Struggles on Grizzly D

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tadamsttu
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Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by tadamsttu »

So I went up to Loveland Pass today and did Sniktau with no issues and then started to make my way over to Grizzly and had to turn around because I was absolutely gassed right before the steep pitch to the top. Needless to say I knew I had to go back over the ridges again so I turned around only about a 1/4 of the way up. I am in the best shape I have been in since I have lived here the past two years and I have done high summits before (MLW, CCY, Mt. Toll). I was short winded on those but made it there and back just fine.

Did it have something to do with the elevation gains and losses that are on the route from Sniktau to Grizzly? I was really disappointed because as a 29 year old in good shape I felt like this route should be easy for me to bag my first peaks of the year. Any help I can get would be great, and I’ll gladly answer questions if you have any. Not sure if anyone else has ever had issues with this route before.
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by cottonmountaineering »

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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by justiner »

Elevation makes a big difference in performance - have you been up that high recently?
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by tadamsttu »

justiner wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 4:50 pm Elevation makes a big difference in performance - have you been up that high recently?
I have been up skiing all winter at 11,000 but not hiking at 13,000 since October I would say.
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by jmanner »

Inbounds skiing is not nearly hard enough of a work out to get an acclimatization boast. To be blunt, the problem is you’re not fit enough. Or at least the wrong kind of fit. Try throwing a trail run a few times a month(a week would be better) and maybe run or bike over an hour a week plus other work outs.
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by dwoodward13 »

Ya you answered your own question if you haven't been above 13k since last October. Also some days you are just "off" too. Poor sleep, nutrition, stress, ect can all exacerbate issues with fitness at altitude. Hiking at high elevation consistently is the best way to become fit at hiking at high elevation.
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by TomPierce »

Maybe it's fitness, but also possible it was, like most things in life, a combination of a few things: (1) First peak of the season, hiking muscles haven't been used much. (2) Maybe you bonked, i.e. didn't eat enough? If I'm pushing hared I try to eat something every hour. (3) It was pretty warm today, maybe some dehydration going on?

Don't beat yourself up, everyone has an off day. Find what you like to do as a workout, be consistent with it, eat/drink steadily. It'll come around. Good luck!

-Tom
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by Dignus »

I've noticed that I start to feel the effects of altitude when I lose and regain a lot of altitude. That coupled with the deeper snow and looser rock on the way to Grizzly compared to Sniktau will have you exerting much more energy. I did Sniktau and Grizzly this morning as well and noticed my poor conditioning compared to the end of last summer. Should just take a few more hikes to get back into shape though, so don't be discouraged!
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by nyker »

tadamsttu wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 4:54 pm
justiner wrote: Sat May 01, 2021 4:50 pm Elevation makes a big difference in performance - have you been up that high recently?
I have been up skiing all winter at 11,000 but not hiking at 13,000 since October I would say.
Like Tom mentions, could be many things. On your next couple of trips out, see if it happens again, if so then its probably more of a fitness thing, or specifically lacking aerobic fitness/good base. If its sporadic, then maybe its some else (food, dehydration, lack of sleep, some underlying illness, etc..) . On your next couple of trips though as your test it, do easier peaks, sticking to class1 trails, ideally with a partner in case something isn't right and you're not feeling well.

On those ~11,000ft ski trips, were you climbing with skins up to 11k then descending or taking lifts up? If the latter than that's a different level of fitness than actually climbing up with skis (which would prepare your cardiovascular system better for exertion up high).

To get Grizzly D there is a lot of up and down in there and back, all at or above 13k for a long while, so that can take its toll unless you're well acclimatized, rested and sufficiently aerobically fit.
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by rpdawes »

I did not experience any struggles while hiking up and down and summiting the peak at the age of 77 in August. Yes, I was a bit exhausted. :-D
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by HikesInGeologicTime »

It's been my own experience that the first hike at altitude after a long break from it is pretty brutal, and the longer the break, the more painful the re-initializing climb. I'm also a skier, primarily at resorts during lift operating hours, and...nyker's got a point. Perhaps merely being up that high at all helps a little for maintaining acclimatization, but there's a big difference between going up to or above treeline under your own power vs. by the grace of the chairlift's.

I'd also recommend spending the next few weeks doing shorter, easier, Class 1-2 peaks - Flora comes to my mind as a solid training objective; you could start with School of Mines Peak (a 12er) from Berthoud Pass and see if you feel up to continuing on from there. Or, since a lot of ski resorts are closed now, you could try hiking/skinning/schlepping skis up to the top - Copper, for instance, also tops out above 12k', so you'd get some good practice vert with a variety of recently-maintained paths to choose from.
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Re: Struggles on Grizzly D

Post by ltlFish99 »

Last May, 2020 when I went up Humbolt for the first peak of the year, I was very, very slow, especially above 13,000 feet. The rest of the summer I felt normal.
A very nice hike is twin sisters by longs peak. It is only in the 12,000 foot range, but is a nice somewhat steep hike with some good vertical gain and has wonderful views of longs peak from the
Summits.
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