To those of you up in the high country today...

Colorado peak questions, condition requests and other info.
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atalarico
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To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by atalarico »

Did anyone else feel those ripping 80mph gusts?! Me and two friends were up on Sherman today. My one friend has worked extensively with the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative, and he is an encyclopedic resource of all things mountain and mountain weather. He estimated the gusts we encountered at the saddle to be around 80mph. His wife, who has been outside during the strongest part of a category 2 hurricane a few years back, confirmed this. Last November I was up on Long's in what was forecast to be around 40-50mph winds, and this felt significantly more powerful and sustained.

I still had a blast (pun)! What a neat experience. Was anyone else out in the high-country today getting their sufferfest on?

:cheers:
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TravelingMatt
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by TravelingMatt »

I did a 13er in the Sawatch today (Point 13192 on Holy X Ridge). Wind didn't seem any worse than any of the other times I've been above treeline this month, but then I was some 900 feet below you.
You never know what is enough until you know what is more than enough. -- William Blake
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atalarico
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by atalarico »

Well, the summit itself was fine, but the saddle is a bit of a bottleneck for a cirque, so the wind apparently gets funneled into a few small stretches. Yowza.
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Jim Davies
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by Jim Davies »

I was skiing at Loveland today, and while it was a little windy, probably not more than 10-15 mph at 12K'.

I see the forecast for Saturday for Grays Peak includes gusts up to 65 mph, so we can expect some reports of 100 mph winds on Monday. ;)
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I'm pretty tired. I think I'll go home now. -- Forrest Gump
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atalarico
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by atalarico »

I guess geography/topography had a lot to do with it then.
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Jim Davies
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by Jim Davies »

Yeah, Sherman's saddle is always really windy, in my experience.
Climbing at altitude is like hitting your head against a brick wall — it's great when you stop. -- Chris Darwin
I'm pretty tired. I think I'll go home now. -- Forrest Gump
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SKIBREC
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by SKIBREC »

yes it is very windy..wifey and i were blown off it twice yrs ago b4 making it to the top..............like a funnel
Mike & Gail

There's no such thing as bad weather... just the wrong gear
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by Dancesatmoonrise »

Wow, great to see so many of us out on a weekday!
Last edited by Dancesatmoonrise on Thu Dec 06, 2012 5:11 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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atalarico
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by atalarico »

Oh, don't get me wrong, I'm not really complaining. It was a pretty fun experience. Had it been a more significant peak, with more exposure, and a lot more vertical to get up, I might have called it. However, being a stout 5'4" and 130lbs, it's always fun to be safely blown around by the wind like that. =p
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Re: To those of you up in the high country today...

Post by mtgirl »

Me and Ihikelikeagirl were up on the Sante Fe/Sullivan/Geneva/Landslide route yesterday and definitely felt the winds. While they were nowhere near 80 mph, they were strong enough to cause me to get down on all fours at a couple points along a ridge.
"Life is not measured by the breaths you take, but by the moments that take your breath away."
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