Distance from Denver: About 3 hours
Sat, July 20, 2024
At 3:30, as we were cozied up near the trailhead in the rooftop tent, the alarm went off. The hardest part of a 14er is the early wake-up time. And unlike a long drive, I can’t just go back to sleep in the car (passenger princess life). We had decided to sleep in our hiking clothes, which helped reduce the amount of steps pre-hike. (Changing would’ve been so annoying at that hour). We got up, got everything we needed, ate bananas, and started to hike Huron Peak just before 4 am. A 14er hike is unique because if you do it the way we do (the right way), you’ll start in the dark (headlamp required) and watch the sunrise as you rise up the mountain yourself (unless you make it to the top even before the sunrise).
Watching the sunrise while hiking a 14er is a beautiful experience.
It took us about 2 hours to reach the summit, which is around 14,006-14,012 ft. (Different sources say different things). The mountain recently became the smallest 14er in the state, now smaller than Sunshine Peak, which was previously considered the shortest one. But, apparently, despite what I’d heard, these mountains are not shrinking as the elderly do. The updated rankings are thanks to a new and improved measuring system. Luckily, no 14ers lost their status because of this.
Upon reaching the peak, we saw two other groups there, one solo guy, and a group of two dudes. The group of two had started about an hour before we did. So, while we weren’t the first people to summit that day, it was pretty quiet until the way back down (when the real swarms started coming). As much as people think it’s crazy to start a hike before 5 am, I think it’s crazier to start a 14er any later than that, but to each their own I suppose. And I say this as someone who has never been much of a morning person. Living in Colorado will change your habits!
After hanging out at the summit for about ten minutes, taking it all in, snapping our pics, eating RX bars, and chatting briefly with our fellow hikers, we began our descent. Depending on who you are, this part could be easier or harder than the climb. I get a little nervous going down over the loose rocks, so I was definitely slow-moving for that part of it, which is mostly just toward the summit. I slipped and lost my balance a couple of times, but nothing detrimental.
More and more people were hitting the trail as we went down. We even saw some trail runners. There’s always someone doing the most out here! We took a brief excursion to check out a waterfall before heading back to the main trail and continuing our way to the car. We jogged the last little bit, which is something we’ve been doing lately.
At the car, we changed out of our hiking boots and began situating all of our stuff to clear out. When I went up to unzip the tent, a swarm of moths flew out from underneath the zipper flap. EW! I went in, got all the bedding, and passed it down to Jon. We have a system! As he was compressing the tent afterward, even more moths revealed themselves. It was like when a magician pulls endless streamers from a hat.
A picture I snapped on the way down.
Next, it was time to head to brunch. We thought we were headed to a place called The Buena Vista, assuming it was in the nearby town of Buena Vista. Unfortunately, as Jon pulled up the maps and could not find the place, he eventually realized it was in San Francisco. So, our plan hit some bumps. We did some more searching and called another place to confirm their breakfast hours. I was trying to pull up Timberline Craft Kitchen in Silverthorne, but had actually brought up a place in Utah called Timberline Restaurant, AIAIAI! (Their brunch did look good). While the correct Timberline also had an enticing brunch menu, and I’d like to go at some point, we ultimately decided it wasn’t quite what we wanted and cost slightly more than we wanted to spend.
We ended up going with Bread + Salt in Frisco. (They also have a Lakewood location). We started off with a bottle of prosecco with orange juice and grapefruit juice on the side to make mimosas. We also ordered the Challah French toast to split for a little sweet bite before our main meals. Jon went for the Two Eggs Meal (but he made it 3 eggs), which came with eggs your way (over medium for him), hashbrowns, bread, and added sausage. I ordered the Chipotle Pork Benedict, which had two poached eggs on an English muffin, roasted pork, and house-made chipotle hollandaise. It was a delicious version of a benedict, and it almost reminded me of a pot roast. The brunch was very satisfying, as it always is after a 14ers. And with that, we made our way back to Denver (where we ended up meeting up with some of our friends on a bar crawl).
Huron Peak is considered one of the “easier” 14ers, as far as 14ers go. As a class 2, there’s a bit of scree (A collection of loose stones or fragments of rock) and route finding is required. Shout out to Jon with the fancy Garmin and map reading skills! There were some sections where I was a bit more cautious, but overall, it wasn’t too crazy. Aside from not being crazy technical, I would also say it wasn’t crazy strenuous. This could also be because I’m in better shape than I was for the previous 14ers. Not that I was in bad shape, but I’ve been amping up my cardio and generally improving my fitness lately. There were some parts where I was working my legs harder and breathing a bit heavier, but it wasn’t as hard work as I remember from the past 14ers I’ve done (Decalibron Loop, Mount Elbert, Handies Peak). I was prepared to hate my life for a good chunk of it, but I actually felt super strong and comfortable. A win!
I would definitely recommend Huron Peak, especially if you haven’t done any 14ers. I think it would be a great first one, but it’s also fun for those who’ve already bagged some peaks. It was very pretty and not overly challenging.
Keep in mind, the difficulty will naturally vary from person to person. It may be a struggle for some and a breeze for others. Either way, conquering a 14er is an awesome accomplishment. Of course, it’s important for anyone doing these hikes to do their research and prepare appropriately.
Takeaways
- Triple-check that your brunch spot is in the state and ensure you have backup options.
- Huron Peak is a great 14er, whether it’s your first one, or you’ve done many!
To view more images from our Huron adventure, check out the gallery below.
