I’ve just come off five solo days in the Colorado high country—an acclimatization boot camp for an upcoming trip to Ecuador. I knocked out four fourteeners: Sunshine, Red Cloud, Handies, and Wetterhorn, sleeping in my car at 10,000 ft, with one rest day. It kicked my ass. And I loved every second of it.
It reminded me of the story I’m sharing today, about micro expeditions that have high impact and are close to home. You don't have to go all the way around the world to find adventure, there's possibility right in your own backyard.
In the mountains, conditions are everything. On Handies, I postholed through isothermal snow for an eleven-hour slog—thigh-deep and unforgiving, the kind of conditions I’ve only experienced twice before: once in the Beartooths and once in Afghanistan. Even with snowshoes, you plunge straight through. On Wetterhorn’s east face, I found myself mixed climbing—crampons scraping against rock.
Speed routes on fourteeners don’t happen in May. The FKTs you read about are almost always later in the summer. In the Rockies, north-facing slopes are still too unstable this time of year. South ridges are always the better bet.
These trips cost a fraction of a big expedition and deliver more than just physical training. They’re an opportunity to dial in your gear, reassess your routes, and continue learning—because even after decades of mountaineering, I’m still learning.
The east ridge of Wetterhorn.
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