Well, I did it. I've wanted to do it for three years and it actually happened yesterday. I didn't think I was ready, but I actually felt pretty strong the whole race. I think the key was really just patience. Patience waiting in the bottle necked areas and conserving energy and patience with my tired legs the last two miles on the steep switchbacks. I couldn't have asked for better weather, so that helped a lot, too.
It's been only four weeks since the Half Ironman. I was hoping that my fitness from that race would really help me on Pike's. It turns out that it totally did. I was hopeful that in my Ironman training I could incorporate some hill climbing, but I really didn't do to my calf injury and the element of time. There was so much cycling I had to do, that when it came time for running I often just wanted to get it done. There were a couple of times I made it up high in July (Mount Audubon with Dan), but most of the training for Pike's came after Lake Stevens. I'm so grateful to Dan who ran with me 4 days on our vacation after the race so we got in something like 41 miles and 11,000' of climbing. That was huge! A week later I ran up to the Keyhole on Longs and then over to Battle Mountain, spent two hours on top of Evans with Amanda (great for acclimatizing!), and then ran up Buffalo Mountain on our anniversary. The third week I did Green Mountain after a day of CDE work in Denver, a lap and a half on South Arapahoe (mentally this was awesome training--and for the legs and lungs, too!), and South Boulder Peak with Dan. The week before the race I really took it easy with some swimming, biking, and a quick jaunt up Sanitas. Yesterday my legs felt good and I was ready to go!
I ran through Manitou Springs on the road. Then when we turned off onto the fire road I started hiking. It's just too steep to run efficiently. After the first aid station the two-mile narrow switchbacks begin. Three years ago I expended a lot of energy trying to pass people, but yesterday I resolved to just go with the flow. I settled into a slow pace, but it was good to wake up my climbing legs. People were super friendly and we had some good laughs on the way up. Around Bob's Road where the trail begins to open up (and descent a little bit!) I got some running in. I was nice to actually do some good 'ole trail running! From there to Barr Camp (7.5 miles in) it was a mix of hiking and running with a decent amount of room to pass if needed. Thank goodness for the restrooms and grapes at Barr Camp. They were a godsend twice! After Barr you begin get up into Krummolz and thinner air AND narrower trails. I couldn't believe the lines here--and people were going slower due to the elevation. I did do some passing here because I needed to. Soon, we popped up above treeline and the real fun began. At this point, people were really nice about letting me pass and we started seeing the leaders fly down the mountain (ok, the first couple of men we saw before treeline). Race rules require that uphill travelers step aside for those coming down, so there was plenty of opportunity for rest steps. As we got higher, the traffic jam got bigger. The 16 golden steps were a clusterf*** of runners going up and down. Though I made it to the top in 4:33 (10 minutes faster than 3 years ago), I seriously think I could have done it five minutes faster without all the traffic. Oh well. Patience. The weather was perfect. I didn't even need to put on gloves or a long sleeve shirt. Despite the thunderstorm off to the north, I couldn't have asked for better conditions.
