Twig Adventures

Category: Short Hikes

SOBO Day 63: A Special Day on Two 14ers, Grays & Torreys

14ers, Continental Divide Trail

August 26th, 2019 Quayle Creek near I-70 mm 1730 to Warden Gulch stream mm 1746 Distance in miles: 16! 0610-1630 Some days are more special than all the other days in the calendar year and you may think you get to do whatever you want on those particular days. In my case, I still have to hike this trail, or at least, I’m choosing to hike. And why not add 2 more 14ers to my list? Grays Peak is 14,278′ and officially part of the CDT, the highpoint of the entire trail. Torreys Peak is just across a saddle, about 700′ back up in elevation…a quick scramble. Most people tackle both after going to all the trouble of climbing to[…]

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Day 87: Mt Whitney

14ers, Pacific Crest Trail

September 30th, 2018Crabtree Meadow to mm 759.5Distance: 7 PCT miles plus 16 miles on Whitney Spur Trail0300 – 1630 Today was the big day: to climb the highest mountain in the the contiguous US at nearly 14,500′. The summer before, I summited the second tallest mountain, Mt Elbert, from the Colorado Trail. It’s only about 50 feet shy of Mt. Whitney, but who’s counting? I was awake and making coffee by 2:30 am. I was on the trail by 3:25 but got a little delayed in trying to find a bear box in the dark. I needed to leave some of my stuff in there. The trail was easy to follow; in fact, I barely used my headlamp the whole[…]

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Colorado Trail, Week 2, Part 1, Breckenridge To Twin Lakes, Segments 8-11

14ers, Colorado Trail

Day 8: July 20th, Copper Mountain village to campsite south of Camp Hale, 20.1 miles, Segment 8. Sofie’s friend picked us (Yoyo, PBR, Sofie and me) up at the hostel for a very early start. One of her car windows was blown out so the 30 minute ride was freezing! We arrived at the trailhead very anxious to start hiking, just to warm up. Still, we very much appreciated the ride! Our wish to warm was granted, as it was a steady climb up a valley to Searle Pass. We walked right through the ski resort and I fantasized about the hot coffee that must exist down in the village. A man-made snow course was still present. This is one[…]

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