Fourteener

Because every hike explained how long the hike was going to be, how difficult the terrain was going to be, the speed at which the leader was going to take you, and other factors that gave you a sense of what you're getting yourself involved in.

Now, that becomes important when I discovered the Fourteeners, a group of mountains in Colorado that are over 14,000 feet, collectively known as the Teeners or the Fourteeners.

I discovered them after skiing in Colorado, in all the she-she places, Aspendale, Breckenridge, Telluride.

But from that, I wanted to get into mountaineering.

They found photos of Matthew smiling on the summit.

After two previous unsuccessful attempts, he had reached Rocky Mountain National Park's highest point and the 14th most difficult 14er among the 54 in Colorado as rated by 14ers.com.

Despite the calendars showing the month of June, Long's Peak still exhibited winter conditions.

On the evening of June 8th, just hours before Matthew left Fort Collins for the trailhead, Rocky Mountain National Park closed the high elevation Trail Ridge Road due to it being covered in a new sheet of ice.

And it's not like they're these mind-blowing, particularly special mountains.

But it's just like what a cool part of the San Juans that kinda gets overshadowed by the places that are the Fourteeners or the Colorado Trail or things like that.

And so-

Mm