We arrived in Georgetown Colorado on that Sunday evening after a long drive from Houston that had started Saturday afternoon, it was day one of our 2 week family vacation . This would be our first stop on what would become a climbing-sightseeing-running tour of Colorado`s high country, an area that we all fell in love with last summer.

Georgetown is a nice Victorian town about 40 miles west of Denver, altitude 8,500 ft, a good place to start my acclimatization preparing for the Steamboat marathon six days later.

Day 2: Memorial day; it was meant to be an “easy” day, we spent it exploring the town, riding the enchanting Georgetown loop narrow gage railroad (a restored train pulled by steam engines from the late 1800`s) to the nearby town of Silver Plume along Clear creek through a nice pine-aspen forest covered canyon. Later we went to the Loveland ski area and then we drove to nearby Guanella pass (11,669 ft) to hike for a while in the tundra and have a nice snowball fight.

Day 3: Time for some action. I grabbed my backpack and drove a few miles west on I-70 then south and up a steep gravel road to the trailhead of Grays Peak, this trailhead is just below timberine (where the forest ends) which is pretty high but O.K. to me since I would try to climb the twin peaks Grays and Torreys, two of the 54 Colorado fourteeners. A fourteener being a mountain with an altitude of 14,000 ft or more. In Colorado climbing  14ers  is a popular sport and last year I got bitten by the 14er bug after climbing Mt Elbert (14,433 ft) and Mt Massive (14, 421 ft), the first and second highest in a single day.

From the trailhead I could see that most of the way was still covered by snow, thanks in part to a brief storm during the night that left 2 inches of fresh powder. It was a slow go, the sometimes knee-deep snow required doing postholing and careful footing at times on the otherwise straightforward trail. I reached the summit of Grays Peak (14,270 ft) after a little over 3 hours, took some pictures, talked to some climbers and then hiked down to the saddle (low point between two peaks) and back up on the connecting ridge for 30 minutes to the summit of  Torreys Peak (14,267 ft) where I saw a group of skiers go down on the mountain's steepest slope on it's north side. The great views included snowy peaks ranging from 12,000 to 14,000 ft in elevation in all directions. The hike down was a little easier since much of the new snow had melted out with the warm sunrays.

Distance traveled: 9 miles; elevation gain: 3,600 ft.

Later that afternoon we packed and traveled to Estes Park, to the northwest of Boulder, where we had reservations for a nice cabin.

Day 4: Estes Park is a small resort town and it's the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP), altitude 8,000 ft. . I got up early that day put my trail runners on and hit the surrounding trails through the forest, keeping a slow pace and enjoying the cool temperatures, the clean air and nice views of snowcapped peaks I ran for 55 minutes.

We spent the rest of the day hiking to some beautiful lakes below the majestic peaks in RMNP.

Day 5: After only a few hours of sleep I grabbed my gear and drove 10 miles south to  Longs` Peak trailhead. At 14,255 ft Longs is the highest peak in RMNP and the northernmost Colorado 14er, it is a magnet for hikers and climbers but this is not an “easy” mountain, it has been proven that given certain conditions it can be dangerous and even deadly. At 4:00 AM   I started my hike on the most heavily used trail in Colorado, and got a little bit discouraged by the sign that read : “this trail is technical at this time”. I heard about this before but I still decided to give it a try. Once reaching timberline I paused to see the sun rising above the neighboring Twin Sisters peaks, it was a chilly morning and I had to put on a second pair of gloves; at the Chasm lake junction I had my first good look at Longs` fearsome east face as well as it's companion Mt Meeker, the highest 13er in RMNP. I kept going on that never ending trail around Mt Washington and then into the infamous boulder field hopping from boulder to boulder at first then becoming a steepening scramble until I reached the famous “Keyhole”. This peculiar rock formation gives this route it's name . Here the scenery changes abruptly, to the west and directly below what comes into view is the Glacier Gorge, a deep canyon surrounded by many jagged snowy peaks filled with lakes (some still frozen), glaciers, water streams and waterfalls. This is a jaw dropping view, so I took a while to soak it in and took some pictures. From this point the route turns to the south and it's real difficulties start, the summit itself is very close (1/4 of a mile in distance) but 1000 ft above, the route traverses across a slabby and some times scree filled very steep slope that due to it's location (on the shady side of the mountain) contained some snow and ice, the reason why it's called technical and not many climb it this time of the year. Until this point I had yet to see another person on the mountain, while I was trying to decide what to do a guy popped out of nowhere, he was heading to the same place, I decided to follow him, but he was a local and knew the mountain by heart, soon he was too far ahead to catch up and I got stuck in an icy section. I stopped and decided to make a painful decision, the route was risky and I was alone so I decided to play it safe and turned around at about 13,200 ft. In the end I traveled 12.5 miles with an elevation gain of 4,000 ft.

