Adventure to the SUMMIT of Buffalo Mountain

Oct 17

This video is of our 14 mile adventure to the top of Buffalo Mountain. It is located in the Eagles Nest Wilderness area in Colorado which has about 180 miles of trails for hikers, runners, horses as well as cross country skiing.

The final 1,500 feet to the summit is layered with rocks which requires a bit of scrambling and route finding. At the summit ridge, you can walk and crawl around a bit but with caution as there are significant drop offs on either side.

Elizabeth was a bit fatigued from a good block of training and was going into a rest week but we wanted to get to the top of the mountain before the snow fell so we could have a look around. There are many other mountains and ranges in the area that we are curious about and wanted to see route options from a different vantage point.

We have been here for 9 weeks now and are feeling stronger each day. We have adjusted nicely to waking up around 3:30am most mornings to begin our day. My first training & coaching session is around 4 am. I am a morning person and this works well for me. I am usually sleeping by 8pm. Although my sleep hasn’t been great, it is improving.

Living and training at 9,000+ feet is a big adjustment. Back on the east coast, we were only living around 300 feet. This was in the town of Sloatsburg, New York and we were there for 9 years. We will be living in the Silverthorne & Dillion area of Colorado for another 300 days before we move on. The goal is to learn to ski (I’ve never skied before) and continue training / adventuring as we prepare for the 2021 Leadwoman & Leadman and possibly the Breck Epic 6 Day Mountain Bike Race.