THE PARNELL'S: Hiking Longs Peak

This last weekend I was finally able to hike up Longs Peak. I've been staring at it for as long as I've lived in Fort Collins and yet never had the chance. The hike also coincided with my birthday, so in a way it was a bit of a birthday trip. The group we took with us up the mountain consisted of 10 youth and 5 adults. To ensure we would be off the summit by the required time (noon) we started up the trail promptly at 1:AM the previous morning. It was great hiking in the dark, and once we got above tree line we were able to see very clearly without headlamps, thanks to the nearly full moon.

The easiest part of the trail takes you from the trailhead (~9400 feet above sea level) to the boulder field. We took the opportunity to eat food and sit for a few minutes before sunrise. I managed to capture a few good shots of the run rising.

Hiking up in the dark we found ourselves hiking through a cloud bank. As it gradually got lighter we were able to see the clouds far below us, obscuring the plains far to the east of us.

This is the face of Longs Peak. From the boulder field you hike to a place called the keyhole, just on the right edge of the ridge. From there the trail takes you behind the peak on a sections called the ledges, the trough, the narrows, etc. Sound like fun?

You can see "keyhole" and the boulders leading up to it. There is a small shelter there, kind of a cool place to sit and watch the sunrise.

This section, "the ledges" leads across the back side of the peak. They are narrow, and you have to watch your feet, but really not bad.

After the ledges there is a section called the "trough" which consisted of this kind of climbing. There is a very serious threat of falling rocks from hikers above you, and at ~13,000 you feel a bit winded climbing.

On top of the trough are the "narrows", an exposed series of ledges you have to climb, shimmy, and navigate to get to the final face. This section is a bit nerve wracking and keeps people from the summit. The gentleman right in front of me turned around at this point, not wanting climb on the exposed ledges.

This is the final face you have to navigate up to reach the summit. At this point you are sucking air and a bit tired.

And the summit, or the highest point of the summit. Long peak has a broad, flat expanse on the summit. This is one of the lone boulders standing above the rest. We sat for nearly an hour just taking in all the beauty and sense of accomplishment. Summit elevation is 14,255 feet above sea level.