Peace. Love. Hike.: August 2013

Colorado has 54 mountain peaks exceeding 14,000 feet (known as 14ers locally)- the most of any state. One of my goals this summer was to hike a 14er with my brother-in-law Michael. We had first started talking about it in June on our hike to Bear Peak. Michael has "bagged" a few 14ers already and told me he had his eye on Mount Yale for the next one. Of course I went home and read all about this mountain. Mt. Yale is one of nine 14ers in the Collegiate Peaks, in the central part of the Sawatch Range near Buena Vista, Colorado. It is the 21st tallest peak in Colorado and the 5th highest in the Collegiate Peaks. The term "Collegiate Peaks" comes from some of its individual peaks, which are named after universities, including Mount Harvard, Mount Princeton, Mount Oxford, Mount Columbia, and Mount Yale itself. As far as 14ers go, Mt. Yale is ranked in the middle in regards to difficulty. Michael said this would be an awesome one to "bag" first. It was a challenge I was up for taking. Summer started to fly by so at the end of July we finally set a date that worked for both of us. August 26th would be the day we conquered Mt. Yale. I marked it on my calendar and the countdown began!

August flew by! The time for Mt. Yale arrived before I knew it. I was hoping to get a few more training hikes in before the 26th but my schedule did not really allow it. The night before I called Michael to go over my pack supplies to make sure I was prepared to the best of my ability. I was planning to start the hike with my hiking pants, shoes, and socks, a short-sleeved and long-sleeved base layer, a fleece, and baseball cap. The things I carried in my camelbak included: 2 liters of water, a bottle of water with electrolyte mix in it, my GoLite coat, a rain coat, winter hat and gloves, a lighter, sunscreen, lip balm, my camera, my phone, Ibuprofen, a couple of Clif bars and shot blok energy chews, dried apricots, almonds, nut and fruit trail mix, and a special treat for the summit. :) Michael said he would have a couple of maps, a compass, flashlight, and knife with him as well. Between the two of us I felt we had all the supplies we needed for the big hike. Michael told me he would pick me up at 4am. Off to bed I went!

My alarm went off at 3:10 a.m. and surprisingly I woke up at the hour with a smile on my face. I texted Michael to make sure he was awake as we agreed and got an immediate reply. I knew he was pumped as well. I cleaned up and got dressed as quietly as possible so I wouldn't wake up my sleeping hubby, but he heard me anyway. He gave me a big hug and kiss and told me to be safe and have fun on my journey! I told him I could not wait to come home and tell him all about it later. I really couldn't!

At 4:00am I headed out my door and Michael was just pulling up to pick me up. I had my pack, a bag with shorts, a t-shirt, and sandals, I could change into after the hike, and a cooler with some water and my energy drink for the car ride. Michael helped me load my gear in the car and our adventure began! Buena Vista is about 2 1/2 hours away from our hometown of Erie. We had plenty of time to catch up on what was new in our lives, our thoughts on the final episodes of our favorite t.v. show Breaking Bad, and prep for our long trek. Most of the drive was in the dark so I could only see the dark silohuettes of the mountains we were driving through. They looked mysterious and beautiful. Good conversation, great tunes, and mountainous landscapes made the road trip very enjoyable.

We arrived in Buena Vista at 6:30am as the sun was rising. It was gorgeous.

We made a quick stop at a gas station to use the bathroom and then made our way to the Denny Creek trailhead where our adventure would begin. There are a couple of different routes you can take to get to the summit of Mt. Yale, but the Denny Creek trailhead is the standard route.

The hike is 9.5 miles round trip with an elevation gain of 4,300ft. We were in for a work out! There were a few other cars in the parking lot so we knew we weren't going to be alone on the mountain. Another man was actually gearing up for the hike right next to us. He told us the day before he biked through the area and today he was hiking. We wished him luck and told him we would see him at the top as he headed off! We finished getting our packs ready, drank what was left of our energy drinks, stretched out our legs, and hit the trail as well. It was 7:00am when we got started.

The hike begins in a beautiful pine and aspen forest. Our nostrils were immediately filled with the sweet scent of the ponderosa pine bark. We couldn't get enough of it! We started at a good pace as the hiking was pretty easy in the beginning. After a mile we crossed the Denny Creek stream on a log bridge. About a 1/4 mile further up we saw the trail junction sign that directed us to turn right for the Mt. Yale trail. We were officially on our way to the summit.

We continued to weave our way through the forest and we crossed the stream a couple of more times on log bridges, being careful not to slip and fall. We passed through some small meadows and then the trail began to climb steeply up a hillside. I had to stop and catch my breath when we reached a forest clearing as I started to feel a little nauseous. I think it was a combination of my nerves and the high altitude. Michael had assured me from the start that if at any point in time on the trail I wanted or needed to turn back to just speak up and be honest. There was no shame in having to turn around if I didn't feel well or think I could complete the hike. I had no intention of turning around if I could help it! I definitely know my body and know when it is time to call it quits and this wasn't the case here. I just needed a minute to slow my heart rate down, drink some water, and rest. That is exactly what I did and we started up again with a second wind of energy.

From 11,300' to 11,900', we hiked north and east through the forest on a great trail. Once we reached tree line the views of the Sawatch peaks really opened up. It was breathtaking!

We were above tree line around 12,100'.

We continued up the winding trail through rocks when we encountered a man making his way back. We stopped to chat with him. He told us that it was very windy, cold, and cloudy when he was at the summit earlier. Visibility was poor and because of the weather he didn't stay up there long. I was both disappointed and nervous to hear this of course. This was my first 14er so I didn't want bad weather to keep us from reaching the summit or be stuck in a cloud at the top and not be able to see anything. He said it appeared that weather conditions were clearing up as he left though so he figured our chances for better visibility were pretty good. I told him I hoped he was right. He told us to look out for some marmots on the rocks shortly above us on the trail before we parted ways. I was hoping we would see some marmots as I had read many other trail reports from Mt. Yale that included sightings of them. Sure enough as we continued up the trail we saw a couple sunning themselves on the rocks.

They examined us as we stopped to admire them. I imagined them greeting us - "Welcome to the Tundra!" It is amazing to me how they can survive in such a harsh environment. We snapped a bunch of photos and let them be.


Butterfly in the tundra

We hiked on and soon enough much of the remainder of the route was visible to us. The summit ridge was in sight....and it would stay in sight for what seemed like forever.

Approaching the summit ridge was such a strenuous part of the hike. We were taking baby steps and having to pause to catch our breath quite frequently, drink water, and snack on sugary things. The thin air was definitely giving our lungs a beating. There were clouds looming over the summit but it was amazing how fast they were moving above us.

I stopped at one point and just looked up and watched as the clouds raced by like cars. It looked like someone was pushing a fast forward button on the sky. It captivated me. The weather looked promising enough that we could continue forward. I just hoped that when we reached the summit ridge the sky would clear more. We bumped into a few more people coming down from the summit (including the man we met in the parking lot when we first started) and they all said how windy, cold, and poor the visibility was when they were at the top. Not what I wanted to hear! The temperature definitely dropped at this point so we stopped to put on all our cold weather gear- coats, hats, and gloves. Michael and I were both thankful we had our gloves because our hands were numb at this point. We continued northeast on the solid trail and near 13,200', began the steep climb up the slope left of the summit We grinded up 750' of elevation gain to reach the saddle at the top of the slope (13,960').

Now we were at the point of the hike I was most nervous about-the scramble to the top. The terrain was much more dangerous here because of the exposure, loose rock, and steep scree. Michael knew I was scared of this part, as he remembered my fear of the exposure on Bear Peak. We agreed to take it slow and steady. The trail quickly disappeared as we made our way through the rocks, but many helpful cairns guided the way.

We worked our way, staying mostly to the right as we fought through the harsh wind until we reached a spot where the exposure was the greatest.

I looked around me and fear took over. Tears sprung to my eyes. I did not know how to take my next step or if I could even do it. Michael told me to stay where I was, to drink some water, have a snack and try to relax. He said he wanted to see how much further we had left to the summit and what the conditions were like before I proceeded to move forward. He gave me a big hug and told me not to go anywhere before he took off. I nodded and tucked myself under a rock for shelter from the biting wind. I sat there and cried for a good minute. I realized that this type of hike is not only physically challenging, but it is mentally and emotionally challenging as well. Many thoughts entered my brain as I sat there by myself, but the one that would not go away was that I needed to finish this hike. I could not come this far and turn back. I had to face my fears. I just wasn't sure how I was going to do it.

This is where I sat and had my mini melt down.

It was at this point where I heard Michael calling my name from above. I stuck up my hand so he could see me and he shouted down to me a simple question. "Do you trust me?" I shouted back "yes" because I do trust Michael 100 percent. He shouted that where I was standing was the most difficult part. If I could make it past that point the rest of the way was pretty clear to the top and he could actually see the summit. He said there were 3 other guys up there and that the sun was shining. He yelled down "you got this- it's almost in the bag." I stood up, wiped some tears from my face, and asked if he could come down closer and help guide me through the hardest part. Of course, he did. Michael is the big brother I never had and I am so glad he was there to encourage me to continue on. Once I got started again I just didn't look back. Michael was absolutely right too- once I climbed over the rocks I was terrified of climbing over the rest of the way wasn't nearly as bad. It was still quite a scramble, but my adrenaline had kicked in and I knew I was not turning back at this point. A short distance later, we made the final ascent. At last we reached the spacious summit after 5 hours of strenuous hiking! We did it! Michael gave me a big hug and told me he was so proud of me. My first 14er!

