Tentative Peak-Bagging Trip next Summer

“stop checking out the dude's package and look at those mountains”

“that's taking the fist thing to a WHOLE new level”

“I can't help it! It's right there for all of the universe to see. :p

I see mountains, everyday. ;)”

“omg what have you done to my innocent thread, doo?”

“lol...

Hey, it degenerated all on it's own. Actually, you're the one who went there first. :p

You were just waiting for it to go south. I just helped it along. ;)
last edited: 1/12/08 4:17:11 PM”

“I'm so disappointed and offended.”

““I'm so disappointed and offended.”

That you didn't take it there first?”

“YES!!! I have a thread ruining reputation to uphold around here you know!”

“So sorry... better luck next time? ;)”

“moderator! please ban meangreen and doolittle from this thread!”

“Yeah, that'll get you nowhere fast. :p

;)”

“those of you who can only make a portion of the trip (roam, doo, precision), itd be really great if you could make the capitol section. either meet up with us at the trailhead thursday morning, or meet us in camp thursday later in the day. you would only have to take 2 vacation days off work”

“I'd like to think I can make the Capitol part of that trip. We shall see.

maybe camp (and drink) with you guys that first weekend some too!
last edited: 1/14/08 9:38:13 AM”

“Ditto what Roam said. But I doubt I'm going to be able to get the time off for Capitol. I've got a lot going on this year and possibly a last minute trip back to Ohio to keep in mind.

Not.... enough.... vacation..... time.....”

“so, really - on a partial ditto then?”

“Right, it's more like a half ditto. Perhaps a divitt would be more accurate. :p”

“a divitt? this is hiking, not golf.

i'm confused.”

“Good.

;)”

“unless things change, i think we'll have to access crestone needle from the south colony lakes trailhead. its not that much further away than the cottonwood creek trailhead. should take about 3 hours to get from the elbert/massive trailhead”

“Routes:

Elbert (northeast ridge): http://www.14ers.com/routemain.php?route=elbe1&peak=Mt.%20Elbert

Massive (east slopes): http://www.14ers.com/routemain.php?route=mass1&peak=Mt.%20Massive

Crestone Needle (south face): http://www.14ers.com/routemain.php?route=cnee1&peak=Crestone%20Peak%20and%20Crestone%20Needle

Capitol Peak (northeast ridge): http://www.14ers.com/routemain.php?route=capi1&peak=Capitol%20Peak%20and%20Snowmass%20Mountain”

“ok, so i am a definite maybe on this trip but after last weekend hiking up 2200 feed to a whooping elevation of 3300 feet i am wondering if i am up to the task. i should be in pretty good shape after the grand canyon in march so long as i keep up the training and don't lose any ground. still, i will just come out and say that i have zero experience when how i will perform at 14k feet yet alone day after day of scrambling and hiking. i did get the time off for the dates requested but i am wondering if i am really up to the agenda. so i need to think a bit because i don't want to be a liability to those that are making the entire trip plan.”

“i will add that i am not in bad shape after last weekends hike but it did leave me wondering if i could deal with doing the hike over and over for just under a week. i know i could perform on any one of those hikes and perhaps two in a row but this is a pretty agressive agenda for me.”

“o for chrissakes. youre probably the strongest hiker and climber out of everyone going, with the exception of roam around. with your wilderness knowledge and experience, youre an asset
last edited: 1/21/08 7:17:07 PM”

“ok... the hell with it. you can be my sherpa b*tch and drag me to the top if i lag behind.”

“i'll try to book my flights next week. crash, i know it's in the thread somewhere but could you email me your flights? i may try to copy them as closely as possible. i am doing the entire trip.”

“Fri, Aug 8, 2008
Departs 8:50am, Arrives 9:29am
Northwest Airlines 325
Indianapolis, IN to Denver, CO


Sun, Aug 17, 2008
Departs 4:00pm, Arrives 8:25pm
Northwest Airlines 324
Denver, CO to Indianapolis, IN”

“Cool. Thanks.”

“http://www.usgsquads.com/svcs_paper_maps.htm#General

its not necessary for everyone to have the topos. but i would like everyone to have some form of map, even if its just the maps from the roach guidebook”

“feh. i see that site still has you ordering by mail. anyone know of a site you can order online? i have to get ready for work now, but i'll look into it later”

“Crash, I just matched your flights as closely a I could and still pay with miles... this hopefully will work out.

I arrive in Denver at 9:30 am via UAL 0243 from O'Hare.

I depart from Denver at 4:45 pm via UAL 0938.”

“...same days as you crash”

“Glad you are coming Yogi. This will be a great trip. It will be great hiking even if you never make it to the top, and there will be some great camping.


I remember climbing Elbert, my first 14er, in '94, wondering if I was up to it. I just kept walking and enjoying the view. When I got to the top there was a dude in running shorts & shoes who had jogged up there with his dog. It's really not that tough if you are physically active.

I'm still convinced that most altitude sickness is psychosomatic, brought on by reading too much crap on the internet.”

