Colorado 14ers
Shipping out From Boston
At the end of 2020 I was living in Boston and ready for a change of pace, location and career wise. One evening while talking on the phone with my good buddy Sam, he mentioned he was spending the next summer summiting Colorado 14ers and asked if I wanted to join. I said yes! I had no idea what I was getting myself into, but it turned in to the adventure of a lifetime.
A 14er is a mountain with a summit above 14,000 feet. There are 58 in Colorado. While most of them are long but reasonable hikes, some of them are technical mountaineering objectives.
From then until the spring I got ready to move. I was particularly concerned about going from running at sea level to hiking at elevation. I did the steps at a local park with a weight vest on. I ran a backyard marathon with some pals. I did long bike rides every weekend along the coast. In some ways Boston being locked down for the pandemic helped this. I didn't have much else to do besides work and train.
Come spring time I quit my job, rented an SUV and drove cross country from Boston to Salt Lake City. Driving from the east coast to the mountain west in the middle of the pandemic was an experience itself. I got to see up close how different parts of the country were responding to the pandemic.
The Box Truck
Once in Utah, I stayed at Sam's place while we finished outfitting a box truck to be our mobile basecamp. Sam bought the box truck before the previous summer. He and some other friends used it as their "ski-mobile" during that winter.
All told the total improvements included:
- Insulation (unfortunately absent during the winter adventures)
- Storage room for gear
- Two bunk beds and a futon for guests
- A kitchen table
- Essentials like art work, a guitar and a barbell for additional workouts
The boxtruck in action. Surprisingly spacious.
2021 Season
After kitting out the box truck we made our way to Colorado. Our first summit of the season was on June 3rd when we hiked Mt. Bierstadt and then crossed the Sawtooth Traverse to Mt. Bluesky. Our final summit for the summer was about July 18th with the Creston group. While there was still good hiking weather left, we both had to call it a season other personal committments.
In those 50 days we summited 28 14ers. That is approximately:
- 250 miles on trail
- 125,000 feet of elevation gain
- 10+ pounds of weight loss despite constantly eating
Sam had summited 20-some peaks prior to this summer and he graciously repeated a lot of them as I was catching up to his count.
Me with the Sawtooth in the background.
Sam getting a sunset workout in.
Celebrating our friend Kyle's birthday heading up Castle and Conundrum.
Roadside party with friends made along the way.
Our friend Devin on the catwalk of Mt Eolus.
Sam being Sam on The Knife Edge of Capitol Peak.
Heading into the Crestone group.
2022 Season
Our goal was to finish our final 14er together, so for the 2022 season I started on a solo quest to finish the remaining peaks that Sam had completed that I hadn't yet. Since Sam sold the box truck at the end of the prior season, I enlisted my Dad to help me build a bed for my Subaru Outback.
The pace for this summer was just as intense. I had 30 peaks to cover which included the infamous Maroon Bells. I worked my way through the solo objectives, linked up with Sam for summits that he still needed to complete and then we wrapped up the whole adventure on Snowmass together.
Starting the summer with a group ski mission on Grays and Torreys. I was too new to snowboarding at the time too participate but hiked along.
Having a little fun off route on Wilson Peak.
Drinking a Coors on the summit of Wilson Peak, the mountain on the Coors can. The spire in the background is Lizard Head, an iconic 13er.
The Subaru setup. Making coffee prior to climbing Lizard Head.
We took a quick break from 14ers to get some climbing in. Approaching Lizard Head, the spire visible in the background.
Looking back on the Little Bear-Blanca traverse. We had spontaneously linked up with more friends in the 14er community for this one.
Me rappelling during the Maroon Bells traverse.
Introducing more friends to the joys and pains of 14ers.
Celebrating our final 14er together on Snowmass Mountain.
On top of the world.
Wrapping up the adventure of a lifetime.
Post Script
Completing all the Colorado 14ers by their standard routes is about 250,000 feet of elevation gain and 650 miles of hiking. We battled weather, logistics, fatique and more. The journey took us all over Colorado.
In the end I was the most physically fit I've ever been. It's become my personal fitness benchmark - though it's admittedly a little unfair to compare regular life to a period when climbing mountains was my only focus! I still get into the mountains as much as I can, but at no where near that pace.
Sam continued on to complete all of the California 14ers and then summit and ski Mt Rainier. In addition to his day job he's a sponsored big mountain skier/snowboarder and continues to push the limits. Alaska and Denali are next in his sights. Check out his Instagram for his latest adventures.