My husband, Bob (Greenhorn), and I left southwest Colorado Springs at 5:15 AM and made it to the Upper South Colony Lakes trailhead around 7:15 AM. Opting to drive up instead of hiking the road was a choice we made since the mileage up to the summit is a longer hike than I am used to for a 14er. The 2.5-mile drive from the lower lot to the upper trailhead was easily one of the worst roads in Colorado—deep ruts, rocks, and erosion, with at least one moment where I thought we might tip the Xterra on its side. There is no maintenance, and while we made it, this road is only suitable for high-clearance, 4WD vehicles.

A decade ago, I drove this in a Subaru Outback loaded with kids, bikes, and a topper. I cannot imagine doing that now, but I’m sure someone will try.

We started the hike by heading left past the trail signs and crossing a small wooden bridge. From there, we followed a dirt road for about 2.5 miles until it finally ended. At the junction, the actual trail picks up and heads right.

From there, the trail was in good shape—some water and mud, but nothing too problematic. We kept our shoes mostly dry. A few downed trees, but otherwise very passable.

This is also when the marmots made their grand entrance. They were everywhere and surprisingly bold. One even tried to come right up to us. If you're hiking with a dog, I'd recommend keeping them on a leash, and definitely don’t leave your pack or snacks unattended.

As you pass the lakes, the tree line begins to fade, the views of the valley and surrounding mountains open up, and are absolutely stunning. We saw very few hikers all day, most likely due to it being early in the season and hiking on a Thursday instead of the weekend.

After the lakes, the real climb begins. The steep hill leading up to the saddle is no joke. We took it slow—it’s a serious elevation gain in a short distance. Once we reached the saddle, the views expanded again, this time into the basin on Humboldt’s north side.

From there, the route gets rocky and much less clear. We veered a little off-trail, along with several other hikers who were trying to pick their way through the boulders. Cairns were sparse and not particularly reliable, so it became a bit of a choose-your-own-adventure climb.

We encountered a false summit and a small rock band that I scrambled over. When I reached the top of that section, I suddenly realized I was near a cliff’s edge, looking straight down into a couloir—something I wasn’t expecting. Most of the 14ers I’ve done don’t have much exposure, so it was an unpleasant (and slightly terrifying) surprise.

Eventually, we reached the true summit. There were maybe 10 other people on the large, flat summit area, and the wind was almost nonexistent—rare and wonderful. We took in the views, ate lunch, and rested up before the descent.

The hike back down through the boulder field was slow going for me—those rocks are no joke. Once we were back below the saddle, the pace picked up. The weather stayed warm and sunny, and we passed a few more marmots and hikers making their way up. This is where we encountered some bighorn sheep headed up the trail as well.

We ran out of water with about a mile left, which made the final stretch along the hot, dusty road a bit uncomfortable. We made it back to the trailhead after about 7.5 hours total on the trail—tired but happy to be back to the car. My husband's STRAVA said our overall hike was 12.5 miles. We stopped at The Hunger Buster drive-through in Westcliffe on the way home - it was good, especially after a long day of hiking.