirt and rocky trails. Couldn’t tell you what trail(s) but I did manage to make it all the way across the park and back – probably about 2.5 miles total.
mountain intervention 