We spent the afternoon in Estes Park.
 

Day 6: I needed to stand on a summit after the previous` day disappointment, so I headed out to Hallett peak (12,713 ft), one of RMNP most prominent landmarks. It was a nice sunny morning when I started hiking on this good trail that would first take over the summit of Flattop mountain (12,324 ft), as I gained altitude I noticed more and more water springs along the trail, then on the northern side of the mountain the first signs of trouble came to view, snow drifts that at first were avoidable but later covered the whole trail. I followed some tracks on the deep snow straight up the hillside through the dense forest, this was becoming too tiring for me (this required snowshoes) but suddenly I reached treeline and my troubles went away. The view above this area with some elks in the distant slopes kept me going. I reached the summit of Flattop and pressed on the meandering trail above Tyndall glacier and then up the rocky ridge to the summit of Hallett peak. I had the summit to myself and enjoyed the views of the emerald colored lakes below the Glacier gorge and the mountains west of the continental divide.

The hike toward Taylor peak looked fairly easy but I decided to abort it 20 minutes into it since it could have taken at least 3 hours round trip. The hike down was very fast, I ran about half of the distance and managed to lose the trail in the snow momentarily.

That day I covered 10.5 miles with an elevation gain of 3,300 ft. Back in town I started my carbo-loading at the local pasta restaurant, later we hiked to Alberta Falls in RMNP.

Day 7: We left Estes Park to travel to Steamboat Springs in northwest Colorado, we had to cross RMNP via the Trail ridge road, the highest continuous road over the continental divide in the U.S. at 12,100 ft. From the highest point we had one last look at the magnificent snowy peaks and kept driving along the snowdrift lined road.

Once in Steamboat (6,900 ft) I proceeded to pick up  my packet and noticed the warm temperatures (mid 80`s) and sunny weather, not good. In the evening we went to the pasta dinner where the race director warned us about the hot weather, the last thing I wanted to hear.

Day 8: Marathon day! I got up after a few hours of sleep and my wife dropped me off at the bus boarding area at 6 AM. A 30 minute ride took us up to Hahn`s Peak Village, elevation: 8,100 ft. I could feel that the forecast was wrong, instead of the mid 40`s it was in the mid 50`s and the 7:30 start didn't help much considering that the sun is already out shortly after 6 AM. After applying plenty of lip balm and sunscreen we lined up and the gun went off. We would run 26 miles back to town on the eastern lane of the same road that we took to get there, at first it felt like a roller coaster ride going up a steep hill then descending steeply for almost 3 miles before hitting the relatively “flat section”. This course has a net drop of  1,150 ft but this is deceiving since there are a lot of hills in the middle. At the half point I was still doing O.K. time wise, enjoying the green rolling hills then the brief shade in the Elk river valley. By mile 17 I started to feel the effects of the thin and dehydrating dry air, this and the fact that there were only a few water stations along the course didn't help me although I had taken my water bottle belt with me. By mile 20 I was dehydrated and slowing down, that's where they threw in their own version of “heartbreak hill”, I had to walk it up, my water supply was depleted. I struggled through mile 23 where I found water, I stopped and downed a couple of cups and refilled my bottle. I was able to shuffle the rest of the way to downtown where we were finally cheered on by a few spectators. The home stretch was cool as they were calling out our names and places of origin, that's where I made my best impersonation of a good runner as I crossed the finish line.

