*Catch up post from June 28, 2014
The state of Colorado has exactly 53 mountains with peaks that
exceed 14,000ft in elevation.
They are most commonly referred to as "14ers."
In my life, I have climbed exactly one.
Mount Quandary.
14,271 feet in elevation.
Located in beautiful Breckenridge, CO.
As I grew up in Colorado, I developed an appreciation for
the great outdoors.
I love to spend time outside.
And by that, I mean watching squirrels play or counting the stars in the sky.
I don't do a ton of hiking, or at least not in recent years.
During the summer, my best friend, Sara, was planning a move to North Carolina.
As a result of this move, she made a list of things to do prior to
leaving the beautiful 303.
On her list, like any Coloradan, was to climb a 14er.
Neither Sara nor I have ever climbed a 14er, so we enlisted the
aid of our dear friend, Paige.
Paige has climbed multiple 14ers, and plans to climb
all 53 of them some day!
Our group consisted of five people - the three of us and two of Paige's friends.
On a beautiful late-June morning, at 7o'clock,
we left the trail head and began our adventure up Mt. Quandary.
I am active, partaking in about four crossfit classes a week,
so I didn't think this mountain had anything on me.....
Boy was I wrong!
While I could handle the physical challenge of climbing over the loose
rocks and gaining a few thousand feet in altitude,
what killed me was the thin air.
I have lived with asthma for 20+ years, but this breathlessness
was like nothing I'd ever experienced.
Despite my inability to breath most of the hike, I had
a great time climbing Mt. Quandary.
The views were like nothing I'd ever seen.
You could see forever.
Any way you turned, you just saw miles and miles of beauty.
It was hard to stand on that mountain and not believe in a higher power.
Our real adventure started once we got out of tree line.
Since we were no longer protected by the trees, we suddenly added
extreme winds to our hike.
Like hurricane-speed winds.
Despite the wind and the sun glaring off of the snow (yes, snow in June),
we persevered up the side of that mountain.
It took us four hours, multiple chewy bars, four false summits, and tons of water,
BUT we made it to the top.
However, as it was so frigidly cold, we spent less than five minutes
on the summit of the mountain!
Just enough time to celebrate our achievement and to get some pictures.
The state of Colorado has exactly 53 mountains with peaks that
exceed 14,000ft in elevation.
They are most commonly referred to as "14ers."
In my life, I have climbed exactly one.
Mount Quandary.
14,271 feet in elevation.
Located in beautiful Breckenridge, CO.
 |
| Aerial view of Mt. Quandary |
As I grew up in Colorado, I developed an appreciation for
the great outdoors.
I love to spend time outside.
And by that, I mean watching squirrels play or counting the stars in the sky.
I don't do a ton of hiking, or at least not in recent years.
During the summer, my best friend, Sara, was planning a move to North Carolina.
As a result of this move, she made a list of things to do prior to
leaving the beautiful 303.
On her list, like any Coloradan, was to climb a 14er.
Neither Sara nor I have ever climbed a 14er, so we enlisted the
aid of our dear friend, Paige.
Paige has climbed multiple 14ers, and plans to climb
all 53 of them some day!
 |
| The three amigos at the trail head! |
Our group consisted of five people - the three of us and two of Paige's friends.
On a beautiful late-June morning, at 7o'clock,
we left the trail head and began our adventure up Mt. Quandary.
I am active, partaking in about four crossfit classes a week,
so I didn't think this mountain had anything on me.....
Boy was I wrong!
While I could handle the physical challenge of climbing over the loose
rocks and gaining a few thousand feet in altitude,
what killed me was the thin air.
I have lived with asthma for 20+ years, but this breathlessness
was like nothing I'd ever experienced.
Despite my inability to breath most of the hike, I had
a great time climbing Mt. Quandary.
The views were like nothing I'd ever seen.
You could see forever.
Any way you turned, you just saw miles and miles of beauty.
It was hard to stand on that mountain and not believe in a higher power.
 |
| View right at tree line |
Our real adventure started once we got out of tree line.
Since we were no longer protected by the trees, we suddenly added
extreme winds to our hike.
Like hurricane-speed winds.
Despite the wind and the sun glaring off of the snow (yes, snow in June),
we persevered up the side of that mountain.
It took us four hours, multiple chewy bars, four false summits, and tons of water,
BUT we made it to the top.
However, as it was so frigidly cold, we spent less than five minutes
on the summit of the mountain!
Just enough time to celebrate our achievement and to get some pictures.
 |
| The breathtaking view from the summit! |
 |
| Mountain goats we saw along the way. |
 |
| The three amigos on top of the summit. |
Making it to the summit was one of my proudest moments.
The hike was challenging - both mentally and physically.
You have to believe in your ability to make it to the summit, and
keep pushing yourself past your limits.
Yes, I was tired. And yes, I wanted to quit. Multiple times.
But I kept putting one foot in front of the other and made it to the top.
 |
| I made it to the summit! |
This adventure helped me realize that I am capable of accomplishing
anything I set my mind to.
Nothing can stop me.
To celebrate our achievement, once we safely made it off the mountain,
we enjoyed a large lunch of hamburgers and beer.
Although I was tired and couldn't feel my feet,
climbing Mt. Quandary, with my best friends, was one of the best days of my life.
Side note - if you ever decide to climb a 14er, make absolute sure
you wear sunscreen. And lots of it.
I wore capris with no sunscreen, and I paid dearly with second
and third degree burns along my lower legs.
Complete with swelling and blisters and sun poisoning.
 |
| My sun-brunt legs, which were lovingly referred to as my "Red Socks" |
 |
| So much swelling, so little time! |
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