Saturday (May 23) I took the long Journey back to Yale. Mount Yale that is, in the Collegiate Peaks Wilderness near Buena Vista Colorado. Here are the specifics of the climb:
8.75 miles round trip, 4300 vertical feet in elevation gain. The last one and a half miles was rougly 1400 feet/mile average. Let's just say it was very steep!
Myself and 4 others: Mike, Paul, John, and Nathaniel made our way up this beast. There was a covering of fresh snow from the night before and it was cloudy all day. In spite of the fresh snow we never had to wear our snowshoes, and because of the foggy conditions we never got a look at the summit until we were on it! This was my first climb at altitude this summer and I certainly felt it. Glad I had the advil along to squelch any onset of altitude sickness.
I climbed Mount Yale some 23 years ago when I was much younger and used to doing 3-4 peaks in as many days. I now know why I waited 23 years to do it again. It is a brutal haul to be sure.
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