At the summit I stretched for two minutes and then started down. It was so nice when people got out of the way for me! There was great comraderie the whole time up high--everyone was giving everyone encouragement. The trip to the treeline went pretty quickly and before I knew it I had the trail to myself. I keep getting lots of grapes at all the aid stations because they tasted so good and they had water in them. Barr Camp came up quicker than I expected (at mile 7.5). I made another pit stop and refilled my camelbak. I tried something new (which you're not supposed to do during a race, but it worked really well!) and put Nuun tablets in my camelbak for the last hour or so of the race. This really helped keep me in balance, that and the extra salt I added to my bag of pretzels! The cloud cover on the way down was AWESOME! It kept the temps a good 10-15 degrees cooler. After Barr Camp there were some uphills, believe it or not. I decided to walk these because they were really hard. The last couple of miles started to get to my knees, but I kept a slow pace and really kept watching my footing. This seemed to really help (today my knees don't feel bad at all!). The last mile and a quarter were on HARD pavement. Boy, I could really feel a difference from the tail at this point. We went back down the fire road and I realized just how steep it really was. The last half a mile I let it all out and just ran as fast as I could. I was ready for the race to be over and I wanted my finisher's shirt! The streets of Manitou were lined with people giving high fives and cheering for all the runners. A great atmosphere! I was so happy to cross the finish line, and do so so in relatively good shape. I hit all my goal times for the day and finished in 7:28:18. Today, I still can't believe I did it :-)
Showing posts with label run. Show all posts
Showing posts with label run. Show all posts
Monday, August 19, 2013
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Mount Neva
Laurel and I wanted to do some kind of mountain run... we got that and more! We were considering South Arapaho but since we had hiked it before and there were other trails in that area to explore, we thought they could be fun. Before we left I discovered there was a 4th class scramble up Mount Neva's north ridge -- that became our objective.
From the 4th of July trailhead we ran up to Arapaho Pass, took a look at Lake Dorothy, then headed off trail to Neva's north ridge. From there the scrambling began -- mostly easy but a few tricky spots where you really needed some rock climbing moves. There were a few downclimbs along the way...
... and some fun places to horse around like the diving-board rock.
We got to a point where it seemed forward progress was blocked. To the left was a sheer vertical face. Ahead was chunkier but it seemed like it would get steeper the higher you'd go, plus it seemed like if we got to the top we'd have to then descend the other side. To the right were a few pillars and even further right was a drop-off. It seemed like we would be able to follow a ramp up and left for a ways, then cut right to go around or behind the pillar to a weakness in the rock that we hoped would take us to more passable terrain.
For the most part our plan worked. On the other side of this hump of rock there was a gentle rock gully. Just a few sketchy traverse moves and we were at the bottom of the gully, which took us up to the ridgeline. From there we could see the way to the summit.
The ridge continued a bit to a large flat rocky place. The sky was a bit hazy but to the southwest we could vaguely see the Winter Park basin and even see some of the ski slopes. To the northeast along the divide was Navaho and Apache, with Dickers Peck in between.
From the flat area we hiked up a gentle alpine slope to the summit of Neva, stopped for food and photos, then continued south to the saddle between Neva and Jasper Peak (which would have been a fun continuation if we had the time). From the saddle we headed east down a scree slope towards a few unnamed lakes.
The scree turned to larger talus with some intriguing colors, textures, and shapes -- white, black, pink, swirled, speckled.
After the talus field we came to a meadow that was swampish in some areas but we tried to find the high ground back to the trail. This took surprisingly longer than expected even though for the most part we avoided the willows. Finally we traversed and hiked up a steep bank to the trail.
The clouds were getting dark but we were OK for the run back down the trail to our car, and only arrived 10-15 minutes later than expected.
In the parking lot we met a girl named Yulia who had flown in from New York for the weekend to hike and camp up at Lake Dorothy. She had taken a bus from the airport to Nederland on Friday, then walked 8 or 9 miles to the trailhead to start her hike!! We gave her a ride back to Boulder so she could catch the red eye and be back at work the next day.
And then we got home in time for Donna and JJ to come over for the football game.
From the 4th of July trailhead we ran up to Arapaho Pass, took a look at Lake Dorothy, then headed off trail to Neva's north ridge. From there the scrambling began -- mostly easy but a few tricky spots where you really needed some rock climbing moves. There were a few downclimbs along the way...
... and some fun places to horse around like the diving-board rock.
We got to a point where it seemed forward progress was blocked. To the left was a sheer vertical face. Ahead was chunkier but it seemed like it would get steeper the higher you'd go, plus it seemed like if we got to the top we'd have to then descend the other side. To the right were a few pillars and even further right was a drop-off. It seemed like we would be able to follow a ramp up and left for a ways, then cut right to go around or behind the pillar to a weakness in the rock that we hoped would take us to more passable terrain.
