Grays & Torreys Run

I'm late on posting these pictures from two weekends ago.  Jaime & I got in one last run at altitude before the San Juan Solstice.  We decided upon Grays & Torreys, but added the extra miles from I-70 and then the Kelso Ridge to make it a lollipop run.

It was an early start (5:10am), but I was glad we did as we beat the crowds and heat, while leaving plenty of time to enjoy the rest of our day at home with our fams.  We got back to the car around 9:30am.

After making relatively quick work of the three miles to the trailhead, then began our climb up Stevens Gulch.  The sun lit us up and it was crazy bright.  My camera couldn't hack the light, so my early AM pics were all washed out.  You need to head over to Jaime's site to see some stellar pics.  My blog's new header pic is courtesy of his mad photography skills!

JY looking strong leading the way to Kelso.

A quick break before starting to climb all that rocky goodness straight ahead.

I have to take the blame for suggesting the Kelso Ridge as an option.  I was looking for a different experience from when I climbed G&T a few years ago.  While I'm glad we did it, I also told Jaime on the summit of Grays that I'd be okay never doing it again.  The "trail" is difficult to follow and I'm sure we were on it about 20% of the time.  While I often like the "choose your own adventure" approach, it's not the best during Class III climbing.

Can you guess which side of the ridge we came up?

Yup, as I said, following the trail was a bit of a challenge for us.

Oh Torreys - So close, yet so far away.

Wasn't much any running during this mile stretch.  Class III at its finest.

By far the sketchiest part.  We scooted across this on our butts with a leg on either side.

Success #1 - Torreys Peak

Success #2 - Grays Peak

Looking back at the Kelso Ridge from Grays summit

And he's off!  JY led the charge down Grays - and I don't think we stopped until we got to the car.

This run was not long from a time or mileage standpoint, but it was one of the most confidence inducing runs I've had in some time.  For one, I felt great after the effort at the Dirty Thirty the week before.  But more importantly, this was the best run I've ever had at high altitude.  I usually get winded easily and slight headaches once I get above 12K feet.  Not so this day.  I only wish I could feel like that all day this coming Saturday.  Yes, it is the final stop on the 2012 Redemption Tour.  I'm 1-2 with stops at Bandera and Moab. Now as I head to Lake City, I hope to get my average above .500.