I was proud of me too. But I never could have done it without my bro!

We took in the beauty all around us. I understood why people from all over the world make it a goal to climb a 14er before they die. The views are so rewarding and it is such a high to stand 14,196' above the ground among other mountains of the same height. We were so lucky that the sun was out and that there were no clouds blocking our views. Our timing at the summit was perfect.

Michael said it was because the mountain gods knew it was my first 14er and wanted to make sure it was a good experience. Thank you mountain gods! Like Michael said there were 3 other guys at the top. They were very welcoming to us- they even offered us a shot of their bourbon they saved for the top. We politely declined. I still had to make my way down this mountain. I could not imagine what that shot of bourbon would have done to me at that altitude! I busted out my own special treat I was saving for the summit though- a Dove dark chocolate bar.

I split it in half with Michael and we clinked our halves together like glasses and said "Cheers" as we enjoyed our sweet treats. It was definitely the most memorable chocolate bar of my life. :) Our 3 friends at the top started to make their way back down, but before they left they offered to take our picture for us which was very kind!

We took a bunch of our own pictures as well. We stayed at the top for probably about 30 minutes total and then we could see some clouds starting to move their way in and figured it was time to go. Michael said he wanted to try and do a headstand at the summit before he left. I thought he was crazy but I helped him try and keep his feet up. We laughed as we saw that this wasn't going to happen, but I gave him major props for even trying! He said he would need to practice his head stand technique at lower elevations for the next summit. We took a final look around and then began our descent.

Coming down this mountain was no easy task. Of course, now I had to look down to see where I was going. I could not believe we hiked up this beast! I took a deep breath and slowly descended.

Each step had to be thought over methodically as we made our way through the talus. It seemed like an eternity, but we finally made it down below the summit ridge. The weather looked good and my adrenaline was still in high gear from our accomplishment. I was all smiles as we hiked through the magnificent tundra and back toward the tree line.

We were able to shed all of our winter layers. The closer we got to the trailhead the warmer it got. By the end we were just in our short sleeved shirts and shorts.

It took us 3 hours to descend and we were so happy when we saw Michael's Jeep in the parking lot. Our feet were in definite need of a rest at this point. We changed into our sandals and into the clean clothes we had in the car for the return journey home. I texted Jim and my sister as soon as I had a signal as I knew they were both expecting to hear from us and probably were worrying while we were gone on our long journey. They both replied immediately and were so happy to hear that we reached the summit and that we made it back safely. We were coming home!

Michael and I had talked about stopping at Coney Island Hot Dogs in Bailey, Colorado for a reward on the way back when we first started the hike. I had never been to the place but Michael and my sister have been there many times and have raved about the Chicago dogs. Since we are originally from the Chicago area, we definitely get a craving for this local staple quite often! I was surprised after burning thousands of calories on the trail that I didn't feel as hungry as I thought I should be. I was wondering if I could even stomach a hot dog at this point when Michael asked me if I still wanted to go. Ultimately I decided yes I wanted to stop. How could I pass up this opportunity? :) Well, I was so glad we did because the minute the diner came in to view and I saw it was actually shaped like a hot dog I became very excited!

If the restaurant is in the shape of it's signature dish it has to be outstanding right? :) It started to rain a little bit so we decided it would be best to eat indoors rather than on the pretty picnic tables they had along the riverside. We ordered 2 Chicago dogs, 2 fries, and 2 Pepsi's and sat at the bar stools overlooking the river and enjoyed our Chicago treats.

We had renewed energy after our Coney dogs so we were very chatty and reminisced about our hike the rest of the way back. Before we knew it we were back in good ole Erie! I hugged and thanked Michael again for the millionth time for being the best hiking coach I could ever have and he of course remained true to his humble self and told me no problem and that I did great. He headed home and my aching knees and feet made it up the final 2 flights of stairs to my door where I was greeted with the biggest hug and kiss from my husband. I got to tell him all about my journey and showed him all of my beautiful photos. Reliving it gave me a high all over again.

So I can cross hiking a 14er off my bucket list, but I think I have the bug now. I am already thinking about what my next one will be! :) Thank you for reading about my first experience hiking a 14er! I would love to hear your story!

"And I also know how important it is in life not necessarily to be strong, but to feel strong, to measure yourself at least once, to find yourself at least once in the most ancient of human conditions, facing the blind, deaf stone alone with nothing to help you but your hands and your own head." - Christopher McCandless in Into the Wild

Peace. Love. Hike.

Saturday, August 31, 2013

Sunsets of August

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Hiking Mount Yale- My First 14er!

About Me


August 11th