Favorite 14er?!?

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hokiehead
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by hokiehead »

climbingcue wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 12:06 pm
hokiehead wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 11:40 am favorite 14er is probably Maroon Peak, because the photos are epic.
This is exact reason Pyramid is my favorite, no better view of the bells than from the summit of Pyramid.
great minds think alike (and apparently so do ours...). this is my phone background taken from summit of Pyramid Sept 2018.

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hokiehead
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by hokiehead »

eaagaard wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 1:26 pm
hokiehead wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 11:40 am admittedly, I'm pedantic about these things, so apologies if my response annoys anyone.

favorite 14er that I've climbed is probably Holy Cross (up Halos Ridge route, down standard) because the two routes I did were both fantastic and reading up on the Holy Cross Couloir route makes it sound epic.
A fellow pedant! Isn’t it Halo Ridge and not Halos Ridge? :) :wink:
yes, it is. thank you for the correction!
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by Scott P »

Interestingly, Crestone Needle is the #2 choice for the favorite 14er of members, but Crestone Peak isn't even on the Top 10 list.

Since the Crestones are some of the few I haven't done, I'm just curious. What makes the Needle better than the peak for a lot of members?
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by bdloftin77 »

Scott P wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:31 pm Interestingly, Crestone Needle is the #2 choice for the favorite 14er of members, but Crestone Peak isn't even on the Top 10 list.

Since the Crestones are some of the few I haven't done, I'm just curious. What makes the Needle better than the peak for a lot of members?

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I think it's probably a combo of the shorter distance from the S. Colony Lakes TH, as well as the fun, sustained class 3 scrambling. Basically like being on a big, slanted rock climbing wall with easy holds. Crestone Peak's red gully is visually appealing climbing up and down, but it's more of a class 2 hike, with bits of class 1 and class 3 interspersed. People probably don't enjoy going up over Broken Hand Pass twice for the Peak, whereas they only have to ascend it once for the Needle from SCL.

Crestone Peak was my first solo class 3 14er, and I was on the summit during a break moment when it wasn't socked in (unlike the previous day on the Needle), so it holds a special place in my heart. I do really love the climbing on the Needle though.

P.S. I find it interesting that if you take the favorites of 58 finishers only, the top three favorites are reversed - Capitol, then Needle, then Longs.
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VeraUndertow
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by VeraUndertow »

Scott P wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:31 pm Interestingly, Crestone Needle is the #2 choice for the favorite 14er of members, but Crestone Peak isn't even on the Top 10 list.

Since the Crestones are some of the few I haven't done, I'm just curious. What makes the Needle better than the peak for a lot of members?

Screenshot_20210913-142728_Chrome.jpg
Needle is a lot more fun/challenging route (especially east gully direct) with super solid holds on most of it compared to the red gully on Crestone Peak
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by yaktoleft13 »

Scott P wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:31 pm Interestingly, Crestone Needle is the #2 choice for the favorite 14er of members, but Crestone Peak isn't even on the Top 10 list.

Since the Crestones are some of the few I haven't done, I'm just curious. What makes the Needle better than the peak for a lot of members?

Screenshot_20210913-142728_Chrome.jpg
The peak to me felt like boring, uninspiring class 2 slabs for the entirety of the red gully until the last 100 feet to the summit. I felt like you had to work to find any meaningful scrambling in it. The needle, on the other hand, was fun scrambling all the way, especially in the east gully the whole way.

Plus, if you approach from SCL, there's that 700 loss/regain to access the Peak
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by randalmartin »

Longs Peak. There is no other peak in Colorado with as much majesty. The first view when you hit treeline and see the Diamond face is just awesome. They way I did it, Loft up and Keyhole down gives you a full day of unrepeated terrain and a 360 trip around the mountain.
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by randalmartin »

Scott P wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 2:31 pm Since the Crestones are some of the few I haven't done, I'm just curious. What makes the Needle better than the peak for a lot of members?
I think the route finding on Crestone Needle makes it more interesting. Crestone Peak is just one long gully with a short finish at the top and so for me wasn't the most interesting climb.
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by BillMiddlebrook »

The Crestones are my favorite. Yes, over Longs Peak. I know that seems like blasphemy to the Longs lovers but to me there’s something more special in the Crestones. Maybe it’s the lack of hoards or maybe it’s the views. Maybe it’s the ruggedness with surrounding peaks. To me, it’s all at the top.

I will take the Crestones all day long.
"When I go out, I become more alive. I just love skiing. The gravitational pull. When you ski steep terrain... you can almost get a feeling of flying." -Doug Coombs
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by bdloftin77 »

BillMiddlebrook wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 3:05 pm The Crestones are my favorite. Yes, over Longs Peak. I know that seems like blasphemy to the Longs lovers but to me there’s something more special in the Crestones. Maybe it’s the lack of hoards or maybe it’s the views. Maybe it’s the ruggedness with surrounding peaks. To me, it’s all at the top.

I will take the Crestones all day long.
Is there a reason why you like Crestone Peak more than Crestone Needle? Or is your favorite on your peak list just referring to both as a whole?
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12ersRule
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by 12ersRule »

BillMiddlebrook wrote: Mon Sep 13, 2021 3:05 pm I will take the Crestones all day long.
I agree, as stated a page or so back!

BTW, did you see that Primus is doing all of 'A Farewell to Kings' on this tour? They're in Denver on Oct 21 and Oct 22.
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Re: Favorite 14er?!?

Post by SchralpTheGnar »

Snowmass for skiing, Longs for climbing and Yale for hiking, although I haven’t hiked too many, maybe only a dozen or so
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