I was able to conquer two more of Colorado's 14,000 foot peaks on Sunday. We celebrated Father's Day on Saturday so that I could meet up with a group going up Grays Peak and Torreys Peak the next day. The two peaks are connected by a short saddle, so many people (including myself) take advantage of the two for one special and climb both in the same trip. The climb is one of the easier routes in the state, as the vast majority of the eight mile round trip is class one terrain. In addition to the ease of the climb, this area is very popular because of its proximity to Denver and the fact that it is literally off of I-70. Grays Peak is 14,270 feet above sea level and Torreys Peak is 14,267 feet above sea level. Interestingly enough, this makes Grays Peak the highest point on the Continental Divide in the United States.
I made the trip with three other people, two of which I met for the first time yesterday. I knew Deb from work, but I made two new friends in Richard and Jaime on this trip. We had a great time, and I'll remember this trip for the following reasons:
1) This was my first trip climbing two 14ers in one day.
2) Of all the places to run into someone, this was probably the best one yet. Near the summit of Grays (above 14,000 feet) I ran into a guy who I hadn't seen in 12 years. His name is Marc, and we lived next to each other our freshman year in college in Aden Hall. What's even more ironic is that I had stumbled across a picture of him a few days earlier on a Castle Peak trip report on 14ers.com (he's the one sampling the "local flavor"). I had originally planned on doing Castle Peak this weekend, but the group hike was canceled for various reasons. You can image my delight in seeing him for the first time in 12 years online, on a mountain I was about to climb, and then actually running into him in person a few days later on completely different mountain. Although he used different words, his reaction pretty much summed up what I was thinking: "Holy s***!" Exactly.
3) Mountain goats are awesome. A herd of mountain goats frequent this location and one of them decided to pay us a visit. To watch him move across the steep and rocky terrain is a lesson in grace, balance, strength, and skill. The humorous part is that he just sat at the top of the ridge watching two climbers coming his direction for about 30 minutes. It was almost as if he were entertained by watching them climb. Additionally, if you have any questions as to the origins of the term "goatee", I'm sure you'll have them answered after watching the slide-show.
4) The glissade. For those who don't know what this is, glissading is the voluntary act of descending a steep slope of snow in a controlled manner for the sheer thrill of the ride and/or to bypass a tedious descent. To simplify, it's sitting on your bum and sliding down a long section of mountain, usually steep, using your ice axe as a steering tool and brake. It's very fun and it makes the trip down a lot shorter and faster. The glissade between Grays and Torreys drops you down almost 1000 feet in elevation. We scouted out the area on the way up, so we knew what was below us when we were on top of the glissade route. In mid-descent however, a little rock popped up directly in my path. It went straight between my legs and just before making contact I was able to "bum jump" it and cleared it with no problem. The pictures don't do the almost 1/5 of a mile glissade justice, so look closely at the pictures and its size relative to a person coming down the route. It was so much fun.
The day was a huge success and I had a great time. I hope you enjoy the pictures. The song in the show has sort of become my 14er theme song. It really does a good job of explaining how I feel and what I'm thinking when on a mountain.
Music by Shawn McDonald (Captivated)