“i fully expect that we may not bag all 4 peaks. massive is a 14 mile round trip, with 4500 ft elevation gain. capitol is a sketchy class 4 climb, and theres always the potential of weather turning us away on any summit assault. for massive and capitol, i think an early start is imperative

haha jimbo, i get to denver 1 minute before you do
last edited: 1/24/08 8:35:04 AM”

“initially, i was going to go with massive before elbert, because i thought i might not be acclimated enough to succeed on day 1, so i put elbert on day 2 because it being the highest peak, it was more important to me. but then roam wanted to get elbert on sunday since he cant be there thru the week, but more importantly, the massive climb is 5 miles longer than the elbert climb, plus, massive is class 2 compared to elbert class 1, makes me think that elbert is the good warm-up for massive. i'd rather not start my 1st day at elevation with a 14 mile hike
last edited: 1/24/08 8:41:15 AM”

“Good thinking.

I'd like to see the southwest route on Massive - that trail has been worked by the 14er initiative group recently. Maybe we could come down that way.

Massive is class 2 because the upper ridge is a pile of boulders with no set trail.”

“That last bit on Massive is some fun, and you're right, definitely want to do Elbert as a warmup. Massive is a long, long, hike.”

“Just in case you're interested -

http://outdoors.webshots.com/album/444995405fNLYlU?start=0”

“i chose my flights to arrive/depart as close to your schedule as possible to make logistics to/from the airport as simple as possible.”

“oh, and if there is any class 4 stuff are we sure we won't need any rock climbing gear to make the ascent safe? class 3 you are pretty much on top of the rock the entire time and while you could get hurt it's pretty managable. class 4 you are getting vertical and you won't always be on top of the rock. so pro might be a good idea. i did some class three last weekend and it was no big deal (just streneous). i did some class 4 in the gorge a few months ago and i would not have solo free climbed it... we chose to set 2 cams and a belay and we are darn glad we did. the climbing wasn't hard but a fall would have likley resulted in a serious injury/death.”

“I haven't climbed Capitol, but my understanding is that the class 4 section is fairly easy technically, just a huge amount of exposure. I've seen pics of people doing it both roped and unroped.”

“class 3/4 stuff can be more dangerous than class 5 because it's harder to protect + people get overconfident on 3/4 stuff and either don't use pro or take long runouts. if the consequences of a fall are likley death but it's not class 5 climbing then it's almost certainly class 4. oh well. it all sounds straightfoward enough.

i would love to get some beta on the class 4 stuff and what to bring to protect these segments. it would save a lot of gear. i am not concerned about the class 3 stuff. it all sounds like a lot of fun, especially the extended runs on class 3 terrain. you really feel like you are doing something.”

“Roache's book and 14ers.com and summitpost.org give the best route descriptions. Everyone has different comfort levels and what is 'easy' class 3 to me might seem like super-scary class 4 'are you nuts' climbing to someone else.

The knife edge on Capitol is very exposed and if your not used to or comfy with that kind of exposure a roped belay might be very comforting. It's solid and has good feet (especially if you scooch it), but someone from Indiana not accustomed to that much air beneath them might like the feeling of being tied in - could make the difference in a trip experience - i have no idea what kind of pro you might place to anchor a belay up there though - summitpost might talk about it - a few hand sized or finger sized pieces and slings i'd imagine - that's a pretty standard alpine rack.


http://www.summitpost.org/route/155742/northeast-ridge-aka-the-knife-ridge.html
last edited: 1/24/08 4:17:13 PM”

“On that particular section I think I may feel better unroped to tell you the truth. I like you guys but I don't want to die because you slipped, or the other way around. A rope can be a safety, or it can be a suicide pact depending on the situation. I don't know what I'll want, but it's something to consider.”

“jimmy would rig it up so that one guys fall would not mean another guys fall. hes only got a couple of harnesses anyways, i believe. youd be secured to the rocks. i'll probably go without. it sounds like roping up is not necessary, and it could slow things down. i still think jimmy could bring the gear, and we split the weight between all of us”

“I'm definatly cool with that. Do you think I need to buy a harness just in case? I don't intend to do any real rock climbing in the near future, and would hate to spend the $$ if it's not going to get used here. Of course I would hate to plummet ot my death because I was too cheap to buy a $75 harness too. LOL!”

“if you want to use a harness, use a harness. if you dont want to use a harness, dont use a harness. price should only be a determining factor in "do you want one of your own, or do you use jims?"”

“exactly my point.

I don't particularly want one, and this is the only time in the near future I will use one, but I don't want to cause problems if it slows us down too much by only having two harnesses. Don't want to sound like a worry wart, but I want to be sure we have the gear to get there too.”

“ya, this isn't glacier travel guys. it's not "roping up" in that context... not with you jokers... no way... haha... jj!

i'll bring my light alpine rack with me and a rope. it's not that big of a deal to carry... plus the sound of it clinking and clanking is music to my ears... you know what i mean if you climb.
last edited: 1/24/08 7:22:28 PM”

“btw, looking at that photo that RA posted it doesn't look like nearly that big of a deal. if you fell you would prolly scrape up your arms and legs pretty good but you would have to peel off pretty good to take a serious fall on that and not be able to self arrest. i bet the other side is a real beotch however! anyway, that section i wouldn't feel the need to be belayed. that looks like fun actually.”