Suggestions for linking Collegiate Peaks 14ers?

[Matt Butler]

Looking for route recommendations for a six day loop in the Collegiates. Also, I'd be interested in hearing if folks think it's realistic to link attempts at Mts. Columbia, Harvard, Oxford, Belford and Missouri Mt. in that timeframe. Thanks!

[Aaron Armstrong]

We've emailed back and forth before right? With regards to your specific question on linking or hitting all the 14ers I would say that you can do it, people do go up from just beyond/behind Little John's Cabin up to Oxford and Belford but it is steep and can be loose, Harvard and Columbia can be linked easier by dropping down into the drainage between the two on the west and north west side and then coming back out the same or similar to the trail down to Pine Creek, Three Elk Creek I think it is.

The loop I am thinking about doing is up Pine Creek to Missouri basin, climbing Missouri but skipping Belford and Oxford, drop down to Pear Lake via ridge off of Emerald Peak or from Cloyses lake camp, CDT and linking trails to Browns Pass, to Horn Fork Basin, Columbia, Harvard and back to Pine Creek.

All these 14ers though can be climbed from base camps established along the way whether or not you actually backpack to and over them to your next 14er.

Here's a site that might be of some use, http://www.mattmahoney.net/nolans14/.

[Matt Butler]

Thanks Aaron.You're right. We did email back and forth a few months ago, and based in part on your suggestions, we narrowed our choices down to the Collegiates. Thanks for chiming in, because I conveniently deleted most of our emails.

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