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Last February

The high country is pretty snowed in by now. I’m moving to lower elevations, and plan to do more backcountry skiing this winter as well. Always appreciate your support Vickie and have a great Thanksgiving

@@ruggedland I don't think I'm going to have many hikes or videos in the coming months to publish. I have six videos from this year that I will release when I can't hike. I can't believe how fast winter arrived this year. I was able to hike in 2023 all the way until February 1 this year. I hit a trail in the Thompson Canyon that is steep but short when I can't get out in the high country. Not video worthy though but a great workout. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your family too.

Thanks Mark for sharing your story. I look forward to going back to this area during summer

Totally agree. I had the whole place to myself for nearly an hr and really enjoyed the view. Plan to hit some of those jagged peaks next summer. Thanks for watching/commenting

Thank you, glad you enjoyed it!

Thanks very much Vickie. I took a direct line from the summit down to the lake that drops nearly 2500ft in less than a mile. It was loose talus slope and took me well over 1hr, but still probably faster than taking the standard east ridge down and 2 miles of road walking back to car

Thanks Mark. This may be my last outing above 13K’ till next Spring as winter has settled in finally in the high country

Thanks. As an empty-nester for a number of years now, I’m not young anymore. Thankful I can still do the harder stuff today and will try to enjoy it till I can no longer do it safely

Thank you

Thanks for sharing your story Mark. A lot has changed since then I imagine

@@ruggedland I moved to Wisconsin 42 years ago. I hiked with a different brother when I visited Colorado each late summer (to 2014), but not from the Longs Peak trailhead. Your videos and those of others are great for taking me back into the mountains.

Thank you!

Thank you. It’s a fun area for hiking in summer and skiing in winter. One can also access Pettingell Peak from the Pass by heading south along the ridge

@@dr.nigelcool3771 thanks for the comments. Chasm Lake is a solid hike and can be tricky to navigate in a few spots. The view at the Junction is pretty awesome too with closeup view of both Meeker and Longs

Thanks Vickie!

Thank you very much!

Thank you Sir for the nice comments. I try to put focus on nature instead of myself in all my videos. Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for watching

Thanks Vickie. I was under the impression I could download my original videos from RUclips Studio so I didn’t save any of my original videos until very recently when I realized that it only gave me 720p version. I was glad to find out this method after a little bit of digging. I know how to watch my private videos on TV and like you I also do some final checking before publishing but mostly on my computer

Thanks Mike! It was a pleasant walk for sure

@@allenfritschel1859 thank you. It was a good bang for the buck hike. Soon one has to snowshoe/ski up to the pass

Thanks for the support Vickie. Glad you enjoyed it

Definitely challenging but it’s a fantastic summit! Thanks for watching

Thank you. The video was taken on Oct 19. It was a relatively calm day and I was glad to be able to fly the drone a bit. Love that whole area. Appreciate your comments

Indeed. The mountains are getting some good snow this week. Thanks for watching

@@hiking1213 pleasure to meet you too Bob. Happy trails!

Yup. Didn’t see a single person until the summit

@ruggedland how it SHOULD be!!

Hey, I’m a tourist!

@pw2883 everyone has to start SOMEWHERE!!

Thanks you!

@@allenfritschel1859 thank you for your kind words. Having lived here since 1993 and the mountains are my sanctuary

@@BASEguy955 I’m using an old DJI mini 2 that I bought a few years ago. I’ll likely upgrade to mini 3 or 4 pro soon. Costco has a good bundle for both sans the RC2 controller which I can probably live without. Thanks for watching

Thanks Mark! Love the scramble at Tenmile Range peaks

Thanks Vickie. The west ridge of Pacific Peak was a fun scramble for me. The other way to summit (and to see the Tarn), is via McCullough Gulch TH which is what Bob took. It is a much longer approach but can be kept under class 3. Thanks for watching

The dirt road to the TH is pretty smooth. Only challenge is the second water crossing that requires some clearance. Those are all great peaks. Hard to go wrong with any mountain in the San Juans. Thanks for watching

Thank you! Cheers!

Fall is a great time to hike these peaks. No threat of T storms and no bugs either, and the colors are amazing too. Thanks for watching

Thank you 🙏

@@ruggedland ❤️❤️❤️

Hi Vickie. Thanks for commenting. The La Garita range is quite remote and for that reason one can have lots of solitude. Will go back to hike more for sure. In colder months I’d keep hiking in lower elevations along the foothills. A couple of state parks I enjoy are Staunton and Golden Gate Canyon. Once snow is consolidated in late Spring I plan to do a few more snow climbs as well

Thank you. One of my better hikes this year

Thank you 🙏

Thanks Mark. Appreciate your comments. I always credit the music artists in the description of each video

Yes sir. I enjoy hiking in solitude very much. Thanks for watching

Thanks PW. I appreciate the opportunities when she is willing to go out with me :)

I think she was trying to leave him when she was running down the trail. Hopefully he got back to the trailhead first. :)

Thanks Mark. Always appreciate your comments. Mt Alice has been on my list for a while and glad to have finally done it. Very enjoyable loop through the heart of Wild Basin

Thanks 🙏 Glad you enjoyed it

Alice is a great summit with views of the basin and so many nearby 13ers. Ascending Boulder-Grand pass works too. It is somewhat loose but relatively short. Hope you can get it. Thanks for watching!

@@MoodyPeaks it’s my new favorite in the Wild Basin as well. So much variety of scenery. 18 miles seemed to go very quickly. Thanks for watching

Appreciate your comments and thanks for the support

Thanks Vickie. Alice has been on my list for a while, glad to finally do it this fall. It’s my first time visiting all these lakes too, and I enjoyed them all, especially Lion Lake #2. I also really enjoyed the valley between Thunder Lake and Lake of Many Winds. Very serene and beautiful with fall colors. Did Pacific Peak Saturday and also visited Pacific Tarn. Great trip. Video coming in two weeks

@@ruggedland Oh, I'm so excited to see your hike-climb to Pacific Peak and Tarn. The highest named body of water in the US.

It was nice meeting you yesterday Bob. No worry at all about choosing a different route. I was thinking about the Mohawk Lakes route to get up to Pacific too but the west ridge looks too intriguing to pass up. Atlantic west ridge is a worthy winter route. Relatively safe but can be challenging depending on snow condition. Like the idea of a future climb together, maybe a bit closer to home like RMNP

@@ruggedland that would be fine. I was also thinking that if you ever wanted to climb one of the tougher 14ers again, I wouldn’t mind an experienced guide. 😁 But only if it’s a climb you had a desire to do again. Some of those climbs in the Elk Mountains have me a little concerned. 😬

I have Snowmass and N Maroon left in the Elk. Plan to do a snow climb with some friends on Snowmass next year but I may need a partner for N Maroon if you are interested

@@ruggedland I’ve done a little bit of class 4, but not a class 4 14er yet. I wonder, would North Maroon be a good intro peak into class 4? Or should I do another class 4 first? I was thinking about doing Crestone Needle next year as my into class 4 climb. But maybe I’m over thinking this.

@@hiking1213 I think the Needle (East Gully) would be a better choice for your first C4. The rock is much more solid compared to anything in the Elk

Thanks Vickie, glad you enjoyed it, as we certainly did. Back to the Rocky next week

Yes if it’s free of snow/ice. The summit block involves some scrambling but you can skip that if you are not comfortable and still get a great workout and views towards the west. Might take you multiple hours but doable for most

@ruggedland I see thank you!