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Greetings! My name is Paul, and I'm a teacher from Colorado. Growing up in this incredible state, I did plenty of hiking as a kid, but didn't summit my first 14er until October of 2011, one year after I graduated college. Climbing the 14ers has been a huge part of my identity as an adult. Having finished the 14ers last month with the Mount of the Holy Cross, I've spent some time over the past few weeks reflecting on the whole experience. I certainly haven't set any records in my 14ers quest, but it's been interesting to reflect back on where I started and how I've evolved and grown over the past 13 years. Some of my friends have asked me if I'd share what the journey has been like, and I feel like the best way to do that is through pictures and a thought or two for each peak. Read on if you're interested in hearing more!
#1, Mt. Elbert, 10/2/11, with Emily H & Danielle G. The one that started it all. While I may not have had the most appropriate gear for this hike (i.e. a cotton t-shirt and Bass leather work boots), I was excited to be hiking this peak the whole way up, false summits and all. Click Here to read my Trip Report from Elbert; kind of funny for me to look back on now. I will always remain so grateful to Emily and Danielle for inviting me to join them; it's thanks to them that I started out on this quest to begin with.
#2, Pikes Peak, 12/1/12,solo mission. Busy with grad school in the summer of 2012, I wasn't able to summit a peak. I closely monitored conditions throughout the fall on 14ers.com and saw that Pikes was still clear at the end of November. It was a cold but straightforward ascent via the Crags, and the shocked expressions from people driving on the Pikes Peak Highway ("Do you need a ride?") and in the summit house were unforgettable. As I enjoyed a summit donut, a friendly couple recommended Roach's 14ers guide, which I ordered as soon as I got home.
#3, Quandary Peak, 5/26/13, solo mission. Lots of firsts on this one: my first snowy hike, my first time using microspikes (now one of my favorite pieces of gear), and my first time learning what "postholing" was on the descent.
#4 & #5, Grays and Torreys Peaks, 6/14/13,solo mission. My first rough road to the trailhead. About a mile into the hike, I met a friendly older woman who was visiting her daughter's family in Denver and wanted to summit these peaks. I spent most of the day chatting and hiking with her.
#6, Mt. Bierstadt, 8/6/13, with Drew M. Drew’s first 14er! A redemption hike after turning back just shy of the summit in June with Colin & Lauren K due to an incoming storm. This time, the great conditions made for a fun, quick hike.
#7, Mt. Massive, 8/25/13, with Colin K & Mia. A peak that lives up to its name; the southwest slopes were relentless with vertical gain.
#8 & #9, Castle & Conundrum Peaks, 9/1/13, solo mission. The only Elk Range 14ers I tackled in the 2 years I lived in the Aspen Valley. The descent from the saddle was loose and sketchy; can't recommend reascending Castle enough.
#10, La Plata Peak, 9/2/13, solo mission. I wanted to take advantage of having Labor Day off by getting up another peak. My legs were very sore after the back-to-back days, but I was feeling really happy. I had the summit to myself this day; admittedly, this picture was taken after 7 or 8 botched attempts with my camera's timer.
#11, Mt. Yale, 10/27/13, solo mission. Wanted to get up one more peak in the Sawatch Range before Independence Pass was closed for the winter. Learned some lessons in cold weather hiking: my camera battery died almost instantly due to the cold on the summit and my water bottles started to freeze up at the top.
#12, Mt. Sherman, 12/1/13, with Reid M & Rachael J. Reid's first 14er! Sherman is one of the easiest peaks out there, but at this time of year with the snow and the wind gusts above 50 mph, I still maintain it's one of my most challenging summits.
#13, Mt. Belford, 7/21/14, with James G. James's first 14er! I learned on this peak that I do not like 5 Hour Energy shots. El Señor Marmota gave us lots of laughs on the way down.
#14, #15, #16, & #17, Mounts Democrat, Cameron, Lincoln, & Bross, 8/4/14, solo mission. I remember thinking at the time what a big deal it was to do four 14ers in one day... ha! I also remember believing that the descent from Bross was really challenging... it's all about experiences & perspective.
#18, Huron Peak, 8/6/14, with my brother Matthew R. This was my brother's third 14er after I had taken him up Bierstadt the year before and he climbed Quandary with Scouts. We had a great time on this mountain.
#19 & #20, Mt. Shavano & Tabeguache Peak, 8/9/14, with Drew M. We made great time on the two peaks, but on the drive out I learned the hard way what wheel chocks are and why they're important when changing a tire on a dirt road.
#21, Missouri Mountain, 9/6/14, with Danielle G. My favorite of the 3 peaks in the Missouri Gulch area. Tried to get a second peak this day by heading up Elkhead Pass to go over to Oxford, but clouds and graupel moved in.
#22, Mt. Blue Sky (fka Mt. Evans),9/27/14, solo mission. What started off as a repeat hike of Bierstadt ended up becoming a journey across the Sawtooth. A couple of guys asked if I wanted to join them and it wound up being a fun Class 3 adventure.
#23, Mt. Antero, 10/18/14, with Danielle G. The forecast this day called for sunny skies in the morning with a chance of rain, snow, thunder, and lightning after noon. We experienced it all on the hike down!
#24, Mt. Princeton, 12/13/14, with Danielle G. A very windy December day made for a challenging ascent for me, but we were rewarded with some beautiful views of the Sawatch before a storm rolled in the next day.
Extra Credit: Mt. Kilimanjaro,6/30/15, with Sarah G, Bo F, & Meg S. An amazing couple of weeks in Tanzania. The Machame route was a blast.
#25, Mt. Harvard, 7/28/15, solo mission. One of my favorite peaks in the Sawatch range on a perfect weather day.
#26, Mt. Oxford, 7/29/15, solo mission. Third time was the charm to make the summit of this peak!
#27, Mt. Columbia, 8/6/15, solo mission. Another peak that I had tried hiking with my sister the prior month, but we got turned around due to an incoming storm. My graduation from the Collegiate Peaks. At the time, this was one of my least favorite descents. I look forward to going back someday to try out the new trail CFI has constructed.
#28, Longs Peak, 8/29/15, with Matt C. Matt's first 14er! This is still one of my favorite peaks. Having seen it while growing up on the front range each day, it was great to be up there.
#29 & #30, Redcloud and Sunshine Peaks, 8/16/15, with Ryan Y & BJ L. My first venture into the San Juans, my now favorite range in Colorado. Redcloud lived up to its name with the striking color of the dirt.
#31, Humboldt Peak, 2/20/16, with Will D. After turning around just above treeline with Nic C the month before, I felt I had unfinished business on this peak. Posted a thread on 14ers.com to see if anyone wanted to join and Will responded. Was a long day on the east ridge with snowshoes through the forest & the winds up high but an epic one nonetheless.
#32, San Luis Peak, 8/20/16, solo mission. I met Katy B, an alumnus of the same high school as me, on the summit and we descended together. REMOTE is a great word to describe this peak. I'll never forget car camping at the trailhead, and waking up in the middle of the night to the sound of a porcupine chewing on the underside of my car. Fortunately I was able to make the 26 mile drive out on a dirt road after my hike with no problems!
#33, Mt. Lindsey, 10/1/16, with Danielle G. Beautiful views of Blanca with clouds rolling across the peak made for a scenic approach all morning. We had an exciting experience in the gully with Chase (Danielle's dog); this was I think right before the route difficulty was upgraded from a Class 2+ to an Easy Class 3, but we all made it to the summit and back safely.
#34 & #35, Wetterhorn & Uncompahgre Peaks, 9/3/17, with Matt G. With great scrambling on Wetterhorn and perfect weather for the Tundrathon, this is easily one of my favorite days on any of the 14ers. I'd love to repeat this combo someday!
#36, Culebra Peak, 6/9/18, solo mission. Met Luke A on this hike. I know some climbers aren't fans of having to pay to access this peak on private property, but if nothing else, it was nice to have a quiet 14er experience.
#37, Blanca Peak, 6/26/18, solo mission. Started at the bottom of the Lake Como Road under the moonlight. An iconic view of Little Bear from the summit.
#38, Mt. Sneffels, 7/18/18, solo mission. Some of my favorite views off of any 14er, and Ouray was a cool mountain town to visit and spend some time in.
#39, Handies Peak, 7/19/18, solo mission. One of the easiest hikes up any 14er. I'll always remember coming across a family of ptarmigan who blended in so well with the rocks by the lake down below.
#40 & #41, Challenger Point & Kit Carson Peak, 8/4/18, solo mission. One of my favorite approaches to any of the 14ers; a highway of a trail up to Willow Lake.
Extra Credit: Mt. Whitney in California, 8/3/21, with Matt G. A quick trip with flawless weather and great views. At first glance Whitney may seem intimidating due to the mileage of the route, but the trail is so well constructed that you can move up it easily and quickly. The burger at the Whitney Portal was among my favorite post-hike meals.
#42, Ellingwood Point, 8/28/21, solo mission. Not one of my favorite peaks, but this particular summit meant a lot, as it was my first new Colorado 14er since my knee surgery back in December 2018.
