Confirmed Peak-Bagging Trip Next Summer

“i have actually been training for this... continuation of my work to prepare for the canyon a few weeks ago. my vo2max is around 43 mg/kg/min so we shall see if over the next few weeks i can increase this somewhat. my strategy is to work out at 85% of MHR for 3-5 sessions per week then repeat the test. vo2max of 43 is not bad for an old and crunchy dude like me but i think it will need to be better if i really want to enjoy myself on this trip. i have been running a lot of intervals but i may shift to just spending more time at 85% mhr and then add a speed or interval session once per week or something like that.

i got my new ospry exposure backpack. it was kind of dumb that i bought it for this trip since we are mostly basecamping if i recall. still, i love the thing already and i will using it cragging in the red/etc all this coming climbing season. i am sure after a taste of "peak bagging" i'll get an appetite for this type of activity that will justify the new pack. heck, i like it enough that i can see my using it for regular backpacking. everything fits in it so nice and compressed.

hey, what are the evening temps going to be like?”

“according to weather.com the average overnight low in leadville is 38 degrees. most of the time, we'll be camped about 1000 feet or so higher than leadville

so come prepared for temps in the 30s. im bringing a single-wall 3-season tent, one set of long johns, pants, shirt, light gloves, cap, and 20 degree bag

cold, hopefully not freezing at night”

“Yogi, I have no idea what you are talking about! My strategy is to try not to get any older than last year. It ain't easy! I'm climbing Mt. Rainier the week before this trip, so if I survive that I'll be fine.

I met a ranger in the Collegiate Peaks Wld once who said Leadville gets an average of 7 frost free days/year. It will be close to freezing every night. So bring long pants, a fleece sweater, gloves and a stocking cap. A 20 degree bag is perfect for me. I pack the same stuff for winter in Texas and summer in Colorado.

My favorite thing to wear climbing in CO is trail pants and a long sleeve t-shirt. I also like some cheap lightweight leather work gloves for climbing on rocks, something like these:

http://doitbest.com/Work+Gloves-Midwest+Quality+Glove-model-PB200-M-doitbest-sku-737326.dib”

“hey - did you guys see this news - i spotted it over on SummitPost...

http://www.summitpost.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=36614

The USFS plans to close many above-treeline routes during the month of July and part of August. This is being done under the guise of protecting "pika and marmot reproduction sites" since their numbers are expected to decline with increased global warming.

The rule is scheduled to take effect THIS YEAR and will close virtually all trails above 12,000' in Colorado.

For more info and to register comments, see below:
http://www.fs.fed.us/alpine_closure.htm

The comment period ends 4/28/08.”

“i'll just have to go to mt sunflower in kansas”

“Guess the comment period ended early.”

“i'll just have to go to mt sunflower in kansas”

which reminds me of a joke

what happened when brutus went to mt olive?

































popeye got pissed”

“I recommend that eveyone signed up for this trip should be running, or at least walking briskly, regularly to be ready for it. You need to be used to sucking wind and have strong leg muscles.

You'll be glad you did. The mountains will be your reward.”

“im going to run from the airport to the trailhead”

“i bought roach's book... outstanding! i have gone through most of the expected peaks. those could be some long days... some of the routes up capitol sound amazing! the 5.7 route up there read like a dream. wow!”

“You do the 5.7 route and I'll meet you at the top!”

“I have a 1992 version of Roach's book. I can't even remember where I got it, but it was probably in 1993 after I drove around some back roads in CO and couldn't figure out how to climb the big mountains.

Do you have the book with the good maps?”

“well i don't know if i have THE book with the good maps but it has good maps... :) this is not a special find or anything. i picked it up because crash said we should read it. roach recommends "Mountaineering: The Freedom of the Hills" which was highly recommended on amazon so i snagged a copy of that as well. i am more a technical rock climber/backpacker and really have no mountaineering experience other than a few scrambles up old rag in the shenandoah. i believe in approaching new experiences like this with humility and respect. i love to learn and am not afraid to admit a lack of experience.”

“I bought Freedom of the Hills last year before my Rainier climb and, after 13 years of hiking up 14ers in CO, I couldn't understand anything in that book. I had to use my hands on occasion, but never did anything technical or that involved ropes. The challenge of CO 14ers is the 4000' climbs and the altitude.

