Centennial Sunday – California’s West Ridge
I get excited every time I visit the San Luis Valley. How could you not? It is a 122 mile long, 74 mile wide, vast high desert plain surrounded by mountains. And not just any mountains. To the west, the Sangres rise up like nowhere else in Colorado. Going from 8,000 to 14,000 feet in a matter of 2-3 of miles just never gets old. On every trip I am stunned by the relief off of the valley floor. The fact that most of the high peaks are as rugged as they come only adds to the appeal. Keep reading…
If you’ve ever driven down the Wild Basin Road in Rocky Mountain National Park and wondered what that huge bulky 13,000 foot mound in front of you was, you were probably gazing at Copeland. The USGS lists this peak as “Mount Copeland”, but all other sources seem to call it “Copeland Mountain”. Whatever you want to call it, you’d have to agree it’s massive for Wild Basin standards and the summit views, should you choose to slog up this behemoth, give you a front row seat into everything the southