"Ring the Peak" - Mount Rosa edition

It's a good feeling when a run goes as planned!

Originally, as I mentioned in my last update, I had planned to do my long run on Tuesday or Wednesday of this week. But a cold front was threatening to overtake the mountains, so I decided to start very early Monday morning (Memorial Day) instead.

I set off from the base of High Drive around 5:45 am. The sun was already up, and soon it was illuminating the rocks high up on the hillside.

As I started off, another jogger came up behind me, which gave me some encouragement. We kept pace for the first mile until he split off towards the Bear Creek Canyon Trail. I stayed on High Drive until the saddle, then joining the 667 trail towards Mount Buckhorn.

The little silent competition with the other jogger had energized me, and I topped out Buckhorn in the beautiful sunshine and pressed on quickly, only stopping for a quick photo.

Top: Views from High Drive and Mt. Buckhorn. Bottom: Pipeline Trail towards Frosty's Park. 

I kept on 667 until the 622A junction. This short but steep descent would immediately lead to a quick climb, regaining all the lost elevation as I joined the Pipeline Trail #668.

Around this point I passed by the jogger that had given me a push up High Drive earlier. He encouraged me to keep pushing 💪! This gave me an additional boost as I was only about halfway through the uphill section of today's run.

When I was out in the sun on the south- and east-facing trail portions, I was almost too warm with my jacket on. But when the trail turned to the north or west, I was hit by instantly freezing winds. 🥶 

This made me glad that I'd opted to go a day earlier, since I knew the cold front was coming. But also, I was glad that I chose to do the route I had selected for today, which was the same route I'd done exactly six months ago, on November 30th, when I saw the most amazing sunset.  I didn't realize that it was exactly six months to the day until afterwards! I just really loved this route and was glad to do a repeat of it.

My route didn't have any summits or off-trail climbing involved. It is a simple horseshoe-shaped "almost loop" which starts at the base of High Drive and ends at the base of Old Stage Road, at the entrance to the National Forest. It nearly circumnavigates the base of Mount Rosa. It is easy to follow and extremely runnable - just perfect for a day like today.

I kept at a steady pace up the Pipeline trail until reaching Frosty's Park, where the outstanding view of Mount Rosa greeted me. At the same time, a great gust of wind brought icy little snowballs! (You can't tell from the photo, but it was snowing and sunny at the same time.)

Top: Sights along Pipeline trail. Bottom: Mount Rosa from Frosty's Park.

This was a fast way to attain the highest elevation point of the day, at Frosty's Park, over 10,500 feet. I was just under 10 miles in, but now I had a nice long downhill to look forward to!

I cruised easily down the Forest Service Road #379. I felt good the whole time, no complaints today.

Occasionally, a gusty wind would bring a short bout of snow. But once I reached Gold Camp Road, the sun was shining and the tree cover was gone, and I was warm. I was finally able to shed my jacket and run in my tank top.

I enjoyed views of all my favorite rock formations as I made the slow, gradual descent towards town. I really love this road and how it showcases the characteristic Pikes Peak granite uplifts. Wide-open views are abundant. 

The recent snowstorm has really helped the surroundings green up quite a bit! The little marshy valley east of Penrose-Rosemont Reservoir was green, and the skies above were gorgeously blue. 

Mount Rosa towers above in the distance, while new green growth lines the pond that reflects the blue skies.

I love this section of the road. No matter the time of day or time of year, it seems to be the best place to catch interesting clouds and bright colors.

I made this collage to compare the same segment of road from my run 6 months ago, to today.

Top: November 30th, 2021. Bottom: May 30th, 2022.

I was relaxed and jogging easily, even though I couldn't stop taking soo many photos 😅! My pace did suffer a little, but it was worthwhile.

Soon I arrived at Devil's Slide, with Colorado blue skies above and dramatic clouds to the west.

Looking up at Devil's Slide. 

Looking west at angry storm clouds. 

From here, it wasn't too far to the St. Peter's Dome parking area, and then the long descent that would lead out of the National Forest and back to town.

All the way along, I chased the puffy clouds ☁️ to the east while running away from the angry ones to the west. It was increasingly warm now, and although I didn't feel fatigued or too tired, I simply tucked in and did the mileage before I got too overheated.

The road goes back uphill for a short section, right before the last descent out of the National Forest. Here I soaked in some last views before I approached the big slabs of rock that told me I was almost done.

Top: Looking north towards Blodgett Peak in the distance. Middle: Looking back to the west over North Cheyenne Cañon. Bottom: These big rocks stand guard near the entrance to Old Stage Road.

As I came out of the National Forest, my ride hadn't arrived yet, so I turned and ran a mile up towards the zoo, just like last time. Because after running almost 24 miles, why not run another mile - uphill?! 😆

I ended the day with 25.5 miles and 6300 feet of climbing! What a day!

Although this route wasn't new or different or especially adventurous, it was a favorite and an absolute joy to be able to complete it again. I found this run to be very fulfilling, and exactly what I was looking for.

Now that the road up North Cheyenne Cañon is set to open within a few days, I'll have a chance to plan some more adventures soon. And maybe hit some of my other summer favorites, like Almagre Mountain.

Thanks for reading along, and I hope you enjoyed the photos as much as I enjoyed this day. 😀