For the most part our plan worked. On the other side of this hump of rock there was a gentle rock gully. Just a few sketchy traverse moves and we were at the bottom of the gully, which took us up to the ridgeline. From there we could see the way to the summit.
The ridge continued a bit to a large flat rocky place. The sky was a bit hazy but to the southwest we could vaguely see the Winter Park basin and even see some of the ski slopes. To the northeast along the divide was Navaho and Apache, with Dickers Peck in between.
From the flat area we hiked up a gentle alpine slope to the summit of Neva, stopped for food and photos, then continued south to the saddle between Neva and Jasper Peak (which would have been a fun continuation if we had the time). From the saddle we headed east down a scree slope towards a few unnamed lakes.
The scree turned to larger talus with some intriguing colors, textures, and shapes -- white, black, pink, swirled, speckled.
After the talus field we came to a meadow that was swampish in some areas but we tried to find the high ground back to the trail. This took surprisingly longer than expected even though for the most part we avoided the willows. Finally we traversed and hiked up a steep bank to the trail.
The clouds were getting dark but we were OK for the run back down the trail to our car, and only arrived 10-15 minutes later than expected.
In the parking lot we met a girl named Yulia who had flown in from New York for the weekend to hike and camp up at Lake Dorothy. She had taken a bus from the airport to Nederland on Friday, then walked 8 or 9 miles to the trailhead to start her hike!! We gave her a ride back to Boulder so she could catch the red eye and be back at work the next day.
And then we got home in time for Donna and JJ to come over for the football game.
Saturday, September 8, 2012
Imogene Pass Run!!
17 miles, 5300' vertical from Ouray to Telluride, gorgeous mountain views the whole way! The last 2.5 miles to the top hurt, but the 7 miles down were awesome.
Didn't take any pics during the race but here are a few from after.
Didn't take any pics during the race but here are a few from after.
Saturday, September 1, 2012
Colorado Mines Peak, Mount Flora
We drove over to Berthoud Pass to attempt to run and hike up Colorado Mines Peak and see which other peaks we could bag.
Colorado Mines Peak was a relatively short and easy hike. The summit has a bunch of radio towers and FAA radar equipment -- not the type of stuff we usually find on summits!
We descended from the peak a bit then continued on for an hour to Flora, whose summit was large, flat, and rocky. From there we had good views of Ethel Lake and the terrain ahead.
The north ridge of Flora descends gradually then turns NE and steep! We followed this route to the saddle between Flora and Witter, where the earth smelled of sulfur and a small snowfield was melting away.
The clouds were coming in so we decided to turn back, back up steep slopes nearly all the way back to Flora's summit. This was my first outing at any significant altitude in a few months and I was noticing it!
Beautiful Autumn colors in the alpine terrain
Pika!
Great singletrack running
US-40 winding towards Winter Park
Clouds really coming in now
By the end of the day we had covered 9 miles and 2500' vertical in about 3h50m, and didn't feel any rain until the moment we stepped foot in the parking lot!
Colorado Mines Peak was a relatively short and easy hike. The summit has a bunch of radio towers and FAA radar equipment -- not the type of stuff we usually find on summits!
We descended from the peak a bit then continued on for an hour to Flora, whose summit was large, flat, and rocky. From there we had good views of Ethel Lake and the terrain ahead.
The north ridge of Flora descends gradually then turns NE and steep! We followed this route to the saddle between Flora and Witter, where the earth smelled of sulfur and a small snowfield was melting away.
The clouds were coming in so we decided to turn back, back up steep slopes nearly all the way back to Flora's summit. This was my first outing at any significant altitude in a few months and I was noticing it!
Beautiful Autumn colors in the alpine terrain
Pika!
Great singletrack running
US-40 winding towards Winter Park
Clouds really coming in now
By the end of the day we had covered 9 miles and 2500' vertical in about 3h50m, and didn't feel any rain until the moment we stepped foot in the parking lot!
