Deciding on a Colorado 14er
by Angie
The Colorado Fourteeners (14ers) consist of about 53 official and 58 unofficial mountains with peaks that reach over 14,000 ft. (4,276 meters). There is dispute over the “official title” of several of the 14ers because the general rule to be qualified for such a title requires that a mountain be at least 300 ft. above its connecting saddle with another mountain. Regardless of these requirements, climbing any mountain close to 14,000 ft. is not an easy task and must be contemplated and planned for accordingly.
Location:
The first decision to be made when contemplating a Colorado 14er is the area of Colorado that you wish to travel to. There are seven mountain ranges in Colorado which contain 14ers:
- Front Range
- Tenmile Range
- Mosquito Range
- Sawatch Range
- Elk MountainsSan Juan Mountains
- Sangre de Cristo Range
These mountain ranges are widely spread out across Colorado and contain 58 of the country’s 14ers. Using a map or online resources to determine what mountain range you would like to travel to will work well. After you decide on the area, you should also research what skill level you want to attempt.
Skill Level:
The Yosemite Decimal System (YDS) for mountain class has been used in the United States for decades and ranks the technical difficulty of the hardest section of the mountain:
- Class 1: walking, usually on a well maintained trail.
- Class 2: steeper hiking, the possibility of going off trail, and crossing easy areas of snow and rock with occasional use of your hands.
- Class 3: called scrambling, this involves using your hands most of the time, route finding, and crossing extreme terrain with large boulders and steep snow.
- Class 4: considered climbing and requires a rope for safety in some areas because the terrain is often very steep and falls can be fatal.
- Class 5: considered technical climbing and involves the use of rope and belaying (none of the routes described on typical 14ers climbs are class 5).
Deciding on the skill level best for you should be based on your physical capabilities, experience, and gear. The next step should be researching 14ers that match your skill level or talking with someone who has made the climbs. These mountain ranges vary greatly in environment, skill level, and terrain.
Plan:
Once you have decided on the14er that you plan to attempt, you can narrow down the person or group of people that you want to construct this adventure with. It is advised that mountain treks such as these be attempted with at least one other person. However, forming a group that is too large can have its own issues. Every person in the group must make sure to have adequate physical capabilities, appropriate gear, and a strong commitment to making it to the top of the mountain. The weakest person in the group can make or break the trip. Once the group has been established, you can start making travel arrangements, planning approach routes by vehicle and on foot, mapping the trail, determining whether you will need to make a base camp, and determining what gear you will need to bring. The terrain view in Google Maps™ can be used to map travel routes and find roads. There are also several books about the Colorado 14ers and online resources which can be used to find trail heads and routes and plan for necessary gear and equipment.
Colorado 14ers, Colorado 14ers Class Ranking, Yosemite Decimal System
