08/10/17 - Day 129 - Denver, CO - Mt. Evans
Mt Evens is a nearby fourteener, a mountaineering parlance referring to mountains with elevation of at least 14,000 feet. It's about two hours from Denver located in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains.
The windy road to the summit was unlike any I've ever driven. The road is well paved, but features exceptionally sharp drop offs and no guard rails whatsoever. When you approach an uphill switchback, you can't see anything but open air beyond the edge of the curve. It's not an optical illusion either, the edge of the road is often immediately followed by a sheer drop of 1000's of feet. The road had my full attention throughout the transit. I can't imagine how difficult it was to build it back in during the 1920s and 30s.
Arriving at the summit you find the remains of the Crest House, a former restaurant and gift shop destroyed by fire in 1979, a crude restroom, and a small observatory in addition to the peak.
The summit provides exceptional overlook views of the surrounding country side as well as the mountain range.
Beyond the parking lot is a pile of rock leading to the true peak. There's a rough footpath to the top, or you can simply climb up and over the rocks.
The climb is a lot tougher at this altitude than it would be at sea level. At fourteen thousand feet, altitude sickness is a serious possibility as there is only 60% of the oxygen available at sea level. Walking up a ramp can leave you breathless, let alone rock climbing. I was a little light headed when I first arrived but it went away and I felt fine for the couple hours I spent there.
The weather at the summit was much different than downtown Denver. The wind was steady 15-20mph with 40mph gusts. The temperature was in the 40s, so I was glad to have brought a jacket with me. There wasn't any ice or snow on the ground, but signs warned that it could snow at any time during the year. There was barely any vegetation. You had to look into crevices to find moss or bits of grass. It wasn't a total wasteland though, this yellow bellied marmot seemed right at home.
I did make it all the way up the rock pile to the peak.
Some folks were taking a few more risks than I was comfortable with. That said, I did find a rock to sit on that allowed me to dangle my legs over the edge. The rock was slanted back towards the mountain so I wasn't likely to slide forward. However, I was only able to sit there long enough to take this photo as I was starting to freak out a bit.
On the way back down the road I came across both some mountain sheep and mountain goats.
About a thousand feet below the peak is Summit Lake, the highest lake in Colorado.
The wind was less dramatic here, though it was still chilly. The lake is the result of a glacier that passed through once upon a time. It's still alpine tundra, so there aren't any trees but there is more vegetation than the peak. The is a small beach to one side. As expected, the water is cold.
According to the ranger, there are actually trout in the lake and portions of it remain unfrozen throughout the winter. She's not sure how they're surviving as there are few bugs here and no minnows or other smaller fish.
Behind the lake is a valley featuring several smaller lakes and a view of the base of the park.
The hiking trail leading from the park entrance to the peak of Mt Evans passes through here. It was little more than a goat path. I walked about 500 feet on it just to check it out but it was scary. I feel like I'd need some actual equipment and technical training to keep going. See if you can spot the trail on this photo.
On the way out I noticed a storm cloud rolling into the area. It was actually lower than Summit Lake, so as I watched I saw it run into and over the lake area.
Further down the road is the Mt Goliath area. He trees return and there's a small park and garden to walk through.
Some bristlecone trees were hundreds and even thousands of years old. Many were bizarrely deformed due to the constant winds.
There were also scores of chipmunks running to a fro.
Back at the base is Echo Lake.
Mount Evans is a very interesting place to visit for a number of reasons. The dramatic change in climate at each stop is very noticeable. The drive is a white knuckle ride, and the views are amazing. There's a full day of things to see even without doing any serious hiking.
The windy road to the summit was unlike any I've ever driven. The road is well paved, but features exceptionally sharp drop offs and no guard rails whatsoever. When you approach an uphill switchback, you can't see anything but open air beyond the edge of the curve. It's not an optical illusion either, the edge of the road is often immediately followed by a sheer drop of 1000's of feet. The road had my full attention throughout the transit. I can't imagine how difficult it was to build it back in during the 1920s and 30s.
Arriving at the summit you find the remains of the Crest House, a former restaurant and gift shop destroyed by fire in 1979, a crude restroom, and a small observatory in addition to the peak.
The summit provides exceptional overlook views of the surrounding country side as well as the mountain range.
Beyond the parking lot is a pile of rock leading to the true peak. There's a rough footpath to the top, or you can simply climb up and over the rocks.
The climb is a lot tougher at this altitude than it would be at sea level. At fourteen thousand feet, altitude sickness is a serious possibility as there is only 60% of the oxygen available at sea level. Walking up a ramp can leave you breathless, let alone rock climbing. I was a little light headed when I first arrived but it went away and I felt fine for the couple hours I spent there.
The weather at the summit was much different than downtown Denver. The wind was steady 15-20mph with 40mph gusts. The temperature was in the 40s, so I was glad to have brought a jacket with me. There wasn't any ice or snow on the ground, but signs warned that it could snow at any time during the year. There was barely any vegetation. You had to look into crevices to find moss or bits of grass. It wasn't a total wasteland though, this yellow bellied marmot seemed right at home.
I did make it all the way up the rock pile to the peak.
Some folks were taking a few more risks than I was comfortable with. That said, I did find a rock to sit on that allowed me to dangle my legs over the edge. The rock was slanted back towards the mountain so I wasn't likely to slide forward. However, I was only able to sit there long enough to take this photo as I was starting to freak out a bit.
On the way back down the road I came across both some mountain sheep and mountain goats.
About a thousand feet below the peak is Summit Lake, the highest lake in Colorado.
The wind was less dramatic here, though it was still chilly. The lake is the result of a glacier that passed through once upon a time. It's still alpine tundra, so there aren't any trees but there is more vegetation than the peak. The is a small beach to one side. As expected, the water is cold.
According to the ranger, there are actually trout in the lake and portions of it remain unfrozen throughout the winter. She's not sure how they're surviving as there are few bugs here and no minnows or other smaller fish.
Behind the lake is a valley featuring several smaller lakes and a view of the base of the park.
The hiking trail leading from the park entrance to the peak of Mt Evans passes through here. It was little more than a goat path. I walked about 500 feet on it just to check it out but it was scary. I feel like I'd need some actual equipment and technical training to keep going. See if you can spot the trail on this photo.
On the way out I noticed a storm cloud rolling into the area. It was actually lower than Summit Lake, so as I watched I saw it run into and over the lake area.
Further down the road is the Mt Goliath area. He trees return and there's a small park and garden to walk through.
Some bristlecone trees were hundreds and even thousands of years old. Many were bizarrely deformed due to the constant winds.
There were also scores of chipmunks running to a fro.
Back at the base is Echo Lake.
Mount Evans is a very interesting place to visit for a number of reasons. The dramatic change in climate at each stop is very noticeable. The drive is a white knuckle ride, and the views are amazing. There's a full day of things to see even without doing any serious hiking.
Comments
Post a Comment