Saturday, August 18, 2012
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Mount Audubon Moose
For my last day of summer vacation I decided to run up Mount Audubon. To my surprise and absolute delight, I came across some moose on my drive to the trailhead. As I approached Brainard Lake I noticed a whole bunch of cars on the side of the road. Thinking it was odd, especially at 7:30 on a weekday morning, I slowed down to look a little closer. There they were... 3 HUGE, munching moose. They were just standing there eating the bushes. I parked the car, grabbed the camera, and jumped out to snap some pictures. Though there were two very brave photographers not 20 feet from bulls (and one on a ladder), I was not that brave. I got as close as I felt comfortable, took some more pictures and noticed a fourth moose even closer to the lake.
I finally drove up to the actual trailhead for the start of my run. Fortunately, there were no moose up there. The morning was gorgeous and the run fairly uneventful. I saw plenty of marmots, pikas, and even some ptarmigan. I ran up in 1:34 and down in 1:10. Then it was off to school for a leadership team meeting.
I finally drove up to the actual trailhead for the start of my run. Fortunately, there were no moose up there. The morning was gorgeous and the run fairly uneventful. I saw plenty of marmots, pikas, and even some ptarmigan. I ran up in 1:34 and down in 1:10. Then it was off to school for a leadership team meeting.
Wednesday, July 25, 2012
Mount Antero
Yesterday I ran up Mount Antero, my 24th fourteener. It was an awesome day and I'm so glad I did it!
I set my alarm for 4:00, but for some reason I was wide awake at 2:30. I tried desperately to fall back asleep for some much needed rest, but it just didn't work. So at 3:40 I decided it was time to get the show on the road. I got dressed, ate a little breakfast, and was on my way to Buena Vista at 4.
The drive was uneventful, but the sunrise over South Park was amazing. It's so neat how just before dawn you start to see the outlines of the mountains and then they gradually become illuminated by the morning sun. After a quick stop in Fairplay, I made a beeline for the trailhead and parked the car at 7:00. I decided that I wanted to start at the lower trailhead at 9,400 feet rather than try to take the XTerra up the 4-wheel drive road at 10,800. First of all, I wanted the longer distance as a training run for September's Imogene Pass Run and secondly, I was worried about driving up a steep 4-wheel drive road on my own.
At 7:10 I hit the trail and was able to run very steadily the first three miles to the upper trailhead. The road was rocky and wet, but I was able to get a pretty good footing the whole way. The one downer was that it was pitched to the left the whole time, so my right leg was not so happy. I got a few knots in my calf that I had to keep stretching out. The road followed a gorgeous creek with light colored rocks. There were also aspen and pine trees that seemed to climb a mile up into the sky.
The upper trailhead allowed views of the surrounding peaks. They looked like giants from my vantage point and I wondered how I would ever make it to the top. I crossed the stream and continued on. The next mile or so continued along the creek and passed many small pullouts perfect for camping. About and hour and a half into my run, I saw the first people of my trip---a large party camping along the road. I quietly ran by, pretending I didn't see or smell their illegal campfire.
Soon I was finally at the treeline. I could see endless switchbacks snaking their way up the mountain. I didn't realize what a popular 4-wheel drive area this was. There was an extensive "trail" system and even well-marked maps displayed by the High Rockies Off Road Vehicle Club. At this point I ran into a hiker. This older gentlemen was dressed in jeans and nice cowboy boots. He told me he was a "digger" and that his ATV broke down so he was hiking back to "basecamp" to get a replacement part. Ok....fair enough. For a while after we passed I wondered if he really said "digger" and carried on up the switchbacks.
