Entries about colorado

Mt Evans 2018 - Colorado, USA

14er hike on 2018-07-08

08/07/2018 - 08/07/2018 50 °F
View 14ers 2017+ on MurkTravels's travel map.

Mt Evans overview

I completed the Mt Evans via Mt Spalding loop hike on July 8th, 2018. It was the 6th 14,000+ foot elevation peak I've done since moving to Colorado. This excursion took me about 2 hours for the 5 mile round trip out and back hike that has about 2,000 feet of elevation gain.

The hike started around 5 am, which was in the dark for about 30 minutes. Most of the hike is along a ridge to Mt Spalding, and then just below the ridge that runs to Mt Evans. There is a road that most people take, where you can drive within 100 feet of the top. So a few people were at the top ahead of me. I finished around 7 am.
This is a popular 14er, but most people drive and don't take the hike, which is a shame because of the extra views you get ... and the potential to cross paths with some mountain goats. The trail however is not very well marked on the backside of Mt Evans. You generally scramble over some rocks and make your own path and watch for cairns (rock piles) that generally show you the direction you should be heading. The entire trail loop is above treeline, so it's pretty much rock and small plants. On the way down it's mostly small loose rock to complete a loop, or you can backtrack the long way via Mt Spalding again. The parking lot was packed when I returned.

Recommend:

Start early to get a spot in the lot and avoid the crowds
Make sure to have a local map or study the trail ahead of time
As always, bring water and snacks with you
Between Spalding and Evans you can get a great view of the Mt Bierstadt 14er peak

Relive video of the hike

link: watch a video and map tour of my hike

Trip Map

Pictures

See this and all the 14er hike pictures on the Facebook Murk Travels photos page - 14ers album.

Summit Lake at sunrise

Mt Evans peak from the trail

Looking toward Mt Bierstadt

Mountain Goats

Panoramic from Mt Spalding

Elevation shot at the peak, looking towards the parking lot where people can take the easy way up and drive

Previous 14er hikes:

Links

MurkTravels Vimeo - videos of my trips
MurkTravels Facebook page - pictures, posts, and regular updates
MurkTravels Facebook photo albums
MurkTravels Instagram - my attempted at artistic travel images
MurkTravels Travel Map - all the places that I've been and the things that I've seen

Posted by MurkTravels 13:25 Archived in USA Tagged nature hiking colorado mountain sunrise usa hike 14er 2018 Comments (0)

Quandary Peak 2018 - Colorado, USA

14er hike on 2018-07-07

07/07/2018 - 07/07/2018 50 °F
View 14ers 2017+ on MurkTravels's travel map.

Quandary Peak overview

I completed the Quandary Peak hike on July 7th, 2018. It was the 5th 14,000+ foot elevation peak I've done since moving to Colorado. This excursion took me about 3 hours for the 7 mile round trip out and back hike that has about 3,500 feet of elevation gain.

The hike started around 5 am, which was in the dark for about 30 minutes. But it was worth it since I got to the peak and was the only one up there (after passing about 20 people on the way up). I finished around 8 am, and on the way done there was hundreds of people and the parking lots were extremely overflowing with parking along the surrounding roads. This is one of the most popular 14er climbs. The trail is well marked and besides the switchbacks, is generally straight up the ridge of the mountain to the peak. The trail had a mix of some forest, some open flat area, and ended with a rock pile climb, but with a pretty clear path. The views were fantastic up at the top.

Recommend:

Start early to get a spot in the lot and avoid the crowds
Can complete it with minimal planning since the trail is well marked
As always, bring water and snacks with you
At the peak, look south and see if you can recognize the Bross, Cameron, Lincoln, and Democrat 14er peaks