We set out from our hotel in F airplay at 4am and headed through the silent town to the dirt road that lead to the trail head. The road wasn’t too bad, but a high clearance vehicle is definitely a good idea. We got there around 5am and there really weren’t too many people there yet. This hike was a lot less crowded than Grays and Torreys, even though it was a holiday weekend.
It was still completely dark when we started. We didn’t have trouble finding the start of the trail, but even with headlamps it was hard to see. At one point we lost the trail and accidentally cut through a meadow. Going up Democrat took awhile. You gain 2000ft of elevation in about two miles; it’s a lot of up. Just before you turn left to start the final ascent to the summit, you come to an open area with gorgeous views of the surrounding mountains. The sun was just coming up when we reached this spot and it made the mountains turn pink and gold.
Democrat has a false summit. Once you reach what appears to be the top the real summit is actually a couple hundred yards to the right. The top was super cold and windy, but the false was actually fairly warm (at least in comparison). You go down Democrat the same way you go up and then proceed to Cameron.
Cameron was actually quite a bit farther from Democrat than I expected. It was about a mile or two to Cameron’s summit from the top of Democrat. Cameron was weird. Its completely flat at the top. Like a weird, rocky, bald spot. You can see Lincoln from the top of Cameron. These two are much closer together, and getting between the two is mostly flat.
I think Bross is probably the worst of the four. Not going up but coming down. Going down Bross sucks. And even if you try to bypass the actual summit, you end up going down the part you want to avoid. Going down is super steep and super rocky. All the rock is loose and its impossible to walk without sliding. I fell probably 6 or 7 times. Mushu did great though.
Overall the hike was a little over 8 miles. The views from the top of the peaks are nice, but 14ers really are not the most scenic hikes. I think these will be the last for this season, I might go hike to some lakes next.
Thanks for your insight on these 14ers. I found your blog from your review on AllTrails. A girlfriend and I plan to hike them tomorrow morning. I hiked Grays and Torreys yesterday, and it was freezing with crazy wind. It sounds like this hike might be the same. Is there anything you didn’t take with you that you wish you had? Based on my hike yesterday, I will definitely have hand and feet warmers, a second layer of pants, and thicker gloves.
I think my response might be a little late, but hand warmers and gloves are definitely a good idea. I also wish I had brought something to keep my head/ears warm. My jacket didn’t have a hood and that sucked.