I was a distant 4^th place in my age group but got a very nice medal, a mug and a pair of very cool smartwool socks besides the usual t-shirt.

After a good breakfast we got back on the road, a very winding one toward the south to the Leadville – Buena Vista corridor, or what I call “the valley of the giants” in central Colorado, which is home of the Sawatch Range, the one with the largest concentration of 14ers in the nation. It was a nice view of the mountains I had climbed last year just outside of Leadville only this time they had a lot of snow. Near the village of Twin Lakes (9,300 ft) we rented a cabin, a place to forget about it all, at the bottom of a canyon flanked by snowy 14ers and 13ers where the only things you hear are the river flowing down the valley and the birds chirping (mostly hummingbirds). We spent the evening relaxing around our campfire in the cool breeze. I slept like a baby that night.

Day 9: No rest for the weary. I got up and drove 4 miles up the road to La Plata peak's trailhead, there were not many people there. I followed a good trail all the way to the upper northwest ridge where I had to hike over broken terrain to avoid the snow covered trail. I passed by a few playful marmots and went across a few snow patches then made the final turn to the east to the fifth highest summit in Colorado at 14,336 ft. it had taken me 4 long hours on my tired legs. A couple of guys on the summit provided me with valuable info about the surrounding peaks. After a photo session I headed back down being able to jog half of the way getting back to my car in two hours. Total distance traveled: 9 miles; elevation gain: 4,300 ft.

We all went to Aspen and visited the awesome Maroon Bells recreation area later that day going over Independence pass (12,120 ft), from where we had an unobstructed view of La Plata peak complete, it is huge.

Day 10: Still enjoying fabulous weather I headed a little south to the Missouri gulch trailhead, to climb Mt Belford (14,197 ft), I immediately felt the steepness of that trail on the initial switchbacks, I followed that mostly snow free good trail for 3.5 miles to the summit gaining 4,560 ft in elevation in 3 hours of almost non-stop hiking. From the rocky summit outcrop I saw neighboring Mt Oxford (14,153 ft) beyond the ridge that connects it to Belford, the route looked clear so I went for it; it was a steep downhill to the saddle followed by a gradual uphill, 50 minutes later I had Oxford's summit all to myself, there were some awesome wildflowers along the way. I got back to Belford after a quick snack now climbing on that steep slope then over it's summit again and back down the switchbacking steep trail running about half of it but bringing back only memories since I had left my camera at the cabin. That day I traveled 11 miles gaining 5,900 ft in elevation witch left me a little tired.

We spent the afternoon in Leadville and had a nice dinner to celebrate my oldest son`s birthday.

Day 11: Still with a little craving for mountain I drove south to Buena Vista and then a few more miles west to Denny creek, the trailhead for Mt Yale (14,196 ft) . With no one else in sight I started my hike on a good trail on the south side of the mountain, soon I was above timberline and followed the steep but straightforward trail that was 95% snow free all the way to the upper ridge, I had seen the tracks of one hiker and deer but luckily no cougars or bears as someone had warned me. Three hours of hiking put me on the ridge where I saw the only other climber already on his way down, another twelve minutes of scrambling on the narrow broken summit ridge got me to the boulder strewn high point. Up there I had an excellent view, this time I had a great photo session; with no one else around I really savored that moment. Some clouds started to build up nearby and lightning is a real danger on these peaks high above timberline so I headed down quickly, being able to run about three quarters of the way on those steep down hills using my trail runners.

This trip accounted for 7 miles in distance and 4,300 ft of elevation gain. Later that day we dined in Buena Vista and visited the Agnes Vail falls near Mt Princeton where we saw mountain goats and also the ghost town of St Elmo. We enjoyed our last campfire by the cabin that chilly evening.

Day 12: We packed and left our Twin Lakes` cabin and headed up to Leadville and took the 2 hour train ride up to the mountains just to the north where the Arkansas river comes to life. From there we drove south to the nice and quiet town of Salida.

