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| Mt. Harvard and Columbia Traverse Combo, CO | |
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| | Mt. Harvard and Columbia Traverse Combo, CO | | | |
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Mt. Harvard and Columbia Traverse Combo, CO
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| Hiking | 14.48 Miles |
6,100 AEG |
| | Hiking | 14.48 Miles | | | |
| 6,100 ft AEG | | | | |
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| no partners | | Taco Tuesday two for the price of one. I have every other Tuesday off with kids at camp and daycare. Weather permitting have been trying to get some decent AEG. The trip up to Twin Lakes passes numerous 14ers along the way. In fact we thought about Elbert while we were there, but forecast for storms Sunday which materialized had us paddle boarding instead (easier to watch weather pack up and go). I saw the combo and decided to do it. It turned out OK. Trail is in great shape up to Harvard and I have never seen such perfectly manicured trails out of talus. Wow! Could of trail ran back down that if I didn’t decide to do the combo. There are warnings all over 14ers.com about risk factors for this hike exposure HIGH commitment HIGH route finding HIGH all of which are probably true. There is a high number of search and rescue dispatched to that section as well as injuries. It wasn’t as bad as it was made out to be. I really had to slow down and be careful. I got hailed and rained on, but no thunder until I got to the car. The difficulty in this hike is the traverse. It is mostly trail less scree, talus, and exposure. If weather comes in suddenly your pretty much exposed on the ridge with no escape unless you are in one of the talus fields with car sized boulders.
You can access both these peaks from French Creek as well.
Apparently, a lot of people hike in and camp in horn fork basin which cuts the round trip mileage in half. The other notes were how horrible the trail is going up to Columbia which I came down. Initially for the first half from the top it is dirt loose rock numerous routes no switch backs and probably 30 degrees ( perfect for backcountry skiers in the winter and as bad as Bross with respect to steepness (which was recommended to me as a great winter backcountry run). Apparently, they have been working to Fix this trail for quite awhile. There is a sign half way down about maintenance and falling rocks etc. below that sign the trail is an engineering marvel where they have finished sections. Switchbacks with rocks perfectly placed as stairs using portable cranes. Scree used to make boarders on each side of rock free trail. They must have done this to Harvard at some point in the past. Both trails ( Columbia’s completed sections) are in far better shape than Pikes Peak or any of the other 14ers I’ve done. Mt. Princeton being the worst because apparently a rockslide covered most of the trail a couple of years ago. Wildflowers were great particularly on the Columbia trail. I enjoyed the traverse, but I averaged 3 mph all the way up Harvard and it took 3 hours to go from Harvard to Columbia and it is only 2.75 miles. I think the main problem lies in people not being patient. If you choose this route your going to have to slow down allot the time and not be in a hurry for the traverse. |
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