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Mags
12-13-2005, 16:17
This Sunday went to Mt. Audubon, a 13er that
is very popular to hike during the Summer and Fall.

And why not? Great views of the divide, not a very
hard hike, get some apline hiking in. It is a great hike!

Winter is another ball of wax. The access road is
closed, so it becomes an almost 14 mile R/T hike with 3000' +
elev gain on a trail that can be buried in snow, not
too well marked. The winds can be quite brutal. But it is
so worth it. The Rockies covered in snow with a bright blue sky
as a background. Oh yes!

The hike was interesting as well for a few reasons.

Reason 1: Some of us spent a little too much time at
a Christmas party the night before. I did not get home
until 2am. :O

Reason 2: At said Christmas party, some of us may had
a little too much holiday cheer (in the form of eggnog
with brandy, wine and whatever else). :)

Reason 3: I ended up walking home about 4 miles or so.

Reason 4: About three hours of sleep after said
Christmas cheer. Ahem.


So the alarm clock goes off at 6am, say a few choice
words, grab some coffee to wake up and arrived at the RSVP
place to see some of my friends who also felt the same way I
did!

We made it to the windy trailhead (at 10k feet). And
trekked off.

The road, which is closed in the winter, had little
snow. But once we made it to the base of the mountain, lots of
snow! On came the snowshoes and lots of powdery off trail
snowshoeing. A bit tiring! :-)

Because it was cold (and probably because we were a
bit crusty from the night before..er..), we did not eat enough. We all knew
better... Stupid!

Made it to the summit and CHOWED on a cold bagle, egg,
cheese and sausage sandwhich, followed by a brownie. Felt much, much
better. My friends also did the same.

The summit view was gorgeous, if cold. Once above tree
line, had goggles, balaclava and a a face mask on.

We headed down the mountain and the wind shifted
behind the divide. Much warmer! The tundra felt
inviting. The sun was nice on our face.

We made it back to the road at dusk. The alpenglow on
the moutains was a sight to behold.

The almost full moon came out, lighting our way. Could
see our shadows by the light of the moon. Beautiful!

Made it back to the car, broke out the thermos of
still hot tea I had waiting and relaxed a bit in the
suprisingly warm night air.

Wonderful trek.

I made it back home in time for an early (2 weeks)
Hanukah party. A bit less Hanukah "cheer". :) (Though
my homemade almond ricotta pie seemed to have made
people happy).

At 11pm I finally settled down for a
long winters nap....

This week? No holiday cheer before the ski trip..can
tell you that much! :)

Pics at: http://gallery.backcountry.net/cowint06

They are lo-res pics, if you want some hi-res pics,
e-mail me.

Footslogger
12-13-2005, 16:24
You stinker ...I bit on the whole "Autobahn" thing (being of German ancestry and all). Couldn't figure out what the Autobahn had to do with the Colorado Trail.

You're a HOOT man !!

'Slogger

Mags
12-13-2005, 17:00
Yep..a not so funny play on words. :p

rickb
12-13-2005, 17:37
You give new meaning to the term T-shirt weather.

Or should I say your friends do.

Mags
12-13-2005, 17:46
Yep...I decided to stay all bundled up. I wish I could of recorded my friends' comments when they took the clothese off. :)

hustler
12-17-2005, 23:00
You should go down and do some winter ascents in the San Jaun's. I've had some wild winter adventures down there. Watch out for avalanches though, my room mate got caught in two.

Mags
12-18-2005, 17:36
You should go down and do some winter ascents in the San Jaun's. I've had some wild winter adventures down there. Watch out for avalanches though, my room mate got caught in two.


I am an admitted wimp. Wild adventures with avalanche danger is a probably a bit more than I care to experience. :)

I went backcountry skiing this weekend. For once, I did not fall! Should have some pics posted tomorrow.

hustler
12-18-2005, 22:24
Mags, Your colorado adventures get me pumped. I have hung up the old skins for this winter though. We should chat sometime about the Leadville 100, I plan on running it this summer. Also did you have a page set up on the Colorado Trail? Keep up the good work and keep us Whiteblazers up to date on winter adventures.

Mags
12-19-2005, 13:29
Mags, Your colorado adventures get me pumped. I have hung up the old skins for this winter though. We should chat sometime about the Leadville 100, I plan on running it this summer. Also did you have a page set up on the Colorado Trail? Keep up the good work and keep us Whiteblazers up to date on winter adventures.

You should go to the Rockies Ruck in Leadville this coming February. A great chance to meet some fellow LD hikers in the area.
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/rockies_ruck/

I did not tele this weekend, though. I went backcountry touring (fishscales). For the mellow grades, prefer fishscales to tele skis. No need to futz around with skins.

As for leadville, just one phrase of advice: Start slow and taper off! :)

Finally, yep..have some Colorado Trail stuff:
http://www.magnanti.com/mags_colotrail.htm

Has a nice planning doc (if I do say so), my journal and some pics.