2022 Fall Trip - Day 17/37 - 9/10/2022

Saturday, Sept. 10, 2022 - Easy drive to hike THE HIGHEST MOUNTAIN IN COLORADO! (Mount Elbert - 14,440 feet)

Friend David suggested I do Mount Elbert for my 14er this trip, and AllTrails has a nice map/hike:

(I like the "Loop" stuff - it looks better on a map.)

A little nip in the air when I got out:

Once again, when you are heading for a popular trailhead on a Saturday morning, and you start to see cars parked on the other side of the road, turn around and park there:

It was easy enough getting to the trailhead, in my shorts and Wicked Tuna t-shirt:

The Trail is nice, wide, and clean:

But it is definitely GOING UP:

40 minutes into the hike (1.4 miles) I reached the Trail Intersection. This morning I will take the right one up to The Summit, and this afternoon I will be coming back up the left one:

The Trail goes up through the woods:

and then goes into a "scattered woods" area:

before finally breaking out above the tree-line:

I guess I have a couple of miles to go:

I have not labeled the peak because this hike has many "false peaks/summits". At one point, a woman coming down said "Almost there!", and I replied "You can't fool me - there is just going to be another peak after this one." And she said "Oh, you know the drill ..."

My view up at 10:48

And then looking back down 20 minutes later:

God Bless the Trail Crew, working up here on a Saturday:

The view behind me at 11:37

It is kind-of-a-slog - take steps, rest, take steps, rest, drink water, repeat, repeat, repeat. Pass some people, get passed by other people. There is a bit of a chill in the air, and the wind is blowing (not strong) from my right, but I'm a little worried seeing ALL the people coming down in their down parkas. I think to myself that they got an early-sunrise start, when it was very cold.

At 11:50, I'm going to nail this Summit:

At 12:15 - oh wait - what's that other peak doing there? FAKE OUT!!!

Well, it is pretty cool when I look off to my right:

At 12:23, looking up:

and looking back down:

I reached The Summit at 12:27, along with 20 of my closest friends:

The views were pretty cool - to the South:

To the Southwest:

To the West:

To the Northwest:

I tried a Panorama, but there is just too much to take in, and the angles get all wrong.

Looking down to the Southeast, at Twin Lakes:

I don't "hang around" on these summits. I take my photos, appreciate the view, re-allocate my water, maybe have some sandwich, and then get out of there.

So, at 12:32, I was heading down the South Side:

Going down The Trail, I had a funny taste in my mouth - the "South Mount Elbert Trail" actually runs east, not south (with zig-zags to the Summit):

So at 12:38 I took some final photos up here - back up at The Summit:

a final view West:

and looking East ahead of me:

I was looking at going across a scree-field. Well, I've gone across a lot of scree, so I'm fine. There is even a couple of people down there/over there, so that's where I'm going:

7 minutes later - Bingo, I'm back on The Trail:

Ok, I've seen a lot of people today, both going up and going down (trail-runners, hikers, people who should not be here) - but coming down this trail I passed two women going up, CARRYING BIKES ("The ride down is AWESOME!!!").

Super View going down - you can see my trail winding down:

A look back up at the North Ridge, showing hikers:

Very nice trail down, but, like the trail up the North Ridge, about a mile too long:

A Shout-Out (and BIG THANK YOU) to the Trails Crews, who do such wonderful work:

And then its down into the Tree Line:

This trail goes down through some very nice Aspens:

And finally intersects with The Colorado Trail:

I figured the trail segments would be 5 miles up - 5 miles down - and 5 mailes back to the trailhead. I have done 10. miles to this point.

Pretty countryside and trail:

To make a long story short(er), I finished at my car at 4:55 PM. 14.71 miles in 8 hours 39 minutes, with 4,956 feet elevation gain. My legs hurt. Good Job with my 1st - I mean, MY ONLY - 14er!!!

Classic Colorado on the way home:

Pizza and a Hot Bath back at the room! Thank You GOD for this GREAT Adventure-Day, and for the ability for me to enjoy it!

Music for today - only one album from my mp3-cd:

Primal Scream - Vanishing Point, 1997 fifth studio album:

I ripped this 20 years ago, and I was not looking forward to hearing anything from a band with this name. Having said that, it is pretty good music, and I really like the last 2 tracks: "Trainspotting" and "Long Life".