Travel Log (Narrated by Natalee)
Jump down to my personal gain... but still read the story!!
Alarms sounding at midnight wake us for our trip. The Longs Peak Ranger station was about an hour from the house. We arrived at the station and we both took advantage of the restrooms available. (As there is not another one for 5 miles!) A few more cars pulled into the lot after us, so I felt a little better knowing there would be people behind us.
We did run into one problem... we couldn't find the trail head (the beginning of the route)! We had to ask some fellow hikers which direction we were suppose to start....That's what you get for letting city-folk into the woods!
We reached the trailhead at 2:00 a.m. There is a log book where you write your name, time of arrival, and estimated time of departing the park. This is in case Kim (my sister-in-law) calls the park 24 hours later and asks if we fell off the mountain because we were not home yet. (That's when they start looking for you.) So, we began hiking at 9,405 feet with our back packs and head lamps. The trail switches back through a dense forest, named the Goblin Forest. This is a Level 1 hike. I began to question the creators of this "Level" rating system for hiking. It seemed like it should be a Level 5!!! This was my first hike and had no idea what a Level 1 should be like. This is also the part of the hike where you are most likely to be attacked by a bear. Brandon brought along Kim's rape alarm that transmits a very high pitched sound... in case the bear tried to rape us. I would have preferred a shot gun.
The forest leads up to a broad expanse of tundra, where you get good views of the Diamond and Mt. Meeker, which is next to Longs and is almost a 14er itself.
From the tundra, also known as the Granite Pass, we continued on switchbacks toward the Boulder Field, which is a large area south of the peak with excellent panoramic views. We arrived here about 5am. It was 32F at this point and our fingers were numb. There is no "true" cover from the wind. We did spy some built up circular rock walls that we were going to warm up in. However, they were all occupied by hikers who had camped out the night before. Sorry to those we woke up with our constant bitching about the wind!! We had no idea people were trying to sleep! So, the freezing temperature had us digging out gloves.
Above the boulder field is a long ridge with a rocky notch that is nicknamed the Keyhole. Just before the Keyhole is a rock hut with a plaque dedicated to some guy... can't remember what he did, but the hut smelled terrible.
We reached the Keyhole at about 5:30 a.m. Actually going thru the Keyhole gave an extraordinary view of the backside of the mountain. At this point, I probably repeated "Oh My God!" 50 times!!! It's absolutely amazing. This was the first moment I realized how high up I was.... and how high up I still had to go!
We followed a long traverse out of the keyhole, following red and yellow bulls eyes which were painted on the rocks to mark the route. Most of the time the bulls eyes were easy to find. However, there were a few times where Brandon went a rock to the right and I to the left in order to figure out which direction the next bulls eye was.
We followed the painted bulls-eyes to the Trough, the steep gully where many people probably wonder why they're doing this peak, and began the long climb up. During this stretch of the climb, a hiker passed us and asked if it was our first time up to Longs Peak. I said, "Actually this is my first hike." He had the most dumb-founded look on his face!! He then asked if I was into extreme sports. I told him that I was the type to rather lay by the pool with a drink in my hand. Apparently you are suppose to climb the smaller mountains before doing a 14er! The hiker and I shared a congrats at the Summit.
With our hearts pumpin', we had to be cautious as we crossed the Narrows, the aptly named ledge with plenty of exposure and thus not a good place to stumble. After many "we have to catch my breath" stops, we got to the top where a very difficult move was required to get around the described chockstone.
The remainder of the route was climbing about 500ft to the Homestretch, an interesting section of smooth slabs with cracks running down them. We could climb up these tremendous steep steps, but at times we needed to grab for holds in the cracks. The slabs would be slippery and dangerous if wet or icy. I was thankful for dry rock. And at 8:30am we stepped on top of our FIRST FOURTEENER!
We made our way to the register, signed in and hopped up to the highest boulder to officially claim the Summit. There were about 20-25 people atop Longs. Two of them had brought drivers up with them and teed up a couple of balls before they headed back down the mountain. (One of the golfers had on indoor turf soccer shoes! Who was he to have no treads on his shoes and still beat me to the top?!) We saw people with cell phones, so decided to try to call our family. We got a hold of Dad and I explained how intense and wonderful the climb had been. I told him how we needed to stay parallel with the side of the mountain, or gravity would mostly likely take hold. He said "So, you have ropes and things then?" I said, "No, just our hands and feet ." (Mom would have NEVER of let us attempt this climb if she knew the details!!) We tried to call Mom, but of course, her cell phone wasn't on and no one answered at Kim's work. Some guys on the Summit were calling their wives and telling them to go outside and look at the mountain because they were waving!
We stayed on the summit for about an hour. The way down was just as intense as the climb up!!! We started down the Homestretch at 9:30am and passed by many climbers still ascending to the Summit. (These people also passed us again on our way down a few hours later... apparently there was a prize for seeing if you could pass the City-Kids twice!) I basically slid down on my butt and did the spider crawl back down the Homestretch, while others hopped down like school girls. I figured I was better off slow than dead!
We took it easy on the way back, being careful of our decreasing energy and took time to enjoy the view. The sun was bright and it gave us a new view than what we saw on the way up. (I think my brother became tired of hearing me say that I didn't remember much of the Granite Pass on our way up.) On our way back through the Trough, storms began to brew over the mountain. At this point, it's time to high tail it to the lowest elevation you can find in order to avoid lightening strikes! We made it pretty quickly to the Boulder Field. When we looked back at the Summit, it was covered in a thick gray fog. After a long break we scrambled down the boulders to the Granite Field, stopping to snap some photos of Longs before moving on.
It did begin to hail as we descend through the Granite Pass.... which I never thought would end!!! Good lord, you would have thought we were in it for 5 hours! I think the mountain was mad at us for going to the bathroom on it so much that it decided to pee on us!!! The hail and rain finally stopped a little ways before entering the Goblin Forest.
We made a final resting stop 2.5 miles back to the ranger station. We hauled ass through the Goblin Forest. We needed to get the boots off our feet!!! They couldn't take much more of this. The quick trip on the trail the way up never seemed to end on the way down.
We finally stepped foot on concrete at 4:30pm in front of the Longs Peak Ranger station. 14.5 hours round trip. We signed the log book again stating what time we returned and whether we succeed to the Summit. Brandon's comment to the Log book... Tired as shit. (It was barely legible.)
My first hike is over! It's been a great ride and I wouldn't trade all the time and effort for anything. Amazing views and experiences. The fellow hikers and climbers I met were extremely friendly and congratulatory when I reached the top. I have an extreme admiration and regard for all those who mountain climb. This is not a sport for the faint at heart. Mental strength was just as important to me as physical strength. I have NEVER had such a overwhelming feeling of accomplishment in my life than I did when I reached the Summit at Longs Peak. And for anyone who attempts a 14er... it's well worth the journey!
To my brother, again, thank you for including me in this journey! Someday, I hope I can include you in something as special to you, as this was to me.
Never forget to take time out and ENJOY THE VIEW