Day 13:  We got on the road again still heading south into the San Luis Valley, where we visited a weird alligator sanctuary, then went to the Sand Dunes National Park, a surreal place that contrasts against the impressive Sangre de Cristo mountains just to the east. My oldest son and I hiked for an hour to what we thought was the highest dune but later we found out it was actually the second highest, with the big one a couple of miles away, it was a strenuous hike. An hour later we hiked to the nearby Zapata falls.

The original plan was to leave this place and start the long drive home, to get there the next day and have one day to recover, but my brain formulated a better plan, we were so close to the Sierra Blanca that it would be a sin to leave without visiting a peak there, so we decided to spend the night in Alamosa.

Day 14: The idea of climbing Blanca Peak, the fourth highest 14er in Colorado at 14,345 ft, had been in my mind for a long time, now was the time to actually do it. Since it is a long hike most people do it in two days, camping up high near timberline, I knew it wasn't going to be easy to do it in one day. So I got out a little earlier that morning, I could only drive two miles up that road after getting off the highway. I started hiking by 5:00 AM having to follow this 4x4 road all the way to the first lake. I had read that this is Colorado's toughest road, and by now I had realized it wasn't suitable for just any 4x4 vehicle, it was horrendous even on foot, there were hardly any flat spots for normal footing. It took me four hours of tedious hiking to reach Como Lake, I saw a few tents there but no people, only a deer. Just beyond the lake I cleared the trees and Little Bear Peak ( 14,120 ft) came into view, it's incredibly steep and bare north face looked sinister from the bottom, but still no Blanca Peak in sight. When the road finally died below blue lakes a nice waterfall appeared ahead emerging from a pile of overhanging snow, above it the scenery looked more like a moonscape, a bare rocky valley flanked by Ellingwood Point (14,042 ft) to the north and Blanca Peak to the south with the jagged connecting ridge in between straight ahead. From this point I basically hopped from boulder to boulder ocasionally dodging snow and icy patches then scrambled carefully on the long and steep final ridge. The small summit appeared in front of me after 6 hours of hard work, I felt relieved and excited to be there so I screamed it out loud. The views were astonishing, there was one more 14er to the east, Mt Lindsey (14,042 ft) besides Little Bear and Ellingwood, with other 13ers around and the Crestones farther to the north, also some nice icy lakes below Blanca`s huge northeast wall plus Crater lake with it's turquoise waters, which I had hiked by on my way up; the highway looked far away. This summit was not all that pretty compared to others, there were no wildflowers anywhere, just bare rock.

I was joined by a couple that I had passed on my way up, after a nice conversation and the required photo session it was time to head back down, I was tired and my knees a little achy and still had half of the way to go, it was a slow go on the boulder field and not much faster on that horrible road. I tried running a few times but the terrain, the sun, the heat and my tired legs wouldn't let it last long. I finally reached my car after three and a half hours of downhill, Blanca's abrasive rocks ate up my trail runners` outsole, they looked as if I had ran 150 miles that day. After downing a cold drink I drove back to the hotel to take a shower and pack up.

The round trip to Blanca was 14.6 miles long with a brutal 6,350 ft of elevation gain.

As soon as I got out of my vehicle I felt the effects of what I had done, my legs were wobbly, my knees were hurting like never before and the bad sunburn made me feel like I was on fire plus I also had a throbbing headache and I thought to myself “this must be how it feels after running one of those crazy mountain ultramarathons”; a great achievement had come at a great price, all I wanted was to lay down in bed until the next day but instead I had a long drive ahead of me, so I kept driving until the coffee couldn`t keep me awake no more somewhere between Amarillo and Childress. The next day we continued the long drive to Houston, once at home I did the math and was surprised when I added up the altitude gain of the mountains I climbed, a grand total of 31,750 ft (not considering the hiking that I did with my family) in a span of 12 days , visiting 10 mountains and running a marathon.

 This had been a vacation of a lifetime, one that I certainly enjoyed even more than my family, a trip were my mind and my soul went on vacation but not my legs, but that`s O.K., this was something I will never forget that was well worth the price.

Run far, climb high…