Which 14er do you fear the most?
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- MountainHiker
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
I have repeated all of the fourteener standard routes. Some, many times. Most, I’ll do again. With a lot of the harder fourteeners there are variations within the standard route that can make your day harder or easier. There are several places I wouldn’t want to be in bad weather. But on a nice day, in dry conditions, with the best route finding, on most fourteeners, I know I should be okay.
But even in nice weather, the Hourglass can be oozing water. While the top of the hourglass has choices for the exit, the bottom is a choke point. Little Bear is the only fourteener standard route that gives me pause about returning for a summer hike.
When people ask me what the hardest fourteener is. I say I don’t know. But I then tell them Little Bear Hourglass is the sketchiest place on a fourteener standard route.
But even in nice weather, the Hourglass can be oozing water. While the top of the hourglass has choices for the exit, the bottom is a choke point. Little Bear is the only fourteener standard route that gives me pause about returning for a summer hike.
When people ask me what the hardest fourteener is. I say I don’t know. But I then tell them Little Bear Hourglass is the sketchiest place on a fourteener standard route.
Red, Rugged, and Rotten: The Elk Range - Borneman & Lampert
Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Well said. Mt. Wilson in slick snow and ice conditions covering the top crux was pretty damn scary to.SilverLynx wrote:Little Bear by far, but also The Bells and Snowmass... Not only for their appearances but their histories of taking the lives of experienced climbers.
“The best climber in the world is the one who is having all the fun.” – Alex Lowe
" Don’t be afraid to move out of your comfort zone. Some of your best life experiences and opportunities will transpire only after you dare to loose."
" Don’t be afraid to move out of your comfort zone. Some of your best life experiences and opportunities will transpire only after you dare to loose."
Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Before I did them, Pyramid, Capitol, North Maroon, Little Bear, Crestone Needle, Sunlight, El Diente and Mt. Wilson all gave me pause. The Wilsons and LB especially; I questioned for a while if I'd ever do them.
Sure enough, Little Bear and Mt. Wilson were probably the only two deserving of any trepidation. It didn't help that both were done in pretty demanding conditions. I would repeat any of the others without a second thought (and have), and I'm actually eager to return to the Hourglass with good snow. Pyramid and the Needle are just plain fun and will be repeated whenever an excuse arises.
Sure enough, Little Bear and Mt. Wilson were probably the only two deserving of any trepidation. It didn't help that both were done in pretty demanding conditions. I would repeat any of the others without a second thought (and have), and I'm actually eager to return to the Hourglass with good snow. Pyramid and the Needle are just plain fun and will be repeated whenever an excuse arises.
“There are two kinds of climbers: those who climb because their heart sings when they’re in the mountains, and all the rest.” - Alex Lowe
"There have been joys too great to describe in words, and there have been griefs upon which I cannot dare to dwell; and with those in mind I say, 'Climb if you will, but remember that courage and strength are nought without prudence, and that a momentary negligence may destroy the happiness of a lifetime. Do nothing in haste, look well to each step, and from the beginning think what may be the end.'" - Edward Whymper
"There have been joys too great to describe in words, and there have been griefs upon which I cannot dare to dwell; and with those in mind I say, 'Climb if you will, but remember that courage and strength are nought without prudence, and that a momentary negligence may destroy the happiness of a lifetime. Do nothing in haste, look well to each step, and from the beginning think what may be the end.'" - Edward Whymper
- MountainHiker
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Snow can be a real game changer. I’ve had Mt Wilson be easier with early summer nice snow. I’ve had my biggest scare on El Diente with early summer nasty snow.kushrocks wrote:Well said. Mt. Wilson in slick snow and ice conditions covering the top crux was pretty damn scary to.SilverLynx wrote:Little Bear by far, but also The Bells and Snowmass... Not only for their appearances but their histories of taking the lives of experienced climbers.
Red, Rugged, and Rotten: The Elk Range - Borneman & Lampert
- fleetmack
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Little Bear
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- FCSquid
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Snowmass really isn't that bad if you take it seriously and distrust all of the rocks (just like Little Bear). I've done both, and Little Bear is the one mountain that I have no desire to go back to, but I'd love to do Snowmass again some day.EmmaM wrote:Snowmass. Really not looking forward to that one.
