Goliath Peak (12,216), Rogers Peak (13,391), Mt. Warren (13,307), Mt Evans (14,264)6/01/08
~9 miles/~4,700 vertical
Start: Mt. Evans Toll Booth
2hrs 50 minutes

Thinking about the race up Mt. Evans I am signed up for on June 21st, I figured I had better get in some road miles and some altitude. I invited several running pals, but none could make it unfortunately. The lack of partners had me questioning whether or not I wanted to go and I just figured I would “sleep in” and decide when I got up Sunday morning. I woke up around 5:30am and felt well rested and antsy. What the heck, I’ll give it a go anyways. As I was getting ready, I kept pondering whether or not I really wanted to plug away on 14.5 miles of pavement and threw in some gear in case I decided to get off the pavement.

I have been wanting to hike over Goliath, Rogers and Warren for a while and a failed trip this past winter (it was too cold and windy to even get out of the car), had me anxious to finally get up there. Ultimately, I decided that I would run a bit of road and still get the peaks I wanted.

I started at 7:45am and headed up the quiet road. About 1/4mile up, I decided to head straight up the hillside and cut off some mileage. This generally worked quite well as I could avoid snow for the most part, but I eventually got bogged down with some serious post holing. As soon as I was about to get real fed up, the road miraculously appears. Coincidentally, I come out on the road 20 feet ahead of the runner who started from the lot about 10 minutes ahead of me. I wait and we jog/walk along at a mellow pace, talking about the upcoming race and people we know in common.I eventually say goodbye to John and continue up the road for maybe ¾ mile total until

I come to a dry S. facing hillside, heading up to the dry ridge. I plod up this, trying to run a bit, but it is a bit steep and my legs are feeling a somewhat tired. I plod along and make Goliath in a seemingly pokey 40 minutes.Rogers is looking discouragingly distant and I am now able to jog the slight downhill for a bit, dodging boulders and snow patches. I cross the road again at 54 minutes and debate jumping on it, but with a Camelback full of water and warm clothes and clunky trail shoes, I opt to continue my “hike”.

The route to Rogers is pretty mellow, but the terrain is not as “runnable” as I had hoped, so I just resign myself to fast walking and jog a step here and there.The snow patches start to increase and it is a game of avoidance and efficient route finding. Occasionally I opt to beeline across, but have mixed results. I finally top out on Rogers after 1:29, tag anything that seems to be a summit and continue on without breaking stride. Now the rocks become a bit of a jumble and I zig and zag finding ways that don’t require using my hands or stepping on snow (which would probably result in a broken leg).

I make it to Warren after 1:52 and again prod around for the highest point and waste no time lingering. As I am dropping down to Summit Lake, I see John (the runner I met earlier) running along the road and catch up to him, reaching the lake at 2:07. We walk and talk for another few minutes while I suck down a double shot espresso Clif gel to get me up the final stretch.I again say goodbye and I am torn as to whether or not I want to run the road. It has taken me a good bit longer than I anticipated to get here and I promised to be home by noon (planning on getting a ride down), so I opt for the direct route up to the parking lot. This is where I run into the most snow I have seen all day above tree line, and it is East facing and soft.

For the most part, with strategic zig zagging, I can stay on dry ground, but occasionally I have no choice but to cross the snow. Again, sometimes I stay on top, other times I am up to my waist. Uggg, it is really ugly when I drop deep and this really revs my already high heart rate.I am really starting to feel trashed and stop every once in a while to catch my breath as I clamber over rocks and through snow. As I stop, I curiously watch skiers schuss past, scraping on rocks as they go. They all seemed to be using good skis, which had me a bit confused. They either make skis much more durable than the ones I have purchased in the past few years, or they have a much bigger ski budget than I do. Gotta keep the core and edge repair business going I guess…..

Eventually I pass the parking lot and the final 100 feet seems to take forever as it is really icy and slick. I grind it out and am relieved to flop myself down on the summit rock after 2 hours and 50 minutes. Phew. I pant, drink, pant some more, add a layer and admire the views for a bit. I carefully pick my way back down to the lot and after a few minutes of scoping, I score a ride down from an older guy from Central City, named…… you guessed it, John (on the way down, we pass John 1 standing with his thumb out, but unfortunately John 2 has no room in his truck).

All in all a great day out, I got in 3 new peaks on the way to an old favorite (20th ascent of Evans) and got some great exercise in the process. Even though I did not run the road the entire way, I got a good review/reminder of the course which will be helpful in 3 weeks.