#43, Crestone Needle, 9/11/21, with Andrew & Cassie S. A beautiful sunrise at the base of the peak, followed by some fun scrambling on solid rock. We crossed the dihedral not realizing at the time that the boulder had washed out, making the crossover move trickier than it would've been otherwise.
#44, Crestone Peak, 7/9/22, with Will D. Easily my hardest day on any 14er. Tweaked my knee just below the summit which resulted in the slowest descent I've ever undertaken via Cottonwood Creek. Grateful for the weather we had this day; I've never felt so relieved to reach the car.
#45 & #46, Windom & Sunlight Peaks, 9/9/22, with Matt G. Great times for a first Chicago Basin trip; was fun to scramble up to the top of the Sunlight summit block. We were rained off of the Eoluses on a couple of attempts, but not a bad reason to have an excuse to go back there.
#47, WIlson Peak, 7/22/23, with Andrew & Cassie S. Some snowfields down lower made for a more interesting ascent, but had softened up later in the day. Had to celebrate this summit with Coors Light back at the car!
#48, Capitol Peak, 7/28/23, with Matt G. I had what was probably my worst night of sleep before attempting any 14er, as I kept waking up hearing rocks tumble down from the mountain. Many times when I've climbed peaks over the past decade, the route description photos always look scarier than they are in real life. When I summited K2, my breath was taken away. The route ahead did look just as intimidating as it did in the pictures, and when Matt asked me how I was feeling, I said, "I don't know if I can do this." He suggested to just take it one segment at a time, and once we were moving, I was focused on each task at hand as it came up. The ridge line, including the knife edge, was a great time on solid rock, and we took care to navigate the loose rocks on the east face. Definitely am proud to have summited this peak.
#49, Maroon Peak, 8/20/23, with Sarah G. Sarah and I had tried to climb Maroon back in 2016 but got turned around on the ridge line with the winds. This time, an epic day was had thanks to an unexpected individual joining our group, resulting in it being one of my most memorable experiences on any peak! "I can hear the creek!"
#50, Pyramid Peak, 9/9/23, with Jackie O, Alex, & Mike H. Met Jackie through a Facebook group and had a great adventure up high. The "Leap of Faith" wasn't really a big deal, and it was fun scrambling up the Green Wall. The Diving Board is an incredible feature; hard to beat the views up there.
#51, North Maroon Peak, 7/6/24, with Danielle G & Greg B. Danielle and I had attempted this peak the previous September, but got turned around because of the chimney being iced over. Felt good to get back here and reach the summit to kick the season off.
#52, Little Bear Peak, 7/9/24, with Jackie O. In the day or two leading up to this climb I was definitely psyching myself out of doing this peak, but my climbing partner Jackie was nothing but encouraging, so on the afternoon of the 8th, I found myself driving down to the Blanca group again. We got an early start on the 9th from the bottom of the Lake Como Road. I don't think I've ever felt so apprehensive doing a peak before; the Hourglass is no joke, and the rocks getting funneled into it can make a good day a bad one fast. I felt grateful and relieved to reach Lake Como safely.
#53, El Diente Peak, 7/25/24, with Danielle G. THE TOOTH! This will always be one for the record books. We left the Denver area on a Sunday morning, climbed and drove home on Monday, and Danielle still made it to work on time on Tuesday morning. Grateful to her for committing to such a quick turnaround and making the climb work with her schedule.
#54 & #55, Mt. Eolus and North Eolus, 8/2/24, with Matt & Allison G. Loved going back to the Chicago Basin, and I can say that Mt. Eolus is now one of my favorite peaks. Fun scrambling on the ledges up high, amazing views in every direction, and it was a fun bonus taking the train out to Silverton on our way out of the basin.
#56, Snowmass Mountain, 9/2/24, solo mission. Originally I was going to climb this peak the day before, but when I got in my car in Basalt at 2 am, one tire had noticeably lower pressure than the other 3. The only tire center I could find open on a Sunday was at the Costco in Gypsum. After getting the tire checked out and some encouragement from friends, I went back and did the climb the next day. It didn't disappoint; the view from the lake at sunrise is one of my favorites I've seen on any 14er. My main nemeses of the climb were the slippery willows around Snowmass Lake down below.
#57, Mt. Wilson, 10/5/24, with Andrew & Cassie S. Another quick turnaround to get down to Telluride and back but we got it done. The boulder hopping was a bit tedious but otherwise it was a beautiful day in the San Juans. Upon reaching the car, the realization that I could finish these really sank in.
