Colorado peak questions, condition requests and other info.
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Tejonmax wrote:Hitchhiking down may be the best/only option.
I've generally thought/done hitchhiking as a convenient but not necessary alternative to walking/biking/skiing -- when either I was still prepared to do the other activities (albeit slower) or the destination wasn't important if I couldn't reach it.
If unwilling to match fitness with realistic goals, modify goals, or bring the gear for an overnight stay, it's actually a planned rescue more than it is hitchhiking.
Tejonmax wrote:Hitchhiking down may be the best/only option.
I've generally thought/done hitchhiking as a convenient but not necessary alternative to walking/biking/skiing -- when either I was still prepared to do the other activities (albeit slower) or the destination wasn't important if I couldn't reach it.
If unwilling to match fitness with realistic goals, modify goals, or bring the gear for an overnight stay, it's actually a planned rescue more than it is hitchhiking.
This isn't about fitness. How many hikers go up and down Barr trail the same day. Very few I would guess. Most take the train down. I am more than fit to hike the Barr trail up but it would be a very very long day to go back down. But can't do that with a dog so i was looking for alternatives. Does anyone actually read the posts they respond to? I have gotten some off the wall responses that have had nothing to do with the question I asked. Do you people just like the sound of your fingers typing? Are you all so superior to people that you don't even know anything about that you just need to talk down to everyone? I am 62 years old and in the past 25 months I have hiked to the top of a 14er 39 times. Fitness is NOT the issue here. Apparently the real problem here is reading comprehension.
Tejonmax wrote:
This isn't about fitness. How many hikers go up and down Barr trail the same day. Very few I would guess. Most take the train down. I am more than fit to hike the Barr trail up but it would be a very very long day to go back down. But can't do that with a dog so i was looking for alternatives. Does anyone actually read the posts they respond to? I have gotten some off the wall responses that have had nothing to do with the question I asked. Do you people just like the sound of your fingers typing? Are you all so superior to people that you don't even know anything about that you just need to talk down to everyone? I am 62 years old and in the past 25 months I have hiked to the top of a 14er 39 times. Fitness is NOT the issue here. Apparently the real problem here is reading comprehension.
You've been given all the answers you already knew...
~ hitchhike
~ have a friend pick up
~ find another peak
Tejonmax wrote:Hitchhiking down may be the best/only option.
I've generally thought/done hitchhiking as a convenient but not necessary alternative to walking/biking/skiing -- when either I was still prepared to do the other activities (albeit slower) or the destination wasn't important if I couldn't reach it.
If unwilling to match fitness with realistic goals, modify goals, or bring the gear for an overnight stay, it's actually a planned rescue more than it is hitchhiking.
This isn't about fitness. How many hikers go up and down Barr trail the same day. Very few I would guess. Most take the train down. I am more than fit to hike the Barr trail up but it would be a very very long day to go back down. But can't do that with a dog so i was looking for alternatives. Does anyone actually read the posts they respond to? I have gotten some off the wall responses that have had nothing to do with the question I asked. Do you people just like the sound of your fingers typing? Are you all so superior to people that you don't even know anything about that you just need to talk down to everyone? I am 62 years old and in the past 25 months I have hiked to the top of a 14er 39 times. Fitness is NOT the issue here. Apparently the real problem here is reading comprehension.
Now let the s**t storm begin......
'
Man this is getting spicy.
You say you're "more than fit" enough to go up and down in a day. And you said your dog is as well. So what's the problem? Yes, it is a long day. No doubt about that. That's also the point. Plenty of hikers the whole Barr trail in a day round trip. Them some do it as a backpacking trip, staying at Barr camp or camping elsewhere. Hell, several hundred people run up and down in a day from the center of town at the Pikes Peak Marathon. I mean, no one cares which way you do it, but I am not sure what all the fuss in this post is about either.
Try not to take it personal. Lots of people on here are opinionated. Just gain info if you can and disregard the rest. You can start to find certain people to ask question and pm them. It sucks that this kind of thing happens on this site. That is why I don't post a lot.
Tejonmax wrote: I am 62 years old and in the past 25 months I have hiked to the top of a 14er 39 times. Fitness is NOT the issue here. Apparently the real problem here is reading comprehension.
Old peeps should stay home where they and their doggie are safe.
Call on God, but row away from the rocks.
Hunter S Thompson
Walk away from the droning and leave the hive behind.
Dick Derkase
Doing Barr-in-a-day is a good challenge...if you have the fitness to do it, then why not do it?
PS the saddest part about summiting Pikes with a dog is not getting to go inside to buy the donuts.
"Tongue-tied and twisted, just an earthbound misfit, am I." -David Gilmour, Pink Floyd
"We knocked the bastard off." Hillary, 1953
"It is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves." Hillary, 2003
Couldn't we all use 50 years of humble growth?
-Steve Gladbach
mjsherman wrote:Try not to take it personal. Lots of people on here are opinionated.
If you don't have an opinion, why are you even on the internet?
To the OP, how about a bike with a baby carrier for the dog to ride down in? Stash it at the top and cruise down. Might have to ensure that the dog is safely fastened though.
Yeah, I knew the OP was fishing for some attention for whatever reason, but my initial post stands:
Hiking up a mountain and relying on hitchhiking, with a dog (or child, for that matter) is more rescue than hitchhiking.
It gives standard mountain hitchhiking a bad name.
You may (and the odds may exceed 50% on a nice summer weekend) easily get a dog-friendly ride in a pickup truck.
The odds are low that you wouldn't get a ride at all.
Somewhere in the middle might be someone that is inconvenienced -- many reasonable people, including myself, would feel bad about a dog needing (remember, it wasn't his choice!) a ride down -- and would offer a ride.
IMHO, requiring hitchhiking with a dependent companion is irresponsible.
The reason for my angle is this: I've seen plenty of people trying to shoehorn their dogs (or kids) into situations of individual want. I've personally had to temper my own goals, when hiking with my son, to be something we can reasonable do together, and not becoming fixated on unrealistic goals. You can choose or not to consider this point of view,
You could consider getting a ride up and then hiking down. Then it wouldn't be reliant on the lack of desire to hike down or camp or bike shuttle or leave the dog home or hike part-way or hike a different mountain or pre-arrange a ride.
Many people on this forum have hiked the Barr trail in a day. I did it a couple weeks ago, starting at sunrise and finishing at sunset. I was passed a few times by runners who were doing the trail twice in a day. To answer another question, I love the sound of my fingers typing on the keyboard. It keeps me sane when I am supposed to be working but instead just posting on 14ers. I personally don't understand why you would want to do the Barr trail if you must catch a ride back down. It is not exactly the prettiest of routes on one of the ugliest 14ers. The only reason I did it was as a warm up hike for the Radical Slam on Longs.
Don't blame us for our opinions: you essentially stated that you plan on doing half the Barr trail and need to bum a ride down from the peak. That is more of a statement than a question. Not many people are going to jump at the opportunity to assist you by driving unless you were trying to set a speed record or are a damsel in dire peril searching for a Brave Sir Gallahad. Such is the harsh reality of this forum. I would gladly spend a day hiking with someone, but not particularly thrilled of spending a few hours driving someone.
