Date: September 2nd, 2013
Trailhead: Denny Creek trailhead, 12 miles up route 306 from Buena Vista (Cottonwood pass)
The previous day, we had run/hiked Mt. Belford and Mt.Oxford. After eating a wonderful meal at Eddyline restaurant in Buena Vista, we planned the next days ascent. We decided that Mt. Yale would be perfect, and parked our car near the trailhead and slept in the Element.
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| The storm clears, over the mountains |
After a comfy night's sleep, with minimal outside animal noises, we got another sort of late start (8:30am). The first part of the trail was so beautiful- through what almost looked like a bamboo forest. The trail wasn't too technical, so if we hadn't been so sore from the previous days hike, it would've been very runnable.
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| The trail looked like this for the first 2-3 miles |
Like most other 14er trails, it was a steady climb from the first step, but the pitch really started to increase right around 3 miles. As we broke through the forest, the morning light was again spectacular.
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| Cody in the morning light. I have no idea why she's grimacing |
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| I can see for miles and miles and miles and miles |
After a lot of switch backs, and a non-technical trail, we hit the rocky section, which required a bit more sure footing. After a relatively small section of rock scrambling, we reached the summit.
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| Above treeline |
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| The trail gets a touch technical, but nothing too terrible |
We were rewarded with another day full of amazing views.
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| More perfect weather! Also- Cody's wearing her bear bell! |
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| Smiley happy people |
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| Those are probably other mountains that we've climbed :) |
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| I swear she enjoys the view as much as we do |
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| Aw, mom and her dogter. Also, notice the difference in clothing choices between Ryan and I- he gets cold on the mountain, I get hot |
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| Cody's 12th summit! |
Overview: The
route we took was pretty steep, right from the beginning. Technically speaking, there was a mix of rocky terrain, and very runnable terrain. We were able to run almost the entire way back.
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| Nice, smooth trail |
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| Happy Trail runners |
After our adventure on the trails, we went to nearby Cottonwood lake and hung out on my paddle board for the rest of the afternoon
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| Reading my Kindle while relaxing on the SUP. Cody, Ryan and I were all on my board |
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| Cottonwood Lake |
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| Cody relaxes on the Paddleboard with her mom and dad |
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| One tired AdventureDog! |
Details:
Distance: 9.66 miles
Total Time: 4:14
Moving Time: 3:04 (19:05 min/mile)
Starting Elevation: 9.951 feet
Max Elevation: 14,159 feet
Total Climb: 4,220 feet
Elevation Profile:
Even with the tricky footing, Ryan descends like a champ:
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