Diversity in Travel
Early Denver Memories
So fun fact about me: I moved from Iowa City, Iowa (Go Hawks!) to Denver, Colorado in late 2009. At that time, Denver was considered to be a “small big city” and as such, had not yet begun to fully receive the massive number of new arrivals that would eventually grace its doors. The nice thing about arriving in Denver “early” – for me at least- was that it allowed me to experience a litany of Colorado activities before they became watered down.
A perfect example of this was the Wednesday night bike crawl, commonly known as the “Denver Cruisers.” A weekly event that over time would eventually grow to encompass several THOUSAND people, the Denver Cruisers saw crowds of bike riders ride together through the downtown area, to the point that major streets were effectively closed down for upwards of 20 minutes. Each individual ride would have a theme, such as pirates, techno or wild west, and would see riders dress up themselves – and their bikes, of course – accordingly. It was an absolute riot, in the absolute best way – and making it even better? At the end of each ride, there would literally be an entire “mini-carnival,” complete with rides, vendors…and, of course, lots of and LOTS of pot (at the time, marijuana had just become recently legalized in Colorado).
Unfortunately, “Denver Cruisers” became too large, and resulted in one too many stranded motorists, waiting for the ocean of bicycles to allow them passage. Certain people complained, and the city eventually made the organizers of the event break it up into several individual locations, each with its own dedicated ending points, which is how it exists today. It’s still fun, don’t get me wrong – but it’s just not like it used to be.
Another good example of my experiencing Colorado “pure” was being able to hike into Conundrum Hot Springs without a permit. While a beautiful hike, human nature – sadly – couldn’t help but take what was beautiful and “ugly it up”: required-permits, the hike itself would often be PACKED with people, and oftentimes, the campsites along the 8-mile hike would be completely full, leading to overcrowding, littering, and even some folks making their own campsites…complete with their own designated bathroom spots many of which, I’m sad to say, they failed to dig a hole for – so gross. If ever you had any doubts, WE are the problem. Eventually, the hike was restricted to a permit, which has helped to clean up the experience of the trail. So yeah – definitely an interesting thing to experience pre-regulations and rules…but in this case, the extra red tape definitely helped to enhance and conserve the purity of the experience.
Of course, this all brings me to what I consider, in some ways, to be my ultimate first major pure Colorado experience: climbing my first 14er. For those who may not know, a 14er is a mountain peak that exceeds 14,000 feet in height (fun fact: in total, there are 53 in the state of Colorado and 96 in the United States).
A little backstory: at the time I hiked my first 14er, I was actually with a girlfriend who happened to be MUCH more outdoorsy than I – so much so, that she suggested we get up at 3:00 a.m. (Yes – A.M.) to drive to Greys and Torreys Peak, a duo 14er located about 90 minutes outside of Denver and due West directly up I70. “Sure, why not,” I thought – after all, if it was a choice between saying “no” and getting more sleep – and subsequently being thrown the curb for a more “Denver” man – or putting a couple of feet in front of the “other” guy, then why the heck not – bring it on. It was my time to shine.
We ended up hiking both peaks that day, and all told, had a great time – other than the last hundred-ish steps or so from the top which required quite a bit of stopping, the hike itself wasn’t overly difficult, and truthfully, I found myself feeling pretty good about the whole “14er” thing – this wasn’t so hard! Oh, how naïve I was.
Over the remainder of that summer, various friends would invite me to hike other 14ers with them, and I was able to cross a handful more off the list. It wasn’t until a good friend of mine, Danny, and I headed on a road trip down to the southwest part of the state to tackle Mount Sneffels (selected purely on the strength of its name, BTW – seriously, it’s so much fun to say. Sneffels. Try it. See, you’re saying it. The power of the written word) that I began to see just how tough a 14er really could be…but also, in its own punishing way, just how much freaking FUN, too.
Unfortunately, the view was mediocre at best, due to the clouds and weather – but even despite that and the aforementioned difficulties, I knew that I was 100% hooked. The experience of being connected with nature, the physical workout, the feeling of doing something that only a handful of individuals had done that day on the planet…all of it combined together into this sensation that was just spectacular. I was all in.
