My New Year’s resolution for 2024 was to summit a Colorado 14er. So on a gorgeous fall day in late September of last year, we made it happen. We picked one of the “easier” ones, Grays Peak, with the idea that we could maybe cross the saddle to Torreys Peak and bag two 14ers in one day.
It was very dark at 6 am when we set off up the trail, with a crescent moon shining bright against the black sky. But by 6:30 the predawn light was seeping into the landscape.
I don’t have a lot of pics from the ascent, probably because I was focused on climbing. Gray’s might be an easy climb by Colorado standards, but it felt like hard work to us.
By 8am we were above the tree line, and the long shadows threw the mountains into sharp relief.
I’m not sure if the snow in the north-side shade was left over from the previous winter or fresh that fall. Maybe a little of both.
Gentle reader, that climb wore us out.
But we made it to the top!
I reached the summit at about 9:40 am. Luke had gotten there way before me, and Elizabeth was still making her way up.
I don’t have a pic of Elizabeth on the summit, I think we were just too spread out at that point.
The views, of course, were incredible. You can see the whole world from up there.
We unanimously decided against continuing on to Torreys. One mountain was enough for us that day.
Most of my good pics were taken on the way back down. I could breathe again, and appreciate the landscape.
Pika!
You can see the piles of scree on the mountainsides from old landslides.
Finally made it back down below the tree line around noon…
…and made it back to the trailhead around 12:30 pm.
And now that I’ve checked “summit a 14er” off my bucket list, I’ve come to terms with the fact that I’m not as young as I used to be, and exploring on a bicycle is more fun for me these days than hiking up really high mountains.
Glad I did this one though. Looking at the world from a mountaintop is something everyone should experience at least once.
An Invincible Summer 