bierstadt

(This post is a little bit late, as the hike occurred in August.  Better late than never!)

I’ve been looking forward to hiking in Colorado.  So when friends invited me to join them on a hike up Mt. Bierstadt, I jumped at the chance.  Bierstadt is one of Colorado’s many peaks that are 14,000+ feet above sea level.  I’d heard that the 14ers can make for an interesting experience, so I had a feeling I was in for a good time.

We hit the trail early enough to beat most of the rush (crowds tend to flock to 14ers in the summer months).  Even so, there were a lot of people on the trail.  As we took our many breaks on the way up (and a few on the way down), we leapfrogged the same groups of hikers.  Almost felt like you knew who you were hiking with, though most folks weren’t too chatty.  I’m told hikers tend to be friendlier on less well-traveled trails. 

Somewhere around 12,000 ft, the air is thin enough that the body starts reacting in strange ways (at least, this out-of-shape one did).  For me, it meant that I started to experience some balance issues (I didn’t fall over but I sure was wobbly) and I had to stop every few steps to catch my breath.  Makes for an interesting final 2,000 feet.

Not quite at the top…

The rocky top of Bierstadt lies ahead!

The view from the top, looking back along the trail and down to the trailhead.

Pile of hikers on a pile of rocks

with Marc and Trisha


view from the trailhead back to the top

The descent felt completely different – no wobbling and no gasping for breath (well, not quite as much).  Must be a mental thing because the air’s the same as it was on the ascent…  To make a long story short (too late), I felt great at the end of the hike and I’m very much looking forward to tackling more 14ers next year!