Going Coastal

For me, I usually spend less time adventuring when snow begins to fall. This is not because I dislike snow, rather, I merely don’t have a lot of experience dealing with it. An REI gift card recently reminded me “adventure has no off season.” With this lovely adage in mind, I decided to try an […]

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High Hopes on Talus Slopes

Mount Hope towers above the popular recreation area of Twin Lakes, Colorado. Despite its alluring contours and inviting slopes, it is often neglected; overshadowed by its slightly taller neighbors. Standing at an impressive 13,933′, Mount Hope is Colorado’s 64th tallest peak, and its proximity to larger and more popular summits in the Sawatch Range keep […]

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For The Crater Good

With Skyler and I both moving on to adventures far distant from one another, we decided to do one more big hike before the upcoming year. Lone Eagle Peak towering to a fine point over Mirror Lake is an iconic image of the Rocky Mountains. The neighboring water body, Crater Lake, is another well-regarded destination […]

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Through the Looking Glass

It was at the end of last year that the Overcast Adventurers and company donned their heaviest winter coats and set off to Rocky Mountain National Park to snowshoe up to a couple of frozen alpine and subalpine lakes. Back then, the crowds were thin, the air was brisk, and the landscape was an icebox […]

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Leavick All Behind

This past December, at the start of my last winter break, I struck out for a summit attempt of Horseshoe Mountain. This peak is aptly named for its horseshoe-like curvature and can be seen rising high above the South Park Basin, just southwest of Fairplay. It’s Colorado’s 72nd-largest ranked mountain, standing proud at 13,898 feet. […]

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Beyond the Veil

The grimy and over-labored workers of the small mining camp of Buckskin Joe took solace in few things. The miners drudged to find the hidden treasures beneath the granite, the prospectors scoured the land for the promise of riches… but at the end of a hard day these men knew they could reconcile their struggles […]

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For Emerald Lang Syne

Seasons greetings from the Overcast Adventurers! With the new year just around the corner, and the sizable intermission since our last post, Skyler and I thought it might be nice to get one more 2016 blog in. Our hike was one that is iconic to Colorado: the Emerald Lake trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. […]

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Sawatch Me Do Three

Missouri Mountain, Iowa Peak, and Emerald Peak Grand Slam ~15.5 miles round-trip; 6,300′ elevation gain.             The turn to Chaffe County Road 390 and its subsequent vexatious washboard ruts felt all too familiar. Five months ago, I had kicked off the 14er season with ascents of Mt. Belford and Mt. Oxford—two of the three 14ers […]

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Tooth Decay

El Diente Peak. A high mountain summit within the San Juan Range named for its tooth-like visage (El Diente translates to “The Tooth” in Spanish). If this peak is the tooth of the San Juans, then these mountains have clearly forgotten their oral hygiene. El Diente Peak, and its neighboring summits of Mt. Wilson and […]

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Silence of the Lamphiers

With the end of August comes cooler weather, gentler sun, windier skies, and, for one of the Overcast Adventurers, school! Skyler was back up in Gunnison for classes, and I briefly left my life of state park maintenance to join him for a hike. We departed Gunnison on August 27th for the Fossil Ridge Wilderness […]

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