Best Beginner 14er near Salida

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jimmy4eyes
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Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by jimmy4eyes »

Hey'all, looking for advice on the best beginner 14er(s) near or nearest to Salida. I've got moderate hiking experience and physically fit but this summer will be the first 14er. thx//j4e.
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by Trotter »

I'd disagree with Shavano only because its 4500 ft gain. I think if you've got 4WD, Huron. If not, Sherman. Much easier for your first.
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by SchralpTheGnar »

Shavano is easy but long, if you don’t mind a longer day, then it’s totally doable as a first 14er. Yale is a good choice too because the parking lot and trail and all those things is a straightforward as you’ll find.
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two lunches
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by two lunches »

huron 100%
• short
• beautiful
• tons of people = impossible to get lost
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by Trotter »

CaptCO wrote: Sat Mar 20, 2021 5:06 pm I remember Huron being consistently steep and kicking my ass in 2019, can anyone relate? I’ve also came a long way since then... (Kerouac proclaimed narcissistic a**hole)
Shavano is 4600 ft over 4.5 one way miles, Huron is 3500 ft over 3.25 miles.

So they are almost identical in terms of gain/mile.
After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. -Nelson Mandela
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by ltlFish99 »

stephakett wrote: Sat Mar 20, 2021 10:53 am huron 100%
• short
• beautiful
• tons of people = impossible to get lost
+1 on the Huron recommendation. The trail is good, the valley is beautiful, and the 3 Apostles from the summit are wonderful.
+1 on the yale recommendation for all of this reasons that person stated.
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by coopereitel »

I'd say go for either of the three: Yale, Huron, Shav (+ Tab)

If you want a more fun route for Yale and to avoid the crowds, take the E Ridge from Avalanche TH. Straight forward and pretty cool. I left a bike at the standard TH and then biked the downhill to my car at the Avy TH (then drove and did Quandary on the way home...)
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by CaptainSuburbia »

I would drive the extra couple hours and climb Handies or Recloud.
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by peter303 »

Cross over to FairPlay and hike Quandry or Sherman.
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by mtree »

Easiest, by far, would be Sherman. Democrat, Lincoln, or Bross would be in the same ballpark depending on how many summits you want to check off.

Huron is a real nice hike. Easy by 14er standards, but its not a slam dunk. Probably a similar effort as doing Democrat, Cameron, Lincoln, and Bross in one outing. Enjoy!
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by cougar »

Princeton if you can drive to the towers or past it would be the easiest nearby. Depending on your definition of "near Salida", the other recs like Huron are about an hour or longer drive, and the ones by Fairplay farther out. Yale isn't as far, paved road to TH, more scenic than Princeton or Shavano.

Shavano is the closest 14er to Salida, not overly difficult, but the stats are a bit longer, hardly any switchbacks, but the trail is in good shape, and it's easily visible from around town. Antero if you have 4wd and can drive up most of the way.

Mt Ouray at 13971 is an easier hike from Marshall Pass, 6 miles RT.
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Re: Best Beginner 14er near Salida

Post by Hiking_TheRockies »

Sherman would probably be the easiest 14er near there, if you are going down to the Mosquito Range you might also want to consider Quandary, though parking can be a hassle on weekends and the trail is generally packed.
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