La Plata Peak Run

Yahoo! I finally have a GPS track of a high peak run... almost.

I've run 14,000 ft peaks before (the parts that were runnable) but my phone GPS does not work outside cell networks, and I no longer have a working handheld GPS -- which is crazy considering the types of outdoor activities I do. Anyway, I finally was able to record this run using my new Garmin Forerunner 405, but unfortunately it mysteriously went insane during my ascent, placing me a mile off-trail and two miles underneath Ellingwood Ridge! At least it managed to record the descent portion of my run correctly.*

La Plata Peak is in the Sawatch Range, south of Leadville, CO. The starting elevation off Hwy 82 is around 10,100 ft, the summit is 14,336 ft, and the total distance was around 9.4 miles.


This is an interesting and scenic trail, with a mile and a half in pine forest, some steep climbs above a green mountain valley, and more steep scurrying up somewhat overused dirt trails and talus to the summit. There were snow fields, but all were avoidable. The views, of course, were great. Snowmass Peak was visible to the west, and the rest of the Sawatch to the north and south.

Below is a picture of one of the more sedate stretches of trail, which helps to explain why I happily endure the oxygen deprivation. In spite of the similarity to the Google Earth image above, that's actually Seyres Peak in the background; La Plata is 2,000 ft up and out of sight to the left:


The only part I didn't care for was the upper portion, where there was a lot of slippery eroded dirt and stones. It made for some unpleasant downhill portions, because of the slipping, and the fact that my toes were hitting the ends of my shoes. When that happens I just adjust the laces, curl my toes slightly, and stop running to step down carefully as necessary.

Here's a shot of Ellingwood Ridge, which also leads to the summit and appears as the high area on the left side of the Google Earth image. A storm lingers over Hwy 24 behind the ridge, and you could hear the thunder. I was off the peak before the weather reached La Plata. One of the advantages of running is that you can make a leisurely start and still be back down before afternoon thunderstorms.


Afterwards I stopped for lunch and a coffee in Leadville, and was surprised to find Anton Krupicka working as a barista. That probably won't mean anything unless you pay attention to race results for long trail races, but Tony is one of the top long-distance runners in the country. On Saturday, he placed second in the Leadville Trail Marathon with a time of 3:40 with cramps. I couldn't run that fast on flat land, let alone over a 13,000 ft. mountain pass. He is a radical advocate of a small carbon footprint, so he won't be showing up on the OBloggers feed, but he works hard and excels at the sport he loves, and I can certainly respect that.

*It was a bad technology day. I also dropped my camera at the summit. I managed to bend the lens back into alignment (!) and amazingly it still works. However, there's a piece loose inside that sometimes shows up in the images, so it needs a doctor visit. Bummer. I shudder to think what's going to happen if I buy an iPhone. Two words: protective cover.

Dr. John Lewis Boston Tea Party Videos

Wow. Listen to these 4th of July Boston Tea Party videos by Dr. John Lewis of Duke University, and ponder on the importance of the fact that these ideas are once again being heard in this country, with the moral fervor they once had and always deserve. Bravo!

Part 1:

Part 2:

Bumper Sticker Contradiction

On the way into work I saw the following bumper stickers on the same vehicle:

• Obama '09
• Coexist (spelled out in religious symbols)
• Euthanize Fundamentalists

M'kay. Not that I'm a big fan of speaking to invisible friends who should already know what I'm thinking before I speak to them, but... what's wrong with this picture? Somebody needs to be more consistent in applying their principles.

I didn't see a "McCain '09" sticker, but it might have fallen off.

Liberals Love "Teabagging"

The word, I mean. That's all. Nothing more.

Each time I hear the Left gleefully and snidely refer to Tea Party participants as "teabaggers", I wonder what percentage of the audience gets the innuendo? I'm still kind of shocked by the prevalence of this usage; almost every liberal post I've read on the Tea Parties uses the term. They just won't let go of it. The term, I mean.

Here's a sample Keith Olbermann video, which I posted mainly because it was my personal intro to what a useless shite he is.

Perhaps I should begin referring to those who accept government-generated wind farm employment as "blow-jobbers". It's just a descriptive phrase, that's all. Nothing more.

Pawnee Pass Run

Last Sunday's run was from from Brainard Lake to Pawnee Pass, in Colorado's Indian Peaks Wilderness.

I had not really paid much attention to the name "Indian Peaks" until I moved here, even though it part of the same range of mountains whose northern end passes through Rocky Mountain National Park, which I had visited many times. Each time I'm out in these peaks I appreciate them more; they are rugged, interesting and scenic, and contain a wide variety of terrain.

The low point on this run was 10,350 ft, the high point 12,600 ft, with a total mileage of about 9.4 miles.

About 2/3 of the way up is Lake Isabelle. The pass that was my destination is the ridge on the upper right. You can see this lake in the Google Earth track in the back, at the base of the peaks.


One of the cool things about this run, if you'll pardon the pun, was the snow. Although I'd been deterred a couple of times recently by deep and/or risky snow, I decided to press on this time in my rather too-well-ventilated Brooks Cascadias. I'm glad I did, soggy feet and all. Here's one of the snow fields I encountered:


When it was steep, I walked up with my feet sideways, and down on my heels, following existing tracks. Even though my feet got a bit damp, it wasn't bad because it was a beautiful sunny day, and the sensation of walking on surreal "dunes" of snow was fun.

Here is the view over the other side of Pawnee Pass, to Pawnee Lake:


For perspective, Pawnee Lake below is about 500 feet higher my starting point. Luckily, because of the number of switchbacks, few segments of the trail were steep, so much of it felt like running on flat land. Aside from the typical Indian Peaks rocks (which seem to be round and small and designed to make running difficult) the trail was actually very good for running.

Other local areas have different "running geography": for example, the Pikes Peak area has pink granite rock that reduces to soft fine gravel, whereas the hogbacks west of Denver have sharp-edged angled sandstone that breaks off in chunks and eventually dissolves into pockets of beach sand.

The summer running season is off to a good start. Hopefully there will be longer and higher runs ahead :)