After what seemed to be an eternity I got to the upper regions of the mountains. Here I saw my first ATV of the day (a friendly couple who I saw in the parking lot earlier) and continued on the southern side of the mountain. All the trip reports and trail guides I read said to stay on the road/trail, even when it looked like you could just slog up the scree, stay on the road. So, that's what I did. At one point I did cut a switchback because I thought the road was ending and the scree was super loose and steep. Thankfully, the road continued and I ran up a few more switchbacks. Suddenly, I came to a flat saddle between point 13800 and Mount Antero. The stone and sand were white and the road just ended. I looked to my right and saw a formidable ridge. I thought, "that can't be it, that looks crazy!" I took out my trail description and map and realized it was, in fact, the way to the summit. Gerry Roach described it as class 2 hiking, so I went on my way.
The ridge was actually not bad at all. There was a bit of a trail going through the really rocky part and it led pretty quickly the the summit hill. I scrambled up the talus and made it to the top in just under 3 hours---2:58! To my surprise there were 4 other people on top. A father and daughter and two guys from Germany (I think). It was beautiful on top, but already the clouds were building and I wanted to get down quickly since the treeline was probably an hour and a half away. They were all a bit surprised I had run from the lower trailhead.
I took a few pictures, texted Dan, ate a snack, and headed down. The switchbacks were fun to run and I made it to treeline in less than an hour. Here I started to see more ATVs and 4-wheel drive trucks. Actually, in all I saw 16 (and 2 marmots, 4 pikas, and countless chipmunks---I like counting things :-) People in the ATVs were telling me I was crazy, making them look bad, etc., etc. Pretty funny! Then, just minutes from the car I ran into my digger friend. Turns out he and his buddies dig for aquamarine on the other side of the mountain. Modern miners! Crazy! His friend was trying to get me to join them as they needed people with "my kind of stamina." I don't think so! I got to the car less than two hours after reaching the summit (1:52). What a great day!
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Shavano & Tabeguache
On Wednesday, Maggie and I drove up to Buena Vista and camped at the Shavano trailhead. What a gorgeous place! We pitched our tent smack in the middle of an Aspen grove. There was some rain for about half an hour, but it was dry the rest of the evening and into the night. As we were hanging out after dinner, a 22-year-old rode his bike to the parking lot. To celebrate his recent birthday he had ridden from his home in Leadville (60 miles away) and planned to hike the mountain the next day. The poor guy was exhausted and in need of water. Fortunately, we were able to help out, since the nearest stream was a 45-minute hike up the trail. We hit the sack when the sun set to help us get an early start.
Thursday we woke up at 5:00 and were on the trail by 6:00. The trail climbed over 4000' up the east slopes of Shavano, a huge fourteener seen from Salida and Buena Vista. The morning was absolutely perfect. Cool, sunny, and cloudless! There weren't many other people on the trail. Two women from Boulder, a trail runner, and a big Boy Scout group (that started at 3:30!) were the only people we saw until our descent. We reached the summit of Shavano in three hours.
After the necessary pictures and snacks, we started our descent down the northwest ridge to Tabeguache (pronounced Tab-a-watch). Maggie wasn't feeling up to the full descent and subsequent ascent of the neighboring peak. I went on, tagged the summit, and met her back on the ridge in less than an hour. We then climbed to the top of Shavano (again!) before heading back down towards the car. Clouds were starting to form, but they weren't getting too big or too dark. We ran into our buddy from the night before---his legs were shot but he was still having a blast and moving upwards! We returned to the trailhead without incident 7 hours after we left. A great day!
Overall: 11.5 miles, 5400' gain, 7:00 hours
Sunday, July 8, 2012
Triathlon!
Today I competed in the Boulder Peak Triathlon. It was a weird, wet, humid day but the skies cleared enough for us not to be rained on during the race. This course was harder than the one I did last year, as the cycling portion went up over Olde Stage road (900' over 2 miles; steepest section was 600' in 2/3 of a mile or 15% grade).
I finished in 3:07:06---9:30 faster than last year, despite the much more challenging bike ride. I'm very happy, but very tired :-)
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Triathlon Training
Last week of tough training done! Now it's time to taper. Woo hoo!
