14er beginner... Mt. Bierstadt or other..?

[chridaniel01]

It sounds like you have done your research - that's a good thing. I believe Clear Creek County will have the road open to the TH by Saturday morning which will also shorten your hike some. I would only caution you on a couple points - you don't say where you are now and if you are at low altitude, be aware that some acclimatization might be required. Also, a 5:45AM start is good but a 5AM start would be even better. The snow does get soft as the day wears on and coming down can be more difficult than going up (post hole city...). The earlier you leave, the more time you will have to enjoy the hike, the views from the top, etc.

Be safe and have FUN! Bierstadt is considered easy but it's still not a walk in the park. Let us know how it goes for you!

Jay

Very well said points. We are at sea level. We all live in Miami. So the acclimatization is a concern. We land in Denver at 10am so we will have less than 24 hours. 2 other group members arrive even later, so they are a concern for me. I read ginko biloboa helps which I plan to start taking tomorrow. This was very helpful. Hopefully the gate is open by Saturday, if not there is Sunday!!!

If your schedule allows you to wait until Sunday, I might suggest that. That'll give you an extra day to acclimate, which should help. You could head up there Saturday during the day, set up camp, spend the day hanging out and maybe exploring the area (the campsites are around 10-11000', so good for acclimatizing), and then head up early Sun morning.

BTW...I noticed that Jay's report mentions the words "good trench". This is very good news for you

Regarding snow softening: I was up on a short morning ski tour yesterday (Tuesday), also in the Front Range, at altitudes between 11000 and 13000 feet. I can't overstate Scott's point about how quickly the snow softens once the sun hits it! For reference, around 8 AM everything was still frozen solid; by 9:30 (when I started down), the lower slopes were already a little too soft! Granted, these were east-facing slopes, while Bierstadts' standard route has a westerly aspect, which might delay this transition a bit, but the point is that once the sun does hit it, you really don't have much time before it turns to mush.

Thank you for the information. Sunday may be option as well. Seems the forecast is predicating the same for Saturday and Sunday. I will keep an eye on the weather forecast hourly. The snow softening is also a big factor. Thank you for mentioning, I may bring snow shoes just to be safe.

[chridaniel01]

To OP - here's another weather-related link you might find useful:

http://avalanche.state.co.us/observatio ... -stations/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

This shows a list of weather stations, by mountain "zone", with their elevation shown, and a summary of their weather conditions over the last 24-hour period. If you click on the name of the station, a pop-up will appear that will give a more detailed summary of the conditions (temperature, wind speed, etc.) going back 48 hours. This is a useful tool for tracking what's actually been going on at roughly the elevations relevant to you, rather than just relying on the point forecasts (which are to be taken with a grain of salt). It can help answer such questions as, "has it ACTUALLY been freezing at night?" "How warm does it actually get during the day?" etc. It's also a reality check on what actual mountain conditions are like: for example, you'll notice that summits (e.g. Pikes Peak) are MUCH colder than mid-slope locations - more so than the elevation difference alone might suggest.

The fact is that, this time of year, you can expect a large variety of weather and conditions, where high peaks and exposed ridges may stay below freezing all day, while the sheltered slopes and basins below bake in the sun. You need to be prepared for all of this if you want to have a successful and enjoyable summit

This is a huge help btw. Really great resources. Thank you very much AlexeyD. This will help tremendously.

[AlexeyD]

I will keep an eye on the weather forecast hourly.

Hourly!? That's might be a little excessive, no?

In seriousness...you're obviously taking this seriously, and this is definitely better than the opposite. But don't overthink it too much - there's only so much you can predict. We are generally in a fairly normal spring weather pattern right now (except possibly Thursday and Friday), which basically means clear, cool (hopefully below freezing nights), sunny mornings, and afternoon thunderstorms. So start early, finish early, bring snowshoes (with a few exceptions, of which Bierstadt is not one, this shouldn't even be a question this time of year), and you should be fine. In my opinion, the extra day of acclimatization will make more of a difference in how you do than some minor weather differences that the forecast may or may not be right about.

EDITED: Here's another mountain-specific forecast (see "Weather Discussion" section): http://avalanche.state.co.us/forecasts/ ... avalanche/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Looks like a fair bit of new snow might be in store Thurs-Fri. Something to keep in mind for your weekend plans, as conditions may be different than the last (i.e. today) report.