peak book

 Baldy Alto - 4177M 163M Prominence 38.005053 -106.921787 July 31, 2024 Colorado Trail detour San Luis Peak - 4274M 952M Prominence 37.986685 -106.931435 July 31, 2024 Colorado Trail detour On the morning of July 31 I woke up at 4 AM in an effort to beat any storms that might happen at 14 000 feet and to get as long a day as possible in. Today's mission was loosely recommended to me by a fellow named tom who I met in Salida. He had told me about a detour he had created/hiked a few days ago in order to connect Baldy Alto and San Luis peak, as well as do a bit of off trail exploring. Once I got to the turn in the FSR that we discussed, I dove into the bush. The vegetation started off quite tame and I could make pretty good time as far as bushwhacking goes. I got a bit off track and ended up going towards the next valley over, and ended up hiking along a marsh for a while, before re-assessing what my route should be, and working my way up to tree line. The shrubbery got a bit more den...

 Sargent's Mesa - 3576 M 173M Prominence 38.288056 -106.384167 July 29, 2024 On the Colorado Trail Sargent's Mesa was one of the peaks that the Colorado trail passes over. While hiking the trail, you barely even feel yourself summiting a peak, even if it does have a sliver of prominence, but it's there. Route Middle Baldy - 3570 M 89M Prominence 38.314923 -106.505478 July 29, 2024 On the Colorado Trail Much like Sargent's Mesa earlier in the day, Middle Baldy leaves something to be desired for, but it's a peak along the CT and I inevitably ended up summiting it. A slightly more interesting objective might have been Long Branch Baldy a few miles before. But none of these peaks are that interesting. Route

 Windy peak - 3627M 151M Prominence 38.352393 -106.265332 July 28, 2024 Colorado Trail detour Windy Peak was another one of the uninteresting named peaks along the Colorado Trail. I would not have considered summiting it any other day, but it was so close to the trail I couldn't leave it behind. Windy peak from the trail Summit views Summit survey marker Me on the summit Route

 Peel Point - 3706M 72M Prominence 38.462056 -106.289164 July 28, 2024 Colorado Trail detour Peel Point really lacks any sort of enticement, but being so close to the Colorado Trail, I just had to bag it. The views over the steep east side of the mountain and down into the valley were well worth the detour that took less than 20 minutes. Peel point ridge in the distance Summit views Me on the summit Route

Bald Mountain - 3919 140M Prominence 38.552463 -106.350563 July 26, 2024 Colorado Trail detour The third peak I went up in Colorado was Bald Mountain. Bald mountain was not very exciting at all, as proven by the not so lively summit register. The views from the summit were far better than what they would have been if I stuck to the trail however. My route was simple, instead of skirting around the mountain on the CT, I continued up the North ridge, hiking over grass and mossy rocks, before making my way down the South side of the mountain and re joining the trail. An alpine lake on the way up The north east ridge just hiked Me on the round summit Not many visits according to the register Looking south from summit On summit Route

Cottonwood Pass Peak ( Peak 12,598) - 3840M 104M Prominence 38.82432, -106.41588 July 24, 2024 On the Colorado trail Cottonwood pass peak was the first peak that was directly on the Colorado Trail. I got here early in the morning, and it was a bit of an unintentional peak bag but it is still a P100. The views around Cottonwood Pass are actually quite remarkable and there is a reason so many people stop at the pass and get out of their car to take a quick hike and stretch their legs. The summit was only a few switchbacks after crossing the highway, and was marked by some rock cairns. Views nearing the pass Views from the summit More sweet views of terrain ahead Route Emma Burr Mountain - 4128M 378M Prominence 38.733563 -106.416706 July 24, 2024 Colorado Trail detour The second peak that I detoured to along the Colorado Trail would be Emma Burr Mountain. I arrived a hundred meters or so below the pass in the early afternoon and some fairly grim looking clouds were already covering the ar...

 Mount Elbert - 4401M 2767M Prominence 39.117749 -106.445287 July 22, 2024 2H 15M up NE ridge Colorado Trail detour Before even hitting the Colorado trail in mid July I had planned on bagging at least a few 14ers. The first peak I set out to stand a top was Mount Elbert. Mount Elbert is the highest point in the Rocky mountains, and the second highest point in the lower 48. On July 22 I woke up at 4 AM after a night of Thunderstorms and rain. Throughout my Colorado trip it was very common that thunder and lightning struck in the early afternoon. For this reason I was up and down the mountain before any signs of clouds started to appear. After packing up camp, I hiked a mile or two to the trailhead sign, and made my way up the busy trail. I blasted past dozens of day hikers whilst hauling my 30+ lb bag. Thankfully for me, the altitude did not seem to bother me. As I made it up past treeline the sun started to rise, and I turned off my headlamp. The quickly rising red orb made for som...

 Marmot Mountain - 1815M 655M Prominence 50.026079 -124.181193 July 1, 2024 7H 11M C2C, 6H 40M moving Marmot is a great shorter day trip for summer hiking. It was nice to take off at a reasonable time in the morning and still bag a pretty neat back country peak. Tyler, my mom and I started by hiking up the neglected logging road for 2 and a half KM. Eventually you dive into the bush and work your way across a small but steady flowing diverged river. We managed to cross keeping our feet relatively dry with the use of some careful stepping. After the River there is a wall of bush that you are forced to plow through, but the bushwhacking gets better as you go, and doesn't trouble you once you get on the steeper treed slopes. After about a third of the treed section of the climb, there is a small rock face in the way. It is pretty easy to get around with a little common sense and route finding, as long as you stick close to the wall, keeping it on your left, and you don't go too hi...