Little Bear is a one-and-done mountain for me. That thing is just mean.
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- ameristrat
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Well this just gives me a bundle of positivity for a Little Bear attempt this summer!
North Maroon looks perdy steep.
North Maroon looks perdy steep.
You cannot stay on the summit forever; you have to come down again. So why bother in the first place? Just this: What is above knows what is below, but what is below does not know what is above. One climbs, one sees. One descends, one sees no longer, but one has seen. There is an art of conducting oneself in the lower regions by the memory of what one saw higher up. When one can no longer see, one can at least still know. - Rene Daumal
- ChrisinAZ
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Without a doubt, Snowmass for me. That whole mountain just felt rotten and ready to slide, bad ju-ju...I'm planning to go back for the S Ridge and N Snowmass, but I'll be breathing a very large sigh of relief upon reaching safe ground at the base! While the exposure is more daunting on Capitol, I feel like that added steepness actually meant quite a bit of the loose, crappy stuff has already sloughed off; I was very cautious, but not overly freaked out a handhold or rock I was standing on on Capitol would suddenly come loose, like I was on Snowmass.
A few others were moderately to fairly scary--Capitol, Mt. Wilson, NE Crestone--but I could theoretically have my arm twisted into returning to them under the right circumstances. Little Bear's Hourglass scared the sh*t out of me, but the SW ridge/Mama Bear traverse honestly wasn't that bad from a technical/scary standpoint, so I'd go back for LB provided it was that route. Pyramid, the Bells, Chicago Basin, and the Crestones were a blast.
A few others were moderately to fairly scary--Capitol, Mt. Wilson, NE Crestone--but I could theoretically have my arm twisted into returning to them under the right circumstances. Little Bear's Hourglass scared the sh*t out of me, but the SW ridge/Mama Bear traverse honestly wasn't that bad from a technical/scary standpoint, so I'd go back for LB provided it was that route. Pyramid, the Bells, Chicago Basin, and the Crestones were a blast.
"If trees could scream, would we be so cavalier about cutting them down? We might, if they screamed all the time, for no good reason."
— Jack Handy
Mah peaks
— Jack Handy
Mah peaks
- justiner
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Cycling the road at Mt. Evans is the most frightening, as there's vacation-mode tourists barreling down in the cars, unaccustomed to the road conditions, elevation, dramatic views - and I'm usually very tired myself. Until the last switchbacks, and then everyone seems to be rallying you on. That's nice. Much funny road when it's closed, though.
I've also ha the worst partner luck on Evans. Every time, my partner for the days seems to get a horrendous headaches, and I'm doing my best to get them down safely.
I've only ever been scared to the point of not being able to move forward once. And 15 minutes later, I realized that however stupid it was to get into that situation (equipped improperly), and it totally felt great to be out of it, and I couldn't wait to get into it, again.
I've also ha the worst partner luck on Evans. Every time, my partner for the days seems to get a horrendous headaches, and I'm doing my best to get them down safely.
I've only ever been scared to the point of not being able to move forward once. And 15 minutes later, I realized that however stupid it was to get into that situation (equipped improperly), and it totally felt great to be out of it, and I couldn't wait to get into it, again.
- TallGrass
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Any that I over-think based on 2nd/3rd-hand opinions and photos versus just seeing it in person, 3-D, to scale, no camera tilt, and doing one step at a time.
Weather, water, wildlife, and or other people (including one's own imagination) are more dynamic and thus easier to raise the pulse.
Fear is like farts: things get better if you just keep moving, and conversely.
Weather, water, wildlife, and or other people (including one's own imagination) are more dynamic and thus easier to raise the pulse.
Fear is like farts: things get better if you just keep moving, and conversely.
"A few hours' mountain climbing make of a rogue and a saint two fairly equal creatures.
Tiredness is the shortest path to equality and fraternity - and sleep finally adds to them liberty."
Tiredness is the shortest path to equality and fraternity - and sleep finally adds to them liberty."
- big_red_pride
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
I would say LB for me then followed by most of peaks in the Elks. Sunlight and the Wilson's also look intimidating.
- 12ersRule
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Re: Which 14er do you fear the most?
Thunderbolt, Rainier, and Sunlight Spire.