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I'm in Estes with the Family this week, and am VERY leery of fighting the traffic/construction on Bear Lake Road (which means no flattop/hallet, no andrews, etc)

so I'd REALLY like another Summit hike, but can't seem to find one 10-12miles R/T that actually clears 12K ft and is accessible without using the Bear Lake Road THs...


oh, and we can't get over to the west side due to weather Trail Ridge Road has been closed since we got here except for a few brief moments.



help!!!! this is my last day!

Pawnee Peak or Mt Audubon in the IPW

St. Vrain Mountain, 12,162', outside Allenspark? Meets your elevation and summit requirements, but the hike is not that long. Trailhead is in Allenspark just south of Estes. Gerry quote, "The view from Saint Vrain Mountain's summit is stunning. Bring your camera."

Another good one that is a longer hike (14 miles) is Sawtooth Mountain, 12,304', via Buchanan Pass. The trailhead is at Camp Dick/Peaceful Valley.

Edit: Just checked Roach's IPW guide, St. Vrain Mountain is 8.6 miles, 3,225 feet, from the St. Vrain Mtn trailhead. Sawtooth Mountain is 14.4 miles and 3,560 feet.

Mount Lady Washington. Close and relatively high with tremendous views.

DanR wrote:Mount Lady Washington. Close and relatively high with tremendous views.

I had thought about Mount Lady W... but don't have a good write-up to follow...

I was looking at Chasm Lake... which isn't a summit, but it'd be a good test for Longs, and I think my oldest could do it with me...

Pawnee and Audubon are interesting, but I don't know anything about them or how to get there... so I'll have to dig that up.

St. Vrain is intersting...

Lady Washington is a fantastic peak and very easy routefinding, though class 2 for sure. Use the Longs Peak TH and follow the well-worn trail for around 3 miles to the Chasm Lake junction, then walk up the ridge of MLW. There is some Boulder hopping near the summit and one of the best views ever from the summit. I'd do that for sure!

MLW is easy, impossible to lose the trail and has the most amazing views of the Diamond Face on Longs. A memorable jaunt, well worth the effot.

highpilgrim wrote:MLW is easy, impossible to lose the trail and has the most amazing views of the Diamond Face on Longs. A memorable jaunt, well worth the effot.

so that's what, a 8-9mi roundtrip?


edit... its 11. hmmm, that might be pushing my timeframe with the fam. I can do 11, but with that much above 12, I'm concerned it would take me 7hrs to do. and I only have 5, MAYBE 6.

It's short of the Keyhole on Longs. I'd guess it's about 10 roundtrip now that I look at it. Maybe a little less, depending on how you choose to go up. There are many easy ways to the top. You can go up directly from below Granite Pass and that will save some distance although it will be steeper.

Here's lots of helpful info: http://www.13ers.com/peaks/peak.php?pea ... Washington" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

honestly... I'd do MLW if someone with a clue was going with me...

my first summit was only YESTERDAY...



maybe just go up to Chasm Lake...

Chasm lake is great, esp. with some snow!

Meadow Mountain is even closer/easier than St. Vrain -- and the fall colour there this exact time last year was spectacular.

Agree that MLW is a good suggestion with easy routefinding and great views of the Diamond -- I'd actually recommend going up to the Keyhole to peak around the corner (if you're planning on Longs in the future), and then backtracking the West Ridge of MLW. The talus is more stable on that side for some reason; the views are great; and it's more fun scrambling to criss-cross on either side of the ridge (with more great views down to Chasm).

But if Chasm Lake is an option, your requirements/desires of distance/elevation/timing seem to be inconsistent
...if that's the case, why not Twin Sisters? It's the classic Longs conditioning recommendation, with great views, easy routefinding, and talus-hopping/minor scrambling opportunities. For those reasons, it's a bit better prep for the eventual Longs hike, since the first 4.5M on the Keyhole/Chasm Lk route will end up painfully repetitive on your eventual future return hike on Longs. With a 6-hour window, your oldest may be able to handle it (depending mostly on desire) and may catch a bit of summit fever...(but, yeah, Chasm Lake is a fine hike and the underbrush around Jim's Grove changing colour right now should be impressive as well)

Even easier and shorter, possibly good for your oldest child (can't pass those opportunities up if they're willing): Deer Mountain or Estes Cone. Both have plenty of reports online, I'll add that Estes Cone has a little steep hike through the trees that's really straightforward but possibly a little harder to find the trail if it's covered in any snow (don't know what the snow level is right now).