#58, Mount of the Holy Cross, 10/27/24, with Sarah G & Will D. And then there was one. Originally I had considered waiting to do this last hike until next summer, but after some thought, I realized that you never know what the future may bring, and that I wanted to finish while I'm in a position to do so. It was surreal and emotional once we had reached the top of Half Moon Pass, rounded the corner, and saw the peak itself. That was the moment that it sank in that I was going to make it. The weather was perfect for late October, and I believe that I left one of the most scenic peaks til last. It was an awesome day to share with two great friends on the mountain, and it was humbling knowing that there were many more friends following my Garmin track and cheering me on from home.
A question that I've gotten a number of times now that I've finished is "What's next?!" Truth be told, I don't know! I will still continue hiking, but I'm not necessarily going after any particular list at this point. I look forward to repeating my favorite 14ers, and exploring some new 13ers, but I think it will be refreshing to not feel like I have to be pursuing a specific list. One thing that I've always appreciated about this hobby is that it's inspired me to hike and climb in different parts of the world, including Tanzania, the French & Italian Alps, Peru, and Mexico, and hopefully in the future I'll be able to complete many hikes in places I haven't visited before. Hiking is a great reason to just enjoy the outdoors no matter where you are, and it's something I'm going to continue love doing for hopefully many years to come! Pursuing the 14ers has given me a great excuse to explore different corners of the state that I may not have gotten to otherwise. There's no shortage of outdoor adventures to be had in Colorado, and I definitely feel lucky to live here.
On a personal level, it's been interesting to reflect on how I've grown as a climber and a person over the past 13 years. As a kid, whenever I'd do a 'high ropes course,' I'd make it up the first tree to the platform and the cable to traverse across and immediately freeze up. Three times doing those courses I had to come back down the way I came up. When I first did Elbert, I didn't think I would ever do them all. Having read trip reports on some of the harder peaks like Capitol or Little Bear were enough to scare me away, especially at the start of the journey. As time progressed and I got to the halfway mark, I started to think that maybe I would try to go for them all, with a healthy reverence and fear looking towards the harder peaks. One thing that surprised me as I went along is that the exposure didn't bother me as much as I thought it would, given how I would react to heights when I was a kid. I think starting off with the easier peaks and working my way up to the harder ones helped me develop a thicker skin to the point where, while I certainly didn't want to fall, the exposure was simply a part of the adventure. Having said that, the tragedies that have struck the 14ers community over the years since I started climbing them have never been lost on me. As I navigated Capitol for example, I couldn't help but think of the people that had lost their lives on that mountain. Even heading down to the Wilson group this summer, knowing that someone had fallen from the traverse days prior, gave me pause, as I couldn't stop thinking about what had happened. I am very grateful and humbled to have made it up and down all of these peaks safely, knowing that plenty of people who were experienced and well-prepared faced the worst of the unpredictability of these mountains.
Climbing these peaks requires a good level of fitness, one that I battled to get back after my LCL reconstruction. I did a repeat of Mt. Yale with Luke A the summer after my surgery, in which I was still wearing a brace and had a remarkably slow descent. If nothing else though, doing that particular repeat gave the confidence that I would be able to get back out on these peaks to finish the list, which felt great. And while physicality is important, I would make the argument that a strong mentality is even more essential. It definitely is a mental game, whether you're pushing yourself to a new physical limit, or you're trying to steel your nerves to do something that feels out of your comfort zone. I think you grow as a person with every new challenge that you take on in life, and that was my experience with many of these peaks. Developing traits like mental fortitude, self-sufficiency, resiliency, problem solving, teamwork skills, patience, and humility is something that comes naturally with attempting these peaks.
As I wrap up this Trip Report during Thanksgiving week, I can't help but reflect on the most important factor in completing this journey: the incredible people who have surrounded and supported me along the way. Clarence's quote from It's a Wonderful Life sums up how I feel well: "Remember no man is a failure who has friends." The support and encouragement that I've received from my friends and family over the years have been overwhelmingly powerful.
I think my parents deserve all the credit for fostering a love of the outdoors in both myself and my siblings from a young age. I'm endlessly thankful for every single friend that has joined me on hikes, whether tackling a 14er or simply enjoying the trails elsewhere. Your time, energy, and company have fueled my passion for exploring this beautiful state. Thank you for sharing in the memories, the laughter, and the challenges that every hike brings. To those who cheered me on from afar - tracking my progress, texting me weather updates, or chatting with me about the hikes and climbs afterward - your support has meant a lot. And to the 14er community, thank you for sharing all of your beta, insight, and perspectives through Trip and Conditions Reports and forum posts for me to learn from. A special thanks to Bill Middlebrook for creating such an awesome website and app to prepare for every climb.
If you made it all the way to the end, thanks for taking the time to read this! Climb on!
Paul
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