SummitPost.org

Hi folks,

I will be traveling to Denver in August and will have 3-4 days for climbing. Looking for some good Class II-IV 14ers for solo. Thinking about these peaks next to Denver/Colorado Springs:

Front - Grays & Torreys, Evans (Class II)
Front - Longs Peak (Class III)
Sawatch - Harvard, Yale, Columbia (Class II)

Would appreciate your thoughts on other interesting peaks in the Front Range/Sawatch.

Also, what's the ultimate guidebook for Colorado Fourteeners - I am not sure which one to buy and want to save the trees:

Colorado 14ers: The Colorado Mountain Club Pack Guide by Colorado Mountain Club, 2010
Colorado's Fourteeners: From Hikes to Climbs by Gerry Roach, 2011
Colorado Scrambles by Mountaineers Books, 2005
Best Summit Hikes in Colorado: An Opinionated Guide to 50+ Ascents of Classic and Little-Known Peaks by James Dziezynski, 2012

Thanks
Nick

Colorado's Fourteeners: From Hikes to Climbs by Gerry Roach, 2011

This one is best.

I second Scott's suggestion.

If you do Grays and Torreys, consider climbing up Torreys via Kelso Ridge (Class 3) and then traversing to Grays and finally taking the trail down. Otherwise it's going to be a pretty boring and likely very crowded outing the entire way.

Keep in mind that this time of year means thunderstorms almost every day in those mountains. Longs is 16 miles RT via the Keyhole, and many day hikers start as early as 2 A.M. to be done well ahead of the storms.

Longs is 16 miles RT via the Keyhole, and many day hikers start as early as 2 A.M. to be done well ahead of the storms.

By 2 AM, the parking lot is completely full and even the sides of the road are packed for a mile below the trailhead, at least on a summer weekend.

Scott wrote:

Longs is 16 miles RT via the Keyhole, and many day hikers start as early as 2 A.M. to be done well ahead of the storms.

By 2 AM, the parking lot is completely full and even the sides of the road are packed for a mile below the trailhead, at least on a summer weekend.

Yikes. When I did that route, I got a permit to camp at the Boulder Field. That allowed a midday start, and I actually found a parking spot along the road. I summitted late in the day and had the whole mountain to myself from the Keyhole, to the summit, and back. I hiked out early the next day and remember seeing the armies of headlamps approaching. There were nearly 300 people heading up that day. It was crazy, and I was glad I did it the way I did.

Thanks for your input. Torreys (via Kelso Ridge)/Longs (via Keyhole) look good to me. I plan to spend there 3 days.

What other fun climbing spots would you suggest for the remaining 4 days - should I go to Sawatch for Harvard, Yale, Columbia (Class II) or Mosquito for Democrat, Cameron, Lincoln, Bross (Class I-II)? I prefer alpine to desert landscape with Class II-III terrain

Hi folks, last time I ended up climbing Grays/Torreys, Longs, Maroon Bells, Capitol and Sneffels. Thank you for your advice.
I have another trip to Colorado in a week and thinking about Harvard/Columbia/Yale, Crestone and Little Bear.
I am debating whether snow conditions would be moderate and I just need Yaktrax or whether heavy duty climbing boots with crampons would be required. According to http://14ers.com/php14ers/peakstatus_main.php, those peaks are still dry and have little-to-no snow late September. Any thoughts?