Wheeler Peak, New Mexico 7/9/16

[Daniel Eagan]

It took a long time but my wife and I finally got to climb Wheeler Peak via the Williams Lake and Wheeler Peak trails. Should have done this hike twenty years ago.

Beautiful day, lots of hikers but not too crowded. Technically an easy trail (never had to use arms or even hands) but psychologically very tough for me. Whether due to adrenaline, poor food, dehydration, or elevation, felt queasy near the summit ridge. Later in the afternoon a crushing headache. Does this mean I will suffer altitude sickness again? I'd be reluctant to hike in Colorado if it will mean feeling that sick. BTW, we camped at Columbine which is 7800 feet, but acclimatizing was limited to about 20 hours. Am I correct in thinking that waiting longer to climb would lead to better results?

One more thing, we were inspired to climb Wheeler thanks to this board and the advice of posters like Poison Ivy, TrishandAlex, and others. I'm continually grateful for the help and encouragement I find here.



https://flic.kr/p/K3cbFn

 

[weatherman]

Looks like you had a great day! Congrats. As a New Englander who is now a Coloradan x 6 years, a few thoughts:
1. Acclimatizing x 20 hours isn't really acclimatizing. So spending more time at 5000-8000 feet would really help. Even a couple days can make a big difference, and a couple weeks can make a bigger difference. Your reactions are probably pretty typical and I wouldn't even call it true altitude sickness unless you experience it persistently.
2. Hiking speed is so different out here. I could always go up 1500-1700 feet an hour on almost every NE hike. Here, above 11,000 feet even the faster people only can make 1100-1200 feet/hour even on a sidewalk. More than that and your head will feel like it wants to fall off. So easy footing can be deceiving.
3. Hydrate- in NM especially you will be amazed at how much you go through especially on a day like your pic indicates.
4. Some degree of mild headache and lightheadedness is fairly typical even for acclimatized people when you get close to 14K. You get used to it.

So, don't let one experience turn you off! Good luck.