I have a business trip to Denver next week, so I find myself with the opportunity to do some CO peaks over the next two weekends.

I was leaning originally towards doing some of the easier 14ers (cliche, I know, but indulge me), e.g. some of the ones that later in the summer might not be interesting enough to really motivate a trip out your way from CA. Of interest for the four days were the following:

- Grays/Torreys (by Kelso Ridge)
- Evans/Bierstadt (East Ridge/The Sawtooth traverse on Bierstadt, tagging Mt. Spalding too)
- Democrat (via North Ridge)/Cameron/Lincoln/Bross
- Quandary (preferably the Inwood Arete if I could find a partner and it's climbable without significant trouble at this time of year, the West Ridge otherwise)

Looks like the weather is not going to be that great this weekend, so I may end up bailing on some of those plans in favour of desert peaks down in New Mexico, but I haven't decided yet.

My questions are mostly whether this agends spread over two weekends and in particular via these routes is reasonably practical in early May, whether I'd be using snowshoes, axe/crampons, or both (as I'm assuming), etc. If anyone has alternative suggestions for worthwhile peaks around this time of year, I'd be all ears too.

Thanks.

Matthew Holliman wrote:Looks like the weather is not going to be that great this weekend, so I may end up bailing on some of those plans in favour of desert peaks down in New Mexico, but I haven't decided yet.

Yes, the weather blows (50 MPH) this weekend. Let me know if you make it down to NM (Organs?) or do Evans/Bierstadt, since I'm currently in central NM. For anything north of Santa Fe, you may want snowshoes.

Getting way off-topic from my original post, but I'm starting to find myself pretty intrigued by some of the peaks down around Albuquerque -- Cabezon Peak, Cerro de Guadalupe, and Cerro Pedernal in particular.

On that subject, could I interest you in Sandia Peak (specifically, Knife Edge of the Shield), The Thumb, etc.?

Matthew Holliman wrote:Getting way off-topic from my original post, but I'm starting to find myself pretty intrigued by some of the peaks down around Albuquerque -- Cabezon Peak, Cerro de Guadalupe, and Cerro Pedernal in particular.

I haven't done Pedernal, but I know it's a cool "peak." Not sure about the others.

On that subject, could I interest you in Sandia Peak (specifically, Knife Edge of the Shield), The Thumb, etc.?

Sure. The scramble portion of the Shield is short, but fun, and you can make a loop out of it and the Thumb.

I did Greys/Torry via Kelso with some snow in Sept 2008 and thought it was fun. I think it was 5 or 6 hours round trip. And I’m planning to do Brierstadt/Evans via Sawtooth on the 22nd. I could use a partner, will you still be around?