3 Summits in 4 days?

[scottbabu]

Looking to accomplish Mt Elbert, Massive and Harvard in a 4 day span. (Saving a day for weather and/or rest). Going to use Leadville as my home base.
I'm 48 and in good shape. I summitted Mt Rainier last year and will be doing Mt Whitney the week before I attempt these 3 high peaks in CO.
I reside in Virginia so I'm slightly concerned about how the altitude might affect my stamina over these 3 climbs.
Is this a realistic goal?

[jscully]

If you have a high level of fitness I dont think youll have a problem doing that. They are all non technical walk-ups. The distances are longer on Massive and Elbert but definitely doable in a day. It would be a good idea to get an early start on all of them i.e 4-430am to help avoid being caught in a storm.

[AlexeyD]

The distances are longer on Massive and Elbert

Hmm...pretty sure the standard route on Harvard has both more mileage and gain than either standard route on Elbert or SW slopes route on Massive. E slopes route on Massive may be a tad longer, but has similar gain (http://14ers.com/route.php?route=harv1& ... .+Columbia" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;).

[14erobsessedkansan]

I'm actually planning on doing a very similar thing next week, but due to time constraint, have a goal to do three (Massive, Yale and maybe Missouri) in THREE straight days. For me, I believe its possible since a few years ago, I and a couple of buddies did Quandary, the Decalibron group and Grays/Torreys in FOUR days. And we, like you, are flatlanders who go out to CO once or twice a summer and are in our mid forties. I am quite fit for my age, and more fit than my climbing buddies. If the three of us could do it, you absolutely could do it.
You planning on doing the shorter, but steeper SW route up Massive?

[scottbabu]

14erobsessedkansan: That's great to hear you'll be trying this soon. I'm looking forward to hearing how it went.
I haven't fully mapped out my routes yet. Figured I'd be doing this planning in the Fall. I've got time to work out the details ... just wanted to make sure I wasn't biting off more than I can chew.

[ezabielski]

Looking to accomplish Mt Elbert, Massive and Harvard in a 4 day span. (Saving a day for weather and/or rest). Going to use Leadville as my home base.
I'm 48 and in good shape. I summitted Mt Rainier last year and will be doing Mt Whitney the week before I attempt these 3 high peaks in CO.
I reside in Virginia so I'm slightly concerned about how the altitude might affect my stamina over these 3 climbs.
Is this a realistic goal?

I promise, that as long as you just never stop walking, anything is possible. It turns out proving this statement involves some heinous BS, but it is in fact true. So as long as you don't get severe enough altitude sickness that makes you descend for your own health, its just walking.

But why those 3? There are plenty of easier ways to get 3-5 14ers in the Sawatch in 4 days if you haven't already done them.

[Roald]

This schedule is definitely doable. I used to have a similar plan when I'd come out as a flatlander from IN every year and try to do as many as possible in a 5 day period. Thankfully I got to move to Denver last year, but nearly all of my summits were made as a flatlander prior to that. I always found the driving distance between trailheads to be the biggest challenge when on this compressed schedule, but these are all pretty close.

[XterraRob]

I would recommend taking your time on each one and do a day by day assessment of your body to see how you are adjusting/feeling. It'd be one thing to hit all three back to back in a single push but since you are able to space it out, you are afforded more time for rest. If you're not feeling up for the gain, there are easier 14ers close by such as Quandary, Sherman, and the DeCaLiBro Loop.

[scottbabu]

I chose these 3 to complete my goal of doing the 5 highest peaks in the lower 48. I will have done Mt Whitney the week before (and I did Rainier last year).

[SchralpTheGnar]

I chose these 3 to complete my goal of doing the 5 highest peaks in the lower 48. I will have done Mt Whitney the week before (and I did Rainier last year).

Climbing Rainier and then Elbert reminds me of my first ski trip out west, it was to Jackson Hole in 1996, 2 years later I pulled into the Keystone parking lot, thinking all ski resorts out west were like Jackson.

[SkaredShtles]

<snip>
Climbing Rainier and then Elbert reminds me of my first ski trip out west, it was to Jackson Hole in 1996, 2 years later I pulled into the Keystone parking lot, thinking all ski resorts out west were like Jackson.

[jscully]

The distances are longer on Massive and Elbert

Hmm...pretty sure the standard route on Harvard has both more mileage and gain than either standard route on Elbert or SW slopes route on Massive. E slopes route on Massive may be a tad longer, but has similar gain (http://14ers.com/route.php?route=harv1& ... .+Columbia" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;).

Sorry meant Harvard. I stand corrected