I once saw a version of Roach's book, or maybe it was a supplement, that had big colored maps that unfolded for each peak. I already owned good maps of most of them so I didn't bother getting it.”

“i dont think the supplement book is published anymore. i believe all it is is larger, fold-out versions of the smaller maps that are in the guidebook. i looked for it on his website. i dont think i saw it there, either”

“hey, spoof. what kinda cell phone reception you get in the mountain towns? you reckon we'll get reception in leadville or aspen?
last edited: 5/04/08 7:35:57 AM”

“Should have good reception along the I 70 corridor and in Leadville, Aspen, and larger towns.... some people get reception on the summits, when I did Holy Cross a couple years ago, my partner got a call just as we summited - it was kinda funny. Depends on provider/phone quality i suppose.”

“i'll probably get verizon or cingular when i get back to the states. do you know if either one is better than the other?”

“Cingular i think people used to say was better, but that was pre-att... dunno what Ms Do uses...”

“hey. crash told me to tell everyone that i have two midland GXT800 vp4 radios. they are 5 watts i think and supposedly a 26 mile range (straght line clear terrain... so ymmv). they require a license from the fcc... not a big deal.

http://www.rei.com/product/761141?preferredSku=7611410015

i wasn't planning on bringing them but now that crash suggested it i can see it could be a good idea.

they work on gmrs and fsr radio channels (only 2 watts on frs obviously). it has a group mode (i have never used this) where all the radios on the same channel will work together but you can assign a code to each radio so you can send 1:1 messages without everyone else having to hear them. i am not sure i have ever understood the value of this... perhaps a family in a mall or something.”

“reading crash's update to the trip page i'll throw my .02 worth on the topic of "sticking together". i am not an experienced mountaineer / mountain hiker but i do know that best practice is to hike in groups of three and no smaller than two. if we do break up into groups smaller than two/three then i think the radio idea is a good idea. if someone (heaven forbid) does get hurt it's a heck of a lot more difficult situation to manage alone than if you have a third person there to help you. a radio would make it even easier. i would hate the feeling of getting back to camp and not finding someone there that i -thought- was ahead of me. it's happened before...

i don't know about everyone else but part of the appeal to me of climbing (and all i have done is class 5 stuff) is the partnership of working with another person. i have learned to appreciate the trust (often silent) that is built between a climber and their partner and i think i enjoy this aspect of climbing more than i may have thought i would. it's kind of like before i first started hanging out on tt i always hiked solo but after a few tt trips i found that i enjoyed the company of my peers and now i hardly go out alone anymore.

anyone, i am really stoked about the trip and especially getting to meet and hang with all the new people i have never spent time with before. this is going to be a lot of fun!”

“I think for most of what we are doing it would be safe enough to split up, since you can see people a long way away. The last bit of Crestone Needle and Capitol are more technical and we should be within earshot at least.

If Crash wants to start early and meet us for the last parts, I think that's a pretty safe idea. I think it would be more fun sticking together and I'm willing to slow down for the fellowship as long as we maintain a reasonable pace.”

“i got the trails illustrated maps for crestone and humboldt. they are GREAT area maps and will work well for the approach. on summit day they will be borderline at best. i have created a series of usgs 10k maps at mytopo.com for the more challenging areas for summit day... really zoomed in tight... and i'll waterproof ink the routes on them like usual. they will be pretty maps but zoomed in so tight on the peaks they will only be good for route finding on summit day and perhaps an early portion of the approach.”

“We are hiking out on Saturday and flying out on Sunday, right crash? Should we plan of staying in a hotel Saturday night before we leave or are going to grab another bag night somewhere? I don't mind either option.”

“Also, is a bear cannister really needed or do you think a ratsack will work? The ratsack is marmot proof per their web site but for sure not bear proof.”

“ok so it don't say marmot it says "small to mid sized varmint". i asked them.”

“I've never heard of anyone needing a bear cannister in CO. The problem bears are near towns and we'll be way out in the woods. I always hang my food from a tree branch in a stuff sack, but a ratsack is a great idea. I would still hang it from a tree so you don't have all those varmints drooling on it.”

