September 11, 2010 - Columbia Peak 14,073 ft - I got an early start from
home and had to use my headlamp for the first half hour of the hike through the forest. It took two hours to get to the fork in the
trail - left to Mt. Harvard or right to Columbia. I already did Harvard earlier, so to the right it was.
This hike ended up being the hardest one of the summer for me. The main reason for that is the steepness of the hike. There
were very few flat or even gradual ascents. As soon as I got out of the forest, it was a battle with the steepness, the loose
dirt, all the small rocks and those frustrating larger rocks that many times slid under my feet.
I wanted to get a shot over to Mt. Harvard - 14,420 ft in elevation. It is the third highest peak in Colorado and one that
I stood on just a couple months prior. At the time I thought about also doing Columbia but the Harvard hike had taken too much
out of me so I decided not too. Maybe if I had known how steep and slippery the solo climb of Columbia was going to be, I might
have decided differently.
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