My Crazy Hike up Gray's Peak
So this past Sunday I guess I was bored, so I decided that it was high-time for me to try hiking up my first Colorado 14'er. A "14'er" is a mountain that is over 14,000 feet in height. I believe that there are 55 of them in Colorado, and these make up 75% of the total 14'ers in the continental U.S. Mt. Whitney in California is the highest 14'er in the continental U.S., but most of the Colorado ones are only a couple hundred feet less in height, so they're all pretty substantial.
It was still pretty early in the season, so I decided to try doing Gray's Peak, which is apparently one of the easier of the Colorado 14'ers. It made sense to try an easy one first, since there was still rumored to be a bit of snow on the ground at the higher altitudes. Most people don't start climbing 14'ers until at least June, but hey how different can it be in early May? That's only like a few weeks difference, right? Sure, no problem!
So anyways, I got to the trailhead at about 5:30 AM, just as the sky was starting to lighten. Well, I guess I should say "parking area" rather than "trailhead" because the road was completely blocked with snow. I basically had to park just off the exit ramp from the interstate and trudge up the snowy mountain road for 3 miles before even getting to the actual trailhead. I got to pass several stuck vehicles of less fortunate hikers as well as some very spooky ruined cabins that looked to be possible current residences of the Blair Witch.
ABOVE: The morning sun rises over the sketchy cabin residence of a supernatural serial killer.
I finally arrived at the empty trailhead parking lot as the morning sun was up, although the valley was still in shadow. I crossed a footbridge that spanned over a frozen stream and got my winter gear on. At this point, I was leaving the protection of the pine forest and was preparing to start walking across a pretty bleak snowy valley. The peak was still not even in sight, in spite of my hiking a good 3 and a half miles already. Good times were indeed to be had!
ABOVE: At the trailhead bridge, ready to go. I have no idea what's in store for me.
After hiking up the first ridge, all trees disappeared and I began getting smacked with some fierce winds. These photos I took don't do justice to conveying what the wind was like during the entire hike from this point on. The photos make it look like a calm still day. Not so!!! There were furious little corkscrews of blowing wind that would hit me so hard, I would have to stop walking and turn around to avoid being blown over... and this was still on relatively level ground. I could see these frequent forces of mountain hurricane wind coming at me in advance too; it kind of reminded me of that one booby-trap in "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" that chopped people's heads off... you know how you could see the cobwebs fluttering ahead right before it hit? Yeah, kind of like that.
ABOVE: These signs close to the trailhead show how deep the snow was. That little nub on the right is the tip of a four-foot signpost.
Thank goodness I had brought a facemask and goggles, or else I would have turned back early. Also thank goodness that I got a USGS map of the area before I left... the trails were completely covered and I basically had to read the topography of the land to make sure I was heading in the right direction.
ABOVE: Switched into Ninja Mode.
After another mile or so hiking up through the valley, I made my way around a ridge and the peak itself finally came into view. It still looked to be a long friggin' way off and the wind wasn't blowing any less fierce. In fact, it seemed like the wind was picking up. I could actually see the little funnel-clouds ripping up chunks of snow off of the ground in places!
ABOVE: Why, I'm practically there already! Piece of cake!
A little further ahead, and Torrey's Peak came into view as well. Torrey's Peak is another 14er that can be accessed from Gray's Peak. I was originally planning to do both of these peaks in one go, but at this rate, I would be fortunate to just do Gray's. Besides, Gray's Peak was the taller of the two. If I could do Gray's now, it wouldn't be a problem for me to come back later and do them both in nicer summer weather.
ABOVE: Gray's Peak on the left, Torrey's Peak on the right.
After a couple more miles, I had climbed up the little ridges and was basically at the base of the mountain itself. The sides of the mountain were a little more windswept. There were still patches of deep snow, but at least the rocks were blown clean enough to make out most of the trail up the mountain in patches. Beside a low ridge at the base of the mountain was my last bit of shelter from the wind before I'd be super-exposed the whole way up.
ABOVE: At the mountain's base, squinting in anticipation.
ABOVE: Looking back as I start the big climb.
Climbing up the mountain itself was slow going. Whenver a gust came up, I would dig into the snow with my axe and wait for it to die down again. When it passed it would get suddenly eerily quiet and I would try to get a few good yards of distance in before the next gust came up. I also had to watch my pace, because the air was getting darn thin now and I would get dizzy if I hurried too quickly. I was probably around 13,000 feet at this point.
I made my way from point to point, sometimes seeing a bit of trail, sometimes a wooden sign, and sometimes a pile of rocks marking a switchback. It was pretty much just like the whole "baby steps" philosophy from the movie "What About Bob?" Anyone remember that? Ah well.
ABOVE: Moving on upwards and forwards.
ABOVE: This shot is about a third of the way up the mountain looking back at the basic path I took from the trailhead. Keep in mind that my actual starting point went all the way behind that mountain (Mt. Kelso) and down to the interstate, which is approximately way back in that forst of trees to the left of Mt. Kelso!
Eventually, the switchbacks started getting tighter, and I knew I was making progress. I met only one other person on the mountainside; a guy about my age who passed me on his way down when I was about halfway up. We stopped to chat and he mentioned that he had hiked this mountain in April last year and there still had not been this much snow. I kept on heading up.
ABOVE: Looking up at the peak above me.
The peak gradually disappeared and I kept trudging along up the slope going back and forth and stopping very frequently for breathers.
ABOVE: The slope getting up towards the top.
All of a sudden, the slope disappeared in front of me and I realized I had made it to the top. I looked around me and took in the incredibly awesome view. I was on the rooftop o' America. Photos taken with my crappy camera can't begin to do it justice. And even though the wind was super-wild up on top, I was now very used to it so was able to enjoy the views unencumbered, and take a few photos:
I didn't stay up there too long, partly because I knew I had a long walk back, and mostly because my feet were pretty darn wet and cold. On my way back down, I passed one other group of 3 guys my age who might have ended up making it to the top as well, though I didn't stick around to watch them (They were about halfway up when I was coming down). I also passed another couple who had already decided to turn back. So other than that other guy I met earlier in the day, I was probably only 1 of 5 people who made it up Gray's Peak that day. Pretty cool!
I ended up making it back to my car at around 4:30 PM, so it was about 11 hours for me doing something around a 15-mile hike with at least 3,000 feet of elevation gain in some pretty darn inhospitable conditions. Pretty sweet, but I think I'm going to wait another month or so for warmer weather before trying another 14'er!
Epilouge: That night, I had a big top sirloin steak and several shots of Jack Daniels whiskey. It was very delicious.
The End