[Day 56] Grays Peak

Camp in the rock bivy surprisingly was not terrible. I woke up many times to wind and cold. Early in the night, moths were all over my items, but I figure the midnight winds moved them out the ridge. Many times I woke up worried about precipitation of some sort, as I progressively popped up to check clouds moving in on Grays Peak.

Around 6:15am, I began packing for my ridge walk to Grays. The snow along the ridge line was hard; I had almost zero sink with most steps. The ridge was cornices out in many places, and I walked a narrow snow line only a few feet wide. On either side of me, either steep consequential snowfields or a rocky ledge drop to the unknown. The trail wasn’t entirely this situation, but many critical crux points along the line between Edwards Peak and Grays Peak made this a precarious hike.

After some one and a half mile per hour scrambling and ridge line maneuvering, I made it to the ascent of Grays Peak. Many day hikers were attempting, and the CDT merged up with their footpaths to the top. It was mostly a slow snow walk up the 800 foot ascent to the top, but nothing requiring critical mountaineering.

The view at the top was a spectacle, as most of the views of Colorado have been. Though I did Mt. Elbert, it was not the official CDT. Grays Peak is the official high point of the CDT at 14,278 feet in elevation.

After catching my wind at the top, I headed down the mountain, passing plenty of peak baggers as I went. I passed a baby and mother mountain goat on the descent; they ate their grass mostly indifferent to my nearness.

The valley wrapped towards the parking lot for Grays and Torreys Peak. Trail soon turned to dirt road that guided me towards Interstate 70. I passed many small cabins along the route with some prime real estate. I was mentally detached for most of the dirt road walking, and soon I hit a junction with I-70. The trail paralleled I-70 via a bike path for a few miles, so I decided to knock out those miles before trying to get into town.

Interstate 70 was not a great place to hitch from. The on and off ramps were long and separated the two lane, 70mph highway from pedestrian traffic. Instead, I decided to elect for an Uber from the Herman Gulch Trailhead. Within 30 minutes, I was picked up and on my way to the town of Dillon.

I elected for Dillon based on its amenities — an REI, fast food, and a large grocery market all in a walkable distance. Firstly, I ate my heart out at Smashburger. Then, REI provided me new footwear to replace mg exploding shoes and holed-out socks. I resupplied and booked a room down the street.

Many chore responsibilities kept me moving late into the night — filter cleaning, shower laundry, wound tending, other gear fixing and arrangements. I wasn’t in bed until 1am; I am going to need a solid off day at some point soon.

Signing off,

Zeppelin / fReaK (ON a leash)