Long’s Peak climbers,
This trip is a BYOFSaOT (Bring Your Own Food, Snacks, and Other Things) day outing. We will be leaving later Friday night just to head up and take a little nap before starting a 3am trek.
We will be meeting at the church/barn and plan to depart Friday evening at 6pm
Mr. Anderson did a reconnaissance in Rocky Mountain National Park last weekend. There is still a lot of snow in that area, but according to recent reports, it is still possible to climb Long’s Peak. We will need to be prepared, which means having the right gear, and the right mindset.
First, mindset – we will attempt Long’s, but we need to be ready to change our plan if the conditions are unsuitable. We will be trying the Loft Route, and if we reach the technical climbing and the snow/ice look unreasonable, our plan B option will be to attempt Mt Meeker instead. It is a 13er that connects to Long’s, and is an easy, non-technical hike from the Loft (the saddle between Long’s and Meeker). https://www.14ers.com/peaks/10136/13er-mount-meeker?t=routes
Second, Gear – with current conditions, traction devices are mandatory, so that means yak trax, micro spikes, etc., and a hiking pole at a minimum. Crampons and ice axe and would be better, but are not mandatory for everyone. I will be bringing micro spikes and my lightweight crampons and ice axe. Everyone will be on belay in any situation that a person could slip and fall. If there are long stretches of hard ice climbing, we will turn around. To summarize, please bring:
Helmet
Harness
Gaiters
Micro Spikes and/or crampons
Hiking pole and/or ice axe
Everything else you would bring to climb a 14er in the summer (sunglasses, sunscreen, rain gear, food, water, etc.)
If you need to borrow a piece of equipment please let me know.
-Mr. Anderson
