RRC Archives

Anyone else out there interested in the 50 High Points and/or peak bagging?

I've just recently gone on this summit kick. I've been to the high points in TN and WV. I'd like to hit KY, VA and NC in the next couple months.

I think the idea of a summit is the reason I got into climbing in the first place.

wicked, what are your rules? many states you can drive to the high points..you gonna do that, or designate a certain amount of hiking?

I don't really care. I've been to Spruce knob and Clingmans Dome and you drive to both of them. I'm a little more interested in aesthetics than difficulty. But having said that, I have an unnatural obsession with Mt Mitchell right now. I want to go and hike up to the summit from the campground. I think its about 3,000 ft in eleveation gain. And I also want ot do Mt Rogers because its a little more inaccessible.

But ultimately I want to get out west and do peakbagging. I don't care so much about the technical aspect of it. I want ot get ther under my own power whether it be by foot or rope or bike or whatever.

I'm definitely into the peak bagging thing. Many moons ago I had the chance to meet Mich Michaud who was the first person to do all 50 states in one year. One of his funniest stories was Kansas when he walked to the top of Sunflower Mountain. He was really hoping it would be low key, but it was at this point that Charles Kuralt caught up with him to do a story. So when he arrived there was a large hoopla complete with marching band from a local high school, the local mayor with a key to the city (lord knows what the closest town to this glorified cornfield is?), and Kuralt's camera crew there to document it all. Michaud actually said that Denali was his most challenging peak and that it took him two attempts. More recently this spring a friend of mine completed the 50 peaks when he climbed Mt. Hood. It too took him two attempts to summit Denali. On his successful attempt, he was sponsored by Dickel: http://www.dickel.com/features/mt.mckinley.html

I've gotten into the idea of snagging the high points in various states if the mood strikes me, but it isn't something I wanna go outta my way to do unless the peaks are desiralbe to me in the first place. In my opinion a lot of these places are only special because they are the high point of a state. If Jill and I are out somewhere and near a highpoint we might try and make a trip to the top, but we haven't gone out of our way to do any one specific except maybe Hood. KY's is cool because there is a giant FAA radar dome that you pass right under to get to the point. It does funky stuff to your car radio...I wonder what it does to your brain?

My list to date: NH, WV, OR, AZ, NC, KY, MD, ME

Limeys over the pond are in to "walking". Their idea of taking a walk is like our idea of doing sections of the AT. Anyway, I met some Brtis who were into "Monroe" bagging. Apparently the Monroes are a train of small peaks in central England up to Scotland? There are like 300 of them. I met one old guy who was closing in on all of them. I guess that is why they don't have the heart disease we do.

I was in Scotland and England in August with my wife, and I can vouch for the health ratio of Scots and brits. it was very easy to see who the tourists were (the ones with huge asses), and the locals (the ones chain smoking and still kicking it up a hill). She is Scottish, so I'll ask her about the Monroes.

Wicked Tribe wrote:Anyone else out there interested in the 50 High Points and/or peak bagging?

I've just recently gone on this summit kick. I've been to the high points in TN and WV. I'd like to hit KY, VA and NC in the next couple months.

I think the idea of a summit is the reason I got into climbing in the first place.

Wow, I would love to do this but now that I'm married to a job ...

This is the same reason I got into climbing (my ex-roommate who introduced me to it all has seen many peaks), but so far all I've done was drive to the top of Pikes Peak and hike to a couple of peaks in NH.

I'm having a hard enough time trying to rock climb in all 50 states. I've been at it for more than 10 years, but I still have several left to complete. I recently learned that my Valentine's present this year is a trip to Horseshoe Canyon Ranch in Arkansas. I'm looking forward to this with great anticipation since I've never climbed in Arkansas.

I personally can't get too fired up about all 50 state highpoints. I'm more into altitude / mountaineering and have done several Colo. 14ers. You'd just about have to live in Colo. to do all of them. My wife and I hiked to the summit of Mt. Whitney in CA and that was certainly a challenge. After having climbed Mt. Hood, Mt. Rainier, & Mt. Baker, I decide my lifetime goal would be to climb all the Cascade volcanoes. Don't tell my insurance agent