Hi! This collection is dedicated to my alpine (high-altitude) hiking trips. I guess my definition of alpine is anything above timberline, which in North America is about 12,000 feet. Ever since I hiked Humphreys Peak and Pikes Peak, I've been fond of alpine hiking. Recently, I caught the altitude bug big time and made several trips to Colorado (see Journal of a Mad Hiker Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3) and did some more hiking in the clouds. Now I can honestly say I'm thoroughly addicted.

I have rekindled my long-time visions and dreams of scaling all 54 fourteeners (peaks above 14,000 feet) in Colorado. Since I don't live there, travel time and money really limit my options. However, the dream lives on and I'll do it some day. I've also recently added Mount Whitney (tallest point in California and the 48 continental states) to this list. Enjoy these adventures!

News flash: The US Geological Survey recently announced that some Colorado peaks are taller than previously thought. Many of these are listed below in my photo journal. So if you see an elevation number in these following pages that you aren't used to seeing, that's probably why.

PS, in case you are interested in alpine hiking, here are a couple great websites: Peakware.com and SummitPost.com. Hope you find them as cool as this website! =^)

Humphreys Peak (12,637'), Flagstaff, Arizona (High Point) (various trips)

Pikes Peak (14,115'), Manitou Springs, Colorado (May 31, 1998)

Longs Peak (14,259'), Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado (August 23, 1998)

Mount Sneffels (14,153'), Ouray, Colorado (June 18, 2002)

Mount Elbert (14,440'), Leadville, Colorado (High Point) (June 19, 2002)

Mount Bierstadt (14,065') / Mount Evans (14,265'), Georgetown, Colorado (June 21, 2002)

Grays Peak (14,278') / Torreys Peak (14,275'), Bakerville, Colorado (June 22, 2002)

Mount Shavano (14,231') / Tabeguache Peak (14,162'), near Salida, Colorado (September 1, 2002)

Mt Lincoln (14,293') / Mt Democrat (14,155') / Mt Bross (14,178'), Alma, Colorado (September 3, 2002)

Mount Princeton (14,204'), Nathrop, Colorado (September 4, 2002)

Quandary Peak (14,271'), Tordal Estates, Colorado (September 5, 2002)

La Plata Peak (14,336'), Everett, Colorado (September 6, 2002)

Mount Belford (14,203') / Mount Oxford (14,160'), Vicksburg, Colorado (September 7, 2002)

Mount Massive (14,421') Leadville, Colorado (July 2, 2003)

Wilson Peak (14,017') Sawpit, Colorado (September 1, 2003)

Mount Yale (14,202') Buena Vista, Colorado (September 2, 2003)

Mount Whitney (14,508') / Mount Muir (14,015') Lone Pine, California (June 19, 2004)

San Luis Peak (14,014') Creede, Colorado (September 7, 2004)

Redcloud Peak (14,034') / Sunshine Peak (14,001') Sherman, Colorado (September 8, 2004)

Wetterhorn Peak (14,015') / Uncompahgre Peak (14,309') Capitol City, Colorado (September 9, 2004)

Handies Peak (14,048') Eureka, Colorado (September 10, 2004)

Mount Rainier (14,411') Longmire, Washington (June 22-23, 2005)

Mount Antero (14,269') St. Elmo, Colorado (September 5, 2005)

Mount Harvard (14,420') / Mount Columbia (14,073') Buena Vista, Colorado (September 6, 2005)

Mount Sherman (14,036') Leadville, Colorado (September 7, 2005)

Culebra Peak (14,047') San Luis, Colorado (July 2, 2006)

Castle Peak (14,265') / Conundrum Peak (14,060') Aspen, Colorado (September 3, 2006)

Maroon Peak (14,156') / North Maroon Peak (14,014') Aspen, Colorado (September 4, 2006)

Huron Peak (14,003') Winfield, Colorado (September 5, 2006)

Mount Lindsey (14,042') Gardner, Colorado (September 3, 2007)

Crestone Peak (14,294') Westcliffe, Colorado (September 4, 2007)

Humbolt Peak (14,064') Westcliffe, Colorado (September 5, 2007)

Disclaimer: Hi-color or true color is best for viewing pictures.
The hard copy photos are much better.