Bike: 78 miles
Run: 17 miles
Swim: 2.2 miles
Hike: 7.5 miles
Climb: 3:00
YAYOG week 4 complete!
Bike: 78 miles
Run: 17 miles
Swim: 2.2 miles
Hike: 7.5 miles
Climb: 3:00
YAYOG week 4 complete!
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Mt. Lady Washington
Today I ran up Mount Lady Washington. I left the Longs Peak Trailhead at 7:00 and headed up the trail. That early it was already overcast and there was a slight chance of thunderstorms. I kept an eye and ear out for thunder, rain, and lightning, but I never saw or heard anything.
I got up to the Chasm Lake overlook (about 3.5 miles in) in just under an hour and a half. There were a couple people on the trail, but not many. I did pass some other trail runners already on their way down. Very cool!
I started to head up towards Granite Pass, as my plan was to run to the Boulderfield and summit Lady from the west slopes. However, due to the iffy weather, I decided the quickest way up would be to hightail it up the northeast slopes rather than running the extra mileage. I got to the summit at 9:15. There was lots of nice scrambling on class 2+ terrain to the top. Again, because of the iffy clouds, I took a couple of quick pictures and then began my descent.
I started going down the west slopes towards the Boulderfield because it was only 500 feet of scrambling as opposed to 1500 on the other side. I figured once I got to the trail I could run pretty fast back to treeline. I descended about 400 feet and then decided to contour along the base of the mountain to hit the trail higher up. After side-hilling for a bit, I scrambled down another 100-200 feet and met the trail right at Granite Pass.
From the pass, I decided not to summit Battle Mountain because the weather was still not clearing. I ran right back down the trail (stopped at the loo at the Chasm Lake Overlook -- what a luxury when spending an entire morning in the mountains!) and got back to the car at 11:00 on the dot. A fabulous day! Overall: 8-11 miles (wish I had the GPS), 3800', 3:56.
Tuesday, June 19, 2012
Triathlon Training
So, the Boulder Peak Olympic-distance Triathlon is in three weeks. I signed up a week and a half ago. Though I "train" year-round, it is nice to have a clear goal for my workouts. Here are last week's totals:
hiking: 10 miles (3500')
cycling: 71 miles
swimming: 2.7 miles
running: 18 miles (2400')
climbing: 1:40
yayog: week 2 complete!
hiking: 10 miles (3500')
cycling: 71 miles
swimming: 2.7 miles
running: 18 miles (2400')
climbing: 1:40
yayog: week 2 complete!
Monday, June 18, 2012
Pawnee Peak
Yesterday I ran up Pawnee Peak in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area. I drove up to Brainard Lake and got to the trailhead at 7:15. The 4.8 miles to the pass were absolutely gorgeous -- wildflowers, waterfalls, rugged peaks in the distance -- picturesque Colorado summertime in the mountains.
The first two miles were very flat up to Lake Isabelle. As I started to climb up to the pass I could start feeling the gusty wind. There were a few snowfields to cross, but they were soft and well-trodden. I bumped into some other trail runners and a couple of hikers who had spent the night on the other side of the divide.
At the pass, the wind was blowing a steady 30mph, with gusts definitely at 40. I decided to push on to the summit which was only a 1/4 mile a way. There were times I was getting blown off balance. The shelter at the top was a welcome sight. I had a quick snack and then headed back down, as the wind felt cold when I wasn't moving.
As the morning got later and I got lower, I ran into a lot more people. In fact, by the time I got back to the parking lot at ten of eleven, it was jam-packed.
Stats: 9.6 miles on trail + summit excursion, 1:34 to pass, 1:50 to summit, 3:36 overall. 2400' gain.
The first two miles were very flat up to Lake Isabelle. As I started to climb up to the pass I could start feeling the gusty wind. There were a few snowfields to cross, but they were soft and well-trodden. I bumped into some other trail runners and a couple of hikers who had spent the night on the other side of the divide.