“ Should we plan of staying in a hotel Saturday night before we leave or are going to grab another bag night somewhere?

doesnt matter to me. we'll play it by ear after we find out what everyones plans are for sunday. as for myself, im flying out 3pm. if i go on bearcrossing's sierra trip, i might need to hit the REI for food

is a bear cannister really needed

no. i only said that cause i thought we might not always be camping near trees, but since you have a hammock, we'll make sure to always be in the trees”

“if i go to the sierras trip immediately following this trip, i'll probably take my bearikade, since itll probably be required. otherwise, i'll be bringing my brand new ursack which is waiting for me at home”

“I was thinking of bringing the akto rather than the hammock setup. 4assmonkey will be in his hammock however.

Ill use my ratsack then. It has always served me well. I have your crash, btw, and it did come in handy this year in the gc. I will bring it to rrg in june to return to you.”

“you have my crash?”

“i have your sack, man! your sack!”

“As it stands now, I plan to go for the full monty. I plan to get met CB @ airport.”

“

I challenge you ALL to a round of mountain golf! The winner is the one who can find his ball after the drive off the summit tee box.”

“I don't want to be the guy huffing up the mountainside who gets beaned with a golf ball. Looks like fun though.

This trip is gonna be a blast!”

“LOL, We'll have to be sure and yell "FORE" reaaaallllll loud. :)”

“that dude has a ice axe strapped to his pack!”

“that's pretty standard safety equipment most of the year - depending on the route your taking. The snow climbs are in their best condition from May to July.

:)))))”

“lol! I see no snow anywhere in that photo. Wonder if you can self arrest with a driver?”

“�Cingular i think people used to say was better, but that was pre-att... dunno what Ms Do uses...�
doof

I use Verizon. I've been happy with it out here. I get pretty good reception up high. I did Trail Ridge Road over Memorial Day weekend and while waiting for them to open the gate, I called the park service office to see if they had a clue when it would open. That was at Rainbow Curve, about 10,500'ish feet....

Like Roam said, I-70 you'll be good to go. When you get into valleys and canyons, don't count on much.”

“Sounds like chowdahead is in shape for this trip. We won't be doing 25-mile days in 90 degrees.”

“chowda had to drop out”

“Bummer!”

“How many trolls on the list of attendees?”

“lol! good question. since it's now a private trip not many that can see these posts i bet. i think even if you sign up unless you know the password you are locked out.

i am constantly trying to equate the climbs on this trip to my hikes out of the grand canyon in march. those have always been butt kickers, but this last year i pretty much flew out of there... which is not to say i wasn't very tired the next day. those trails can be really steep and some very rugged but i can easily imagine these beeing steeper and more rugged by far. i keep asking myself, "Could I up-and-down that hike several times in a week?" a big part of me says i can... i have been training a lot harder for this than my prior canyon trips... but part of me has to wonder.

anyway, this will be a good experience builder for me.”

“The climbing never bothers me - it's the blisters. There's no way to simulate walking uphill for 4 hours to prepare for that.”

“I can't remember the last time I had a blister! Terrible. Better be sure my boots fit!”

“Let's see.... I saw Elbert, Grays and Torreys over the weekend.

Elbert's intimidating. For sure. Especially with snow still on it. I wasn't able to locate the climbing route from the side we were on (US 24 looking toward the peak).

I was able to spot switchbacks heading up to the peak on some peaks nearby, even with snow on the mountain still.

Still some pretty hefty cornices on some of the ridges. Snow may clear out in the next month to month and a half. Maybe. :p
last edited: 6/16/08 8:45:08 AM”

“I was just surfing the San Isabel NF site and saw a "South Colony Decision Notice," which stops traffic at the lower creek crossing once a parking lot is built there. It looks like in 2009 they will start enforcing a camping ban within 1/2 mile of South Colony Lakes, but there will be some desinated sites within the 1/2 mile.

Doesn't sound like this affects our plans at all. Here's the link:

http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/psicc/sanc/

You need to come show us how it's done MsD.”

“I'm hoping to make at least one summit with ya'll. Time is getting to be a pain in my ass.

Other than that, "how it's done" might best be left up to Roam/doof/MikeP. :p lol I've only lived here for 7 months. I'm only a little better acclimated than ya'll. ;)

Got a really great tour of Southern Colorado, though. Great weekend in the mountains, for sure!”