Longs Peak - What You Should Know

[Nfreelen]

I just did Longs a couple of weeks ago and the biggest thing for me was the amount of ice-in August. I've read that it's possible to see ice and snow any month of the year but I didn't really think it would be an issue. I was dead wrong. It added about 3 hours to our trip.

Another thing I learned was that there are many people up there late in the day that are not prepared. Be sure to do your homework before you attempt the climb and be ready for anything.

[Tornadoman]

I noticed in #7 that you mentioned that Park Rangers sometimes closed the Keyhole in adverse weather. Is this true? I had never heard this before.

[ChrisRoberts]

Getting enough sleep is really important, especially for the early start. We left from Fort Collins at 1:15 in the morning to get there. I only had about three hours of sleep.
...
So make sure you go to bed really early, and get enough sleep, because that is a decently big factor for this hike.

I'd suggest making sure to get a ton of sleep two nights before a big climb, since the excitement of the big day is going to make it hard to sleep as you've experienced. I've(or someone else, I can't remember) hypothesized that the night before the night before has the most influence to how you feel when you start climbing on the big day. I've had a good number of sleepless nights before the climb and done just fine thanks to good sleep before, and bad days having gotten plenty of sleep overnight...w. hether or not it was a big mountain that kept me up or something pretty small and easy. It's worth experimenting with.

[TallGrass]

And with the length of the hike and thousands of people on trail each season, pack a WAG bag for human waste.
Sure feces is biodegradable, but so is the human body , and both take to long to do so up high and ruin the experience for other hikers. Any outhouse you spot, USE IT! Whether you think you need to or not!
http://briangreen.net/2011/09/carrying- ... e-kit.html
http://www.basspro.com/The-WAG-Bag-Kit- ... uct/45416/

[GregMiller]

Any outhouse you spot, USE IT! Whether you think you need to or not!

THIS. Both times I've come off Longs through the boulder field, it's been a mad rush for the outhouses.

[Jim Davies]

there are 53 official summits, as designated by the USGS, and 58 by aficionados of 14er bagging

Actually, it's the other way around. 58 USGS named summits, and 53 for 300-foot prominence purists.

[PaliKona]

Great article and great info in this thread.

[brooked]

And with the length of the hike and thousands of people on trail each season, pack a WAG bag for human waste.
Sure feces is biodegradable, but so is the human body , and both take to long to do so up high and ruin the experience for other hikers. Any outhouse you spot, USE IT! Whether you think you need to or not!
http://briangreen.net/2011/09/carrying- ... e-kit.html
http://www.basspro.com/The-WAG-Bag-Kit- ... uct/45416/

Never heard of the WAG BAG. Guess you learn something every day.

[Trotter]

good article

[djkest]

When you reach the summit, you are only halfway done."

I agree with this. For me, I feel coming down is still easier, but more tiring in a sense, because the thrill of the summit has come and gone.

I know a couple women (not picking on ladies per se) that made the summit without too much difficulty, but totally had a meltdown on the way back to the car.

Also at the very end of your article you say "Visit the LONG peak page...". Of course it should be Longs Peak.

[bjkent76]

I just did Longs a couple of weeks ago and the biggest thing for me was the amount of ice-in August. I've read that it's possible to see ice and snow any month of the year but I didn't really think it would be an issue. I was dead wrong. It added about 3 hours to our trip.

Another thing I learned was that there are many people up there late in the day that are not prepared. Be sure to do your homework before you attempt the climb and be ready for anything.

I did Longs this past Monday and there were patchy spots of verglas in the Trough, Narrows and Home Stretch. It was largely avoidable, but I almost face-planted in the Trough on patch of nearly invisible ice.

Also agree that the descent is much more worrisome than going up. Descending the Home Stretch I think is the toughest part of the climb. That said, overall it is an awesome climb. Loved it!!

[PaliKona]

Is the homestretch as steep as it looks in this video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xcg0NXH0s8" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;