Rocky Mountain High!

[Tom Rankin]

We're heading to Colorado tomorrow, woohoo!

Any last minute hints and tips from the Eastern crowd?

Things you wish you had brought?

Things you won't ever need?

I've check my gear list against the flight restrictions, and we're bringing a wide range of clothes, as I see temps will vary from 30's at the trail head in the morning to 90 in Denver in the afternoon!

We also plan to stay well hydrated and ease into high altitude climbing.

I've been out to http://14ers.com a few times and gotten some good beta.

We'll be sure to take lots of pics and share them when we get back!

 

[Jay H]

Yeah, stay away from experimental aircraft, ala John Denver. Have a great trip, send us a postcard! Let us know how the flight goes, we'll be flying out west later this year.

Jay

 

[Bob]

count on at least one of your flights getting cancelled or delayed...

 

[Seeker]

The only think I wished I'd had was warmer clothes. I ended up buying a fleece top because I was really too cold at night. Sounds like you're well-prepared however!

Have a blast!

 

[Tom Rankin]

Yeah, stay away from experimental aircraft, ala John Denver. Have a great trip, send us a postcard! Let us know how the flight goes, we'll be flying out west later this year.

Jay

The most experimental plane I will be on is an MD-80.

Bringing my laptop, so I might send an e-postcard!

 

[Chip]

good luck, you'll love it I'm sure. watch the weight and size restrictions on baggage and double verify your flights with the airline itself, not with who you booked the flights through. expedia changed our connecting flight coming back, which I had and confirmed with them, but they never told delta so delta charged us with the flight change. you'll probably buy some "Colorado Rockies" fleeces out there, anyway (that stuff is pretty cheap) so you might not need to pack extras.

oh and you might want to review these;

Looking for a guide to Colorado breweries? The UNOB is there for ...Guide to Colorado Breweries. We've listed information on each brewery where known, .... Colorado Kind Ale Hogback Doppelbock Illusion Dweller IPA ...
www.united-nations-of-beer.com/guide-to-colorado-breweries.html - 54k - Cached - Similar pages

Oskar Blues: Our Beer (Restaurant & Brewery - Lyons, Colorado)It was like the most mellow friggin IPA ever. Mind blowing really. ... Look for fourpacks of Ten FIDY in select beer stores in Colorado. Out of state? ...
www.oskarblues.com/brew/ - 25k - Cached - Similar pages

Avery Brewing 303.440.4324Timothy in Colorado; "I want to tell you how much I enjoy your IPA. ... I will try another brewery's IPA and I always find myself saying "Avery's IPA is 10 ...
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Odell IPA - Odell Brewing Company - Beer AdvocateJust a damn solid IPA from a little known, and likely underappreciated, Colorado brewery. Serving type: growler Reviewed on: 06-24-2008 15:29:42 | id: ...
beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/267/35626 - 34k - Cached - Similar pages

Flying Dog India Pale Ale Beer Colorado IPA Brew Pub Gift Store OnlineSnake Dog India Pale Ale is a Colorado-style IPA, power hopped with specialty hops from the Pacific Northwest. This is the brewery's hop monster, ...
www.flyingdogales.com/beer-snake-dog.asp - 17k - Cached - Similar pages

 

[jniehof]

Any last minute hints and tips from the Eastern crowd

Yeah...let me know what the snowpack's like Hitting the CT out of Durango next week. The only serious advice I can think of is don't underestimate the sun exposure. The sun's near its hottest right now, and at 14000' you're above nearly half the atmosphere.

 

[Tom Rankin]

Yeah...let me know what the snowpack's like Hitting the CT out of Durango next week. The only serious advice I can think of is don't underestimate the sun exposure. The sun's near its hottest right now, and at 14000' you're above nearly half the atmosphere.

Yes, long clothing, hats, sun block, check and double check!

Chip, now THAT deserves a Greeny! There, how's that?

 

[Dr. Dasypodidae]

I also am heading out to Colorado on the 11th, but friends out there tell me that there is still lots of snow above 10,000 ft, so prepare for some serious post-holing on any 14ers. However, my guess is that the popular routes will be pretty well packed out.

Oscar Blues in Lyons is definitely worth a stop for music and wicked good brews. Dale's Pale Ale (Dale is the founder of Oscar Blues) is similar to Woodstock Station's Pemi Pale Ale (lots of Cascades hops, I think), but can be bought in cans, which are awesome for hiking. Only need one can of Dale's on top of a 14er to get a buzz.

 

[leaf]

Hope they don't charge you as much for baggage as they did for me going to Alaska! Friggin buzz kill for sure. Safe travels.

 

[Doodles]

Have a safe trip and enjoy.

 

[Mats Roing]

Any last minute hints and tips from the Eastern crowd?

Don't try to summit a 14K dude on the first day there....I've tried that before and it's not a good experience......not even tabasco and olive oil make the freeze-dried possible to swallow

I think 7-11-14 is a doable 3-day stage approach to get to a 14'r......

