All posts tagged as Mount Elbert CO

12 Aug

Mt. Elbert Success! Trip Report Posted

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 12, 2014 / 1 Comment

This Sunday past, (August 10th 2014), I successfully summited the 14,440′ Mt. Elbert which is the highest mountain in Colorado. There was a software update that prevented one of the plugins from posting the real time satellite updates to the blog during the climb, yes this stuff even happens to me. But I got them posted after the fact and added some photos to them as well.

Here is the content from the climb:

Trip Report: www.robertdangerbyrd.com/highpoints/mount-elbert-trip-report

Blog Posts: www.robertdangerbyrd.com/tag/mount-elbert-co

Photo Gallery: www.robertdangerbyrd.com/gallery/mount-elbert

GPS Track: www.everytrail.com/view_trip.php?trip_id=2920123

You will find the post climb content and status for all of my highpoints here: www.robertdangerbyrd.com/us-state-highpoint-list

10 Aug

Back at the Trailhead

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Back at the trailhead and feeling pretty good aside from some blisters. Got a few thousand photos, will post later. About to head back down the jeep road.

10 Aug

Finally Below the Weather

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Finally got below the weather. It’s overcast, cool & easy going now. Making good time. Hungry, taking a food break now at 12,260′.

10 Aug

Snow Turned to Hail

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Feeing good, but it’s time to break out the hard shell jacket. It’s much colder, windier and snow turned to hail.

Not so pleasant now, should be below worst of weather soon.

10 Aug

Weather At Summit, Heading Down Now

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Spent 20 minutes on the summit. Just had an impressive temperature drop, wind increasing, snowing on summit now. Storm moving in in earnest. Headed down now.

10 Aug

Standing on the Mt Elbert Summit

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Praise God! I’m standing on the 14,440′ summit of Mount Elbert. I can see the Twin Lakes from here, but the sky is gray and overcast. Cant stay long, storm heading this way, feeling rain already. Felt strong coming up, took hundreds of photos testing out the new camera gear.

10 Aug

Clouds Rolling In

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Break at 13,650′, nice view of lakes. Low clouds rolling in, very cool, feels like rain is coming. Last break, will push for Mt. Elbert summit from here.

10 Aug

First Summit View

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

First view of the summit. 20 degree incline in this section. Fairly easy climb across the saddle to top from here.

10 Aug

Above Tree Line, Nice Lake View

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Photo Break!  I’m just above the tree line now, at 12,138′ and have my first decent view of the Twin Lakes.

Light 23′ pack, easy climb, perfect weather, but can’t stop taking photos!

10 Aug

Large Group Ahead

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

I came upon a large group of slow moving and very poorly dressed hikers on the way up, too many to pass and if I take another photo stop in front of them, they might end up back in my shots. So I’ll take a long break and give them plenty of time to get ahead of me.

I have already taken a number of photo stops, but no sit down breaks. So it’s about time to grab some butt time along with some food and water.

And of course my first snack will be a Grab The Gold bar.

10 Aug

Missed Sunrise Photo Op

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Sunrise came around 6:15 and found me lower on the mountain than I had planned, so I was not in a good position to capture the sun coming up across the lakes as I had hoped.

Best I could do is the log featured in this post.

10 Aug

Survived Jeep Road, at Trailhead

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

The jeep road was not for the faint of heart or pregnant mothers, but the 4X4 suburban was up to the challenge and I’m at the trailhead proper.

Leaving trailhead after final gear check. The supermoon is bright, enough to forgo a flashlight.

10 Aug

The adventure begins!

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 10, 2014 / 0 Comments

Driving up a steep grade trail accessible only with a 4X4. Scraping bottom, even in four-wheel-drive suburban?

09 Aug

Jeff Brinkman Concert at the Tabor Opera House

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 9, 2014 / 0 Comments

We took in a Jeff Brinkman concert at the Tabor House, and it was a very impressive display of musical talent. Jeff’s and his band, are very precise and work together to create a very rich musical expirerience. They also seemed to be having a really good time doing it, especially the drummer who was grinning maniacally  as he ruthlessly beat the drums into submission.

The show was further enhanced by the astoundingly good acoustics of the Tabor Opera house. For the last song they came down off the stage and played unplugged. We were sitting in the front, so they were only a few feet away. I really don’t have the words to do it justice, and I have never heard anything more magical.

The downside is I’m climbing a 14K mountain tomorrow, and I’ll get 5 hours sleep at best.

09 Aug

Mount Elbert Gear Check

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 9, 2014 / 1 Comment

Susan and I have been spending the day in Leadville which at 10,152 feet is Americas highest city. They get over 300 inches of snow each year and 300 days of sunshine, although aft on thunderstorms are typical. Weather is perfect at the moment, with some light cloud cover.

I’ll hit the Mount Elbert trailhead early in the morning, and try to get up and down to beat any potential weather.

Sorted out my gear last night and decided what clothing and tech I’ll be carrying up the mountain based on the current conditions. If you visit the blog, you can see the  gear photo.

Tech includes the Delorme InReach satellite uplink, a Goal Zero Guide 10 Plus USB battery pack, (sans solar panel), a Surefire St. Minimus Headlamp and 4 cameras including an iPhone 5s in a Lifeproof Fre Waterproof case. The iPhone will mostly be used to interface with the satellite uplink to send and receive messages. Also taking the awesome Olympus TG-2 outdoor waterproof camera and it’s waterproof wide angle lens. This camera is soon to be replaced with the new Olympus 16MP Tg-3. Also carrying a pair of the latest Black Edition  3+ GoPro cameras which are new to my kit. One mounted on a pack strap, and the other with the new sports mount on one of my Leki Carbon TI trekking poles. The pole mounted camera, dubbed “DangerCam1” is controlled via the GoPro iPhone app which allows full control and viewfinder functions via WiFi. I used this during my Oklahoma climb and found it very useful. With the camera mounted on the pole, I’ll be able to stab it in the ground or use the pole as a boom and take some cool selfies without a lot of fuss. The pack strap camera, “DangerCam2” is fired with a CamDo Intervalometer board which automatically snaps a photo every 2 minutes for 22 hours straight on a single battery. I won’t be taking a solar panel, so I’ll also carry extra batteries for much of the gear.

I’ll check in tomorrow morning at the trailhead.

07 Aug

Climbing Mount Elbert This Weekend

In State Highpoints by Robert Danger Byrd / August 7, 2014 / 2 Comments

Susan, Chris and I are in Denver at a technical conference that ends Friday. This places me within striking distance of Mount Elbert which I have yet to climb.

At 14,440 feet Mount Elbert is the highest peak in Colorado as well as the Rocky Mountains. It is also the second-highest mountain in the contiguous US, and the highest of the fourteeners of Colorado (the peaks which rise above 14,000).

So after the conference ends, well make the 3 hour drive southwest to Twin Lakes and will spend the rest of the weekend at the foot of the mountain in a Bavarian style lodge overlooking the lakes. We also plan to visit the former mining town of Leadville which at 10,152 feet is the highest incorporated city in the United States. I’m told it is a quaint little historic town with an endless supply of events, fairs and festivals and breathtaking views in every direction.

I’ll start the climb early Sunday, August 10th, which will have me climbing under the SuperMoon. The forecast calls for some bad weather and this mountain is renowned for its afternoon thunderstorms complete with dramatic light shows. The top of a mountain is no place to be when lighting takes the stage, so I intend to move fast and get to the summit and back down before that happens.

As always, you can follow along via the satellite uplink, once the climb starts. My cell phone tracker is already active and will show me in Denver until Saturday morning. Visit the Track page for all of the tracking maps.