At the pass, the wind was blowing a steady 30mph, with gusts definitely at 40. I decided to push on to the summit which was only a 1/4 mile a way. There were times I was getting blown off balance. The shelter at the top was a welcome sight. I had a quick snack and then headed back down, as the wind felt cold when I wasn't moving.
As the morning got later and I got lower, I ran into a lot more people. In fact, by the time I got back to the parking lot at ten of eleven, it was jam-packed.
Stats: 9.6 miles on trail + summit excursion, 1:34 to pass, 1:50 to summit, 3:36 overall. 2400' gain.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Grays and Torreys
Laurel ran Grays and Torreys peaks (14ers) with her friends Maggie and Rebekah.
(Laurel) Some more detail: I decided I wanted to run a fourteener (or two) for my birthday. Yes, it's a crazy idea, but why shouldn't I combine two of my favorite things--summitting high mountains and trail running. Fortunately, I was able to recruit two friends. Rebekah is a two-time Boston Marathoner, but new to trail running. Maggie is a seasoned trail runner and we've run together a few times before.
We left southern Boulder at 6:30 and drove up to Idaho Springs. I maneuvered the XTerra adroitly up the 4-wheel drive road to the trailhead. We stepped on the trail at exactly 8:00 and started running. It was a gorgeous, bluebird day and there were only a couple of other parties on the trail. Unfortunately, Maggie was having some GI issues early on, so we split up (against my better judgement, but we put together an excellent plan that I felt comfortable with). Rebekah and I made for the summit. There was some snow covering the trail above 12,000ft, but it was very soft and easily runnable. We headed for Torreys Peak first, and hiked up the steep, rocky slopes. The summit was breath-taking (ha, ha!). It was calm, clear, and we could see for miles around.
After a few minutes, we headed over to Grays. Here, the wind was blowing straight at us and it had frozen the snow on the trail. We put on microspikes and easily hiked to the summit. However, this one was COLD and WINDY. We stayed for a minute or two and quickly began our descent. After about 15 minutes we got out of the wind and enjoyed the rest of the way down. Maggie was at the car sunning herself on a grassy patch reading a book. We wished we had brought a picnic, it was such a perfect day. Overall: 8 miles, 3600ft, 1:56 to Torreys, 3:56 overall.
(Laurel) Some more detail: I decided I wanted to run a fourteener (or two) for my birthday. Yes, it's a crazy idea, but why shouldn't I combine two of my favorite things--summitting high mountains and trail running. Fortunately, I was able to recruit two friends. Rebekah is a two-time Boston Marathoner, but new to trail running. Maggie is a seasoned trail runner and we've run together a few times before.
We left southern Boulder at 6:30 and drove up to Idaho Springs. I maneuvered the XTerra adroitly up the 4-wheel drive road to the trailhead. We stepped on the trail at exactly 8:00 and started running. It was a gorgeous, bluebird day and there were only a couple of other parties on the trail. Unfortunately, Maggie was having some GI issues early on, so we split up (against my better judgement, but we put together an excellent plan that I felt comfortable with). Rebekah and I made for the summit. There was some snow covering the trail above 12,000ft, but it was very soft and easily runnable. We headed for Torreys Peak first, and hiked up the steep, rocky slopes. The summit was breath-taking (ha, ha!). It was calm, clear, and we could see for miles around.
After a few minutes, we headed over to Grays. Here, the wind was blowing straight at us and it had frozen the snow on the trail. We put on microspikes and easily hiked to the summit. However, this one was COLD and WINDY. We stayed for a minute or two and quickly began our descent. After about 15 minutes we got out of the wind and enjoyed the rest of the way down. Maggie was at the car sunning herself on a grassy patch reading a book. We wished we had brought a picnic, it was such a perfect day. Overall: 8 miles, 3600ft, 1:56 to Torreys, 3:56 overall.
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