Mt. Sherman- My Third 14er

Wow I needed a four day weekend for the 4^th. I’m not sure there’s anything we didn’t do!

On the 4^th we went for a bike ride then headed to a friends’ BBQ to eat, drink, and be merry.  The boys were appropriately patriotic.

On Friday we packed up and headed to the Mosquito range and found an awesome primitive camping area right near Four Mile Creek. Side notes: 1) My Jeep was freaking awesome on the rocky drive; 2) If you go to Mt. Sherman, bring a fly rod and fish for brook trout (make sure you have a Colorado fishing license).

On Saturday we packed up 10 human friends and 6 dog friends and headed to the summit of Mt. Sherman, a 14,036 foot peak nestled between Fairplay and Leadville. Mt. Sherman is regarded as one of the easiest 14ers to climb, and it didn’t take us long to summit. However, the wind on the ridge was probably some of the worst wind I’ve experienced. I’ve been unable to find historical weather for Saturday, but I’d guess there were 50 mph sustained winds with gusts that were even higher. There were times where gusts would knock my 130 pound body off my feet and where even moving forward was a fight against the wind. It was the shortest I’ve stayed on a summit because the conditions were so uncomfortable. We hustled back to camp for some beer and continued the celebration in town at Euclid Hall. Let me tell you, a brat on a pretzel bun with a lemongrass saison (a Maui Brewing and Lost Abbey collaboration) has never tasted so good.

Sunday we went for a second bike ride (I’m 30% of the way to keeping my Cervelo!), wandered through the Cherry Creek Art Festival and had some friends over for dinner (The Boy made banh mi-inspired sausage on the grill! Brilliant!). What a great way to spend a long weekend!