 

[Mats Roing]

Also if you do Elbert.......to avoid the highway trail up there....go from the south and summit "Bull Hill" on the way. The name has the word "Bull" in it and it's a 13.7K peak. You approach Bull Hill from the south and then turn eastward (after summiting Bull Hill) down to a col before heading back up the summit ridge....the coolsest thing other than being on your own is that you pass a few old mining facilities with buildings and stuff still standing. If you want you can then get back over South Elbert (It's 14.1K but not on the 14K list) and hit the road about 3 miles from where you started......the road walk kind of sucks but the loop on the mountain is great and you probably just meet people on the very summit itself.

If you look on a map you'll see the obvious trails to follow.....

 

[Tom Rankin]

Oscar Blues in Lyons is definitely worth a stop for music and wicked good brews. Dale's Pale Ale (Dale is the founder of Oscar Blues) is similar to Woodstock Station's Pemi Pale Ale (lots of Cascades hops, I think), but can be bought in cans, which are awesome for hiking. Only need one can of Dale's on top of a 14er to get a buzz.

We plan to hit the well traveled routes. We're not bringing snowshoes and crampons! If it turns out to be a drag, we'll just scale back our plans, this is really not a serious peak bagging expedition, just do what we can, and have fun!

Thanks for the beer idea!

Leaf - We got tickets long enough ago (on AA) that we can check 1 bag for free!

Mats - We're going to 5K for 4 days (with some stops at the gym), then 9K for a day (mostly touristy), then up!

Thanks everyone!

 

[WinterWarlock]

Tom -

Don't know your schedule, but if you get a chance to get up to the Medicine Bow Range in Wyoming, do it...good stuff up at Vedauvoo. Depending on where you are, it's not too far (I drive by every other month on the way to Laramie from Denver, and the whole drive is only 2 1/2 hours). I think the elevation is around 9K, so it would be a good in between also.

As I'm sure you know, with the heat and elevation - bring more water than you think you'll need, because you will need it!

Have fun - I'll be out there on Tuesday.

Scott

PS - Good brewery in Laramie too - Altitude Chophouse and Brewery

 

[rhihn]

Don't try to summit a 14K dude on the first day there....I've tried that before and it's not a good experience......not even tabasco and olive oil make the freeze-dried possible to swallow

I think 7-11-14 is a doable 3-day stage approach to get to a 14'r......

I lived there for four years and second this advice, plus the exposure advice. The altitude can hit you at any time, and it's different with each person. It has nothing to do with what condition you're in.

Have fun!

 

[Tom Rankin]

Tom -

Don't know your schedule, but if you get a chance to get up to the Medicine Bow Range in Wyoming, do it...good stuff up at Vedauvoo. Depending on where you are, it's not too far (I drive by every other month on the way to Laramie from Denver, and the whole drive is only 2 1/2 hours). I think the elevation is around 9K, so it would be a good in between also.

As I'm sure you know, with the heat and elevation - bring more water than you think you'll need, because you will need it!

Have fun - I'll be out there on Tuesday.

Scott

PS - Good brewery in Laramie too - Altitude Chophouse and Brewery

Too funny! We're listening to a book on tape, Edge of Justice, which has people climbing in Vedauvoo, and going in the Altitude Chophouse and Brewery! He says it's a yuppee hangout!

 

[MichaelJ]

Don't know where you're going, but a few recommendations if you're near Boulder, based on our trip there last summer, are:

Wild Mountain Smokehouse and Brewery in Nederland. Oh yum. This is, not, however, how to acclimate. Driving the canyon between there and Boulder is awesome, too - look for the free tubing park that the city built *in the river* on the lower stretches, and rock climbers on the canyon walls. Walk the bike path along the lower several miles, too, for a solid workout.

Up in the Nederland area you can drive a good way up Sugarloaf Rd to a parking area near Sugarloaf Mountain and then it's a short but good acclimatization workout to walk up the rest of the way, with amazing views. You can see that the area is recovering from a forest fire that stopped right there on the slopeside.

Another beautiful acclimatization workout is to wander around Chautauqua Park on the trails right up to the bases of the Flatirons.

And a super amazing acclimatization workout is the nearly-flat hike (pdf) from 10,000' to 10,400' going from Brainard Lake (off the Peak-to-Peak highway) into the Indian Peaks Wilderness up past Long Lake to Lake Isabelle and Isabelle Glacier. Spectacular!

Make sure to visit Neptune Mountaineering in Boulder.

Believe it or not, the Boulder Whole Foods *serves breakfast* and it is very good, yea, verily.

If you find yourself in Lyons, eat at Cilantro Mary's. Trust us on this. OMG. Super thumbs-up for the green enchiladas (they're guac-filled!)

Have an AWESOME TIME!!!

 

[Peakbagr]

Tom and Laurie,

Have a great trip. Don't forget sunscreen ! and the 7-11-14 approach is a good one.

 

[WinterWarlock]

Altitude Chophouse and Brewery! He says it's a yuppee hangout!

Really? Can't recall ever seeing anyone in Laramie I'd call a yuppie - that's pretty funny.

Saw this today on a cool blog...thought you'd appreciate it.
TwoHeelDrive on Hiking at Altitude

Have a good trip