Longs Peak (14,255) by Brian Schultz Sunday September 15, 1996
I stayed in Estes Park last night. Unable to sleep very well I decided I might as well drive to the ranger station and get going a little sooner. Starting at 4:00 AM, a flashlight was needed to see in the dark and as I gained some elevation I noticed a string of scattered lights also bobbing along the trail behind me. An hour and a half later when morning broke, the clear skies gave me hope that perhaps this time I would make the summit. A fellow named Wade from Windsor, Co. caught up to me and we hiked together until just before the boulderfield. When I got there a dusting of snow covered the tents of those camping. It was cold and the summit of Longs was enclosed in a cloud that appeared to be dumping some more snow on the peak.
Once again I had trouble as I made my way up the boulders to the Keyhole, struggling to breathe but able to drag myself up. It took me about 5 hours to get that far. People were sitting and talking but no one was heading down the other side. I found out why when I looked. Ice! Lots of it on the rocks. Which prompted most of them to call it a day and I joined the chorus of those saying- "it's too dangerous!" Somebody mentioned that a couple guys did proceed but I didn't see them. I was disappointed but even under good conditions I probably would have had trouble making the summit- I couldn't seem to catch my breath. I turned around and hiked the long trail back to the ranger station, getting there at 1:10 and deciding to put off climbing Longs Peak indefinitely.
Total hiking time- 9 hours 10 minutes