We basically live at sea level. Sure, our house is at 600 feet, but the air is plenty thick and lousy with oxygen. I regularly climb to summits in the 5,000-6,000 foot range, but there aren't many peaks above that in my usual area. In fact, there are only about 30 peaks above 8,600 feet in the entire state of Washington. Sure, some of those are kind of impressive, but from an acclimation perspective we're lowlanders.
So welcome to Colorado. After spending a night at about 5,000 feet in Longmont we drove up to our "cabin" at 8,000 feet. With oxygen 45% less dense at this elevation we expected a little bit of a challenge. Our first adventure was a short trip with about 600 feet of elevation gain.
Oh, and it was snowing. A lot. "Dumping" is the most accurate term. It was glorious.
After getting settled, Lilly, Henry, and I headed up to Bible Point with many of the other Deuter Ambassadors. After all, what better way to test backpacks than to take them for a hike?
The route was easy to follow. It started as a road before turning into a trail with just a light dusting of snow. The slope wasn't steep by any means, but I was breathing like it was. Lilly was having no problems, but Henry kept asking why it was harder than usual.
By the time we got to the summit (not technically a mountain summit, but our destination nonetheless) the snow was a couple inches deep and we were treated to a pair of mailboxes. As such, it counted as a Mailbox Double and one I took kids on. They are so hardcore.
Many snowballs were made and thrown with surprisingly few tears after catching one right in the face. (I held back my tears like a pro.) Selfies, group shots, and time to head down for dinner.
This was but the first adventure of the weekend, but a perfect introduction to hiking at altitude and the perfect way to get to know the other ambassadors. A few more of these and the kids will be ready for a 14er. If I'm lucky, I will be, too.
