Site Journal #2

This past Sunday me and three of my friends took a long hike up Mount Elbert. Elbert is the tallest mountain in the Rockies. It is also the second highest in the continental united states. On this hike we had a great time, and we got really connected with nature. We left the university campus at 4 am to start a 2 hour drive out to the Elbert North Ridge trail head. When we arrived, it was a fridged 40 degrees. We started our trek through some sleet and even a bit of snow. Then we saw a beautiful rainbow about 20 minutes into our hike. Then we kept hiking for about 2 hours until we reached about 12,000 feet of elevation. This was when we cleared the tree line. The mountain was protecting us from the wind, and the sun was beating down on us so we took off all of our layers. But it wasn't for long until we reached about 13,000 feet when the wind started whipping at us again. At this high snow was everywhere and the temperature plummeted. This is when we were getting exhausted from fighting the wind and the low oxygen. Then we had to throw all of our layers back on and we even had to fully cover our faces to prevent wind burns. The final part of the climb was the hardest as we fought the steepest, snowiest, windiest, and coldest part of the trail. But then we reached the top and it was beautiful. We were at the ceiling of the Rockies, and we were able to see so much below us, and it was beautiful. But then we had to start our decent. Our climb took 4.5 hours, and the walk down took 3 hours. But the way down was excruciating on the knees and felt almost more painful than the climb up. But then we reached the bottom where it was warm and sunny, and we completed our trip. I am super happy we climbed Elbert before it got too cold. It was exhausting but a memory I will never forget.