Thinking of hiking Mt. Bierstadt in late November

[tweeguy86]

Hello All,

I am making my way to Colorado Nov 24-29, and I was curious what it is like to climb Mt. Bierstadt at that time. Will I need 'micro spikes', or anything else that you would suggest? What is the average time it takes to hike the mountain. I am good shape, and I did some high elevation hiking in Utah. Is there anything that I should be aware of/warnings? I heard that some people were struck by lightning on Mt. Evans. Is that common on Mt. Bierstadt? Is there any other advice that I should know before hiking the mountain? I plan to be at the airport at 8.10 am, and I will drive straight to Mt. Bierstadt after that. I want to make sure I am able to make it up and down the mountain.

Thanks in advance!

[SkaredShtles]

Road will probably be closed which will make the approach much longer.

[AlexeyD]

I heard that some people were struck by lightning on Mt. Evans. Is that common on Mt. Bierstadt?

As a general rule, lightning is extremely uncommon in late November in CO. That said, this year has been anything but normal here, so I suppose anything is possible...

[chicagostylehotdog]

http://www.14ers.com/php14ers/tripmain.php" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

You can narrow down the trip reports by peak, and even do an advance search to limit it to certain months. Read a few trip reports for November/December to give you an idea of typical conditions, gear required, etc.

As somebody mentioned earlier, the pass will likely be closed, adding to the total RT distance and elevation gain of your hike.

Winter: From the north: Usually only plowed to the campground approx. 3 miles below Guanella Pass. From the south: Usually plowed to Duck Lake, approx. 1.75 miles below the pass.

(per http://www.14ers.com/php14ers/trailhead ... hparm=fr02" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;)

[tweeguy86]

Hi Everyone,

Thank you all so much for your replies. I will definitely take that into consideration. I will review the links, and hopefully things will work out on my end.

[XrunclimbskiX]

Not to dissuade you but you will be close to calendar winter and although Bierstadt is a relatively easy climb, winter climbs are a different can of worms. You may need snowshoes to get up the road and get through the flat section. You then may need traction of some kind to get from there. You said you were getting to the airport at 8 which puts you climbing by 10 and the sun goes down around 5 which is not very much time. Finally it could be very cold and you could need some serious layers including a belay jacket. Once again, not saying you shouldn't, I just want you to get a sense of what you are getting into. But, with the weather this year who knows?

[mtnjim]

Clear Creek County website says the road closure is scheduled for mon, Nov 28, http://www.co.clear-creek.co.us/index.aspx?NID=689" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; It's closed by their schedule, even if there's no snow and you're walking on a dry road to the pass. Unless there's been recent heavy snowfall you probably won't need snowshoes. I would advise having microspikes along, though.

As stated above, it can be really cold and windy so have appropriate clothing.

Good luck,
JimS

[tweeguy86]

Hello All,

I just wanted to thank you for all of the great advice. Do you think a puffer jacket would be okay, and then have layers underneath, a balaclava, hat and ski goggles? I was looking at the temperature, and it looks like it is 21F right now at the top. Do you all recommend a certain type of micro spikes? I did not want to spend a lot of money, because I do not know when I will be able to come back and do more hiking in Colorado.

[sarahhaubert]

Kahtoola microspikes are the way to go if you're going to buy them, I think they're around $75? The trouble with late November is, you'll probably need flotation below and traction above, if you won't need snowshoes and microspikes again after this climb, you can rent snowshoes at REI in Denver ($18 for 3 days if I remember correctly, it's been a while). A mtn like Bierstadt, and in late Nov, you should be able to get away with using snowshoes all the way to the top since they have traction built in.
I run cold, so when I do winter 14ers above treeline I'll wear a wicking baselayer, an insulated hoody, a puffy layer, and a shell. Sometimes one of the midlayers isn't necessary, but the wind-proof layer is usually necessary. The weather lately (when you saw 21 degrees up high) is absurd, all of the counties up here are setting new high temperature records, there's no way that will last.

[wyyld]

Kahtoola spikes are awesome. They are a bit more than most spikes but well worth the extra dough.