Over the next 10 years, I would slowly pick away at the remainder of the 14ers in Colorado. I started with the local “easier” hikes, then slowly sprinkled in a few Class 3’s (read: difficult) every once in a while. Truthfully, there were more than a few times during the process where I felt like I wouldn’t get them all, either due to time or just the sheer difficulty of the climbs – they can be quite technical. Thankfully, however, like most things in life, once you do something enough times, it inevitably gets easier, and I found the experiencing of hiking the 14ers to be no different. Before long, I was crossing them off the list; it wasn’t until the pandemic, however, with nothing else to do, that I truly went into overdrive, working hard to whittle the list down. Ultimately, I was able to hike 15 that summer.
It was in 2021 that I FINALLY was able to complete the list, concluding my hike of Colorado’s 14ers with the four peaks of North Eolus, Eolus, Sunlight and Windom, all located in the Chicago Basin. One thing I highly recommend: taking the train out of Durango to Silverton – it’s called the Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge, and it is literally straight out of a history book, complete with a train conductor, ticket agent who stamps your ticket and even open-air cabins that faces outward. Keep in mind: it’s probably the most fun on a sunny day. Also kind of cool: the train slows down halfway between stations for riders to jump off and hike up the valley to the Chicago Basin. This requires a special ticket, which must be purchased for the return trip for the day that you are hiking back. All in all, it’s a pretty amazing journey, and one that’s well worth a day or two to experience. Other assorted musings:
- In my opinion, the hardest peak by far was Maroon Bells. Blind hand holds several feet ABOVE your head, exposed cliff sides, and little to no route markers, all add up to an INCREDIBLY challenging hike, one that lead me several things to think out loud, “What the hell are you doing, Davis?” Seriously – it’s that intense. Having the All Trails app definitely helped to make the hike easier, as did the weather, which – thankfully – was beautiful that day (seriously – I could not imagine doing that climb with even the mildest of weather). Sadly, many people die while hiking Maroon Bells every year, simply because they get either in over their heads, or they are unlucky. Fortunately, that wasn’t the case for me that day “What do we say to the god of death? Not today.” Definitely not for novices.
- Easily the lamest mountain I hiked was Calubre. First off: it’s on private land, meaning that to hike it, you have to first pay $150 – yes, $150. Thanks Obama (or Trump. Or whatever jerk you don’t believe in). At the trailhead are a series of VERY detailed instructions, letting you know precisely how to park outside the fence the night before (yes – you alsohave to park there the night before). The next morning, an employee walks down to get the line of cars at 8 a.m., at which point you are required to pay, then sign a waiver…all before you can START hiking. The whole thing is just ridiculous and over-complicated, and – to make matters even worse – the hike up Calubre is incredibly short. Even more annoying: on the way up are a variety of signs, begging hikers to not follow in each other’s footsteps, all to keep and preserve the “naturalness” of the experience – give me a break. The whole thing feels just WAY too controlled, and honestly, I thought about kicking a few feet of rock off at the top, just to mix things up and save the masses from having to put up with the ordeal. Still though – at the end of the day, a.) you’re in nature, b.) you’re alive and c.) you’re only $150 poorer. So I guess it could be worse.
All in all, each one of my 14er experiences hold great memories for me; on top of that, I also learned more than a few “do’s” and “don’ts” while hiking each one. I’ve compiled the list below – consider these your step-by-step guide for staying alive and ensuring an easier hiking experience:
DO: Dress in layers, and don’t hesitate to add or remove items as often as needed
DO: Check mountain-forecast.com often – the weather on the peaks can change fast, so be sure you hike out as prepared as possible.
DO: Check 14ers.com for routes and trip reports.
If there are streams: DO use a filter to refill your water. If there are not streams, be sure to take 2 water packs/bottles and drop off half before you start to ascend. This will save weight up and down.
DO: Find the shoes that work best for you (rubber toe shoes are particularly helpful).
DO: Know your pace. Stop as often as you need – there’s no rush, and you don’t want to burn out by going too fast, too early (or worse – get altitude sickness).
DO: Start early. Afternoon lighting is no joke. Typically started around 4-6 am, depending on length of hike.
DO: Have a pair of clothes to change into after the hike (i.e. sandals shorts, etc.)
DO: Bring 2-3 energy bars or snacks – you’ll definitely get hungry while hiking.
DO: Have fun and, but don’t be afraid to turn around if necessary – it’s not worth it. Remember: live to hike another day.
DON’T: Be an asshole, particularly when it comes to your trash. Pick up your garbage and the garbage of others – it takes zero effort and helps preserve the beauty of the trail.
