Sunday, August 28, 2011

...But Seriously

I got back to some serious hiking on Saturday. I’m climbed Mt. Yale which has an elevation of 14,202 feet. They say you can see thirty 14ers up there. I didn’t pick out that many, but I did see quite a few. I did the standard route up from the Denny Creek Trailhead. The trailhead is easy to get to. It is right on the Cottonwood Pass Road. So it was a paved road all the way to the trailhead. I stayed in Buena Vista the night before. So I had real short drive to the trailhead in the morning and was able to get an early start without being tired out from a long drive. The trail was short. It is only a seven mile round trip. The trailhead is at 9,900 feet. So there is 4,300 foot vertical gain. The trail is in great shape. It is not too hard. It is mainly a steady walk up. There is a little of Class 2 climbing near the top. That is where you may need to use your hands for balance. Anyway, I made it to the top without stopping for any water breaks. I didn’t even stop to take my camera out till I got to the top. So here are the pictures starting from the top.
Mt. Princeton is on the left. Antero, Shavano, & Tabeguache are in the center of the picture
Right to Left: Columbia, Harvard, Oxford, & Bedford.
Buena Vista and Pikes Peak
Me with a bunch of 14ers behind me
Looking west towards the cloud covered Taylor Park Reservoi
The start of the trail down.
Me with Beford, Oxford, Harvard & Columbia behind me.
Me with my head in the clouds
Me enjoying the view on the way down.
Looking back at Mt. Yale
Flowers with mountains behind them

4 comments:

Pops said...

Was that a pika on that rock near you?

Looks like you got a pretty good workout on this hike. But also looks like it was worth the effort.

Looking forward to seeing pictures of your next adventure.

gg said...

Looks like you are on top of the world.

Jim said...

3 & 1/2 miles with a 4300 ft vertical gain is a pretty good climb. That is more than Longs Peak isn't it??

Mighty Mike said...

The vertical gain for Longs is 4859 ft. over 7 & 1/2 miles. Yale is steeper, but it doesn't have a Trough or Homestretch.