Yup - throwing caution to the wind. Goin' all outta order on ya! (What you thought that "caution to the wind" comment was regarding Bierstadt? Meh, please.) But no, we do have a healthy appreciation for any mountain, and any hike, really. Without further ado, let's get to the day of summit - last Sunday, Father' Day. :)
We knew that this would be about a six hour hike for us, and with the possibility of early afternoon thunderstorms ever present above the alpine level, we knew out timeline had to start pretty early. It still doesn't make waking up at 5:15 AM any better, but the thought of a lightning bolt anywhere near me after victoriously summiting our first 14er got me moving. We were at the trailhead just after 7:00 AM along with several other early morning starters. We'd been told that this trail was pretty popular, so we weren't at all surprised with the company. After getting our gear on, gaiters included (for their first real trail!!!), we set out. Loui promptly made a pit-stop so we headed back to drop off the oh-so-lovely present at the nearest trash can. Once we really got started, it was nice! I had my expectations set (oh so important) and knew that we were headed up just shy of 3000 feet and that our final elevation would be 14,060 feet. Pretty cool.
At one point in the first mile, I looked ahead of me and behind me on the trail to see a consistent stream of hikers. The trail is for the most part apparent from the trailhead, and low brush and a consistent incline means you can see everyone headed up and down. Since Drew and I consider Sunday hikes every weekend to be our humble version of church, I turned to Drew and simply said, "The congregation is full today!" In Colorado we're certainly not the only ones to hold that appreciation for nature's bounty - my guess is that over 100 people probably summited Mt. Bierstadt that day.
After a mile or so of wooden bridges over swampy mud, rivulets of snow melt headed down the trail as we headed up, and rocky outcroppings, Loui and Drew, the two mountain goats of the three of us (I am decidedly not a mountain goat) were not even winded. I was, a little, but I seem to plod along more than the other two on just about any trail. I make my way, that's all I can say. :) We weren't the only ones having to make some frequent stops - just as in Yosemite I saw people in flip-flops and kids being half dragged up the incline, we saw the same here (okay, maybe not the flip flops). Mt. Bierstadt is one of the most accessible mountains to beginners - and shares its slope with all kinds of people.
As we reached higher and higher elevation, the temperature dropped and dropped. At time the wind even made it a little hard to hear anything a few feet ahead on the trail. While it's nice to have such an open trail for visibility, it also meant that there was no protection from wind. I stayed warm all except for the knuckles that I couldn't quite keep covered with my shirt but I still had to use to grip my poles. Silly me, the gloves were sitting in the back of the Jeep - I could see them in my head.
After a few hours of steady climbing, we came to a last snowfield and a new terrain - boulder field marked with cairns for easier trail following. We hopped boulder to boulder for a while (Loui, too! What a good boy...) til we came to the base of the final ascent. It was a scramble at times and I wondered if Loui would make it okay, but he mountain goat-ed with the best of 'em until he stood on top, too! We ditched our poles in some snowpack, made pleasantries with the other summiters (several labradors included), took pictures (one for the fathers), and enjoyed our lunch of good ol' PB&J while taking in the view.
As the clouds rolled in (remember those afternoon thunderstorms?) we bid a hasty retreat from the summit. Of course the way down is always easier, but this one needed some precaution due to the slippery mud, rolling pebbles and ice sheets we encountered on the trail. We saw a few people still headed up (I don't think I would have been at that point!) but for the most part we were part of the last crowd headed down. We made it almost to the trailhead, crossed the river (rock hopping!) and waded through the muck that had been for the most part still hard that morning (rising temps mean mucky trails that almost suck your shoe off!). We landed back in the parking lot where Loui looked longingly at any open back hatch of the vehicles we had to pass to get to our Jeep. In my mind I could hear him - "I'm tired, is it okay if I just crawl in that one? They have cookies and other good smelly stuff (someone extended a beer can towards his nose), and I'm just TIRED, Mom." When we finally got to the Jeep it was all we could do to get him moderately cleaned up before he hopped in the back and fell asleep.
We had been warned about altitude sickness, and so far hadn't encountered any - until the car ride home. I was happy that a severe headache was all I felt (Drew, too) since it can be much more serious. At that point we just needed more water, and some real food. :) And that's the story of our first 14er! We were a little sore the next day, but not bad. I'm pretty proud of us!
We climbed to the right peak - the rounded top one. To the left of the summit you can see the Saw Tooth which leads to Mt. Evans on the left (I think the summit of Mt. Evans is behind and to the left of the Saw Tooth (teeth?) in this picture).
Yeah, I changed my camera settings just before the summit. All my other pictures were looking a little dark (that's what I get when I'm in bright sunlight trying to squint at a little screen while wearing sunglasses). I like all the pics, but we lost a little of the contrast when I switched from my aperture setting to the pre-set "landscape" setting. Oh, well.
Thanks, Drew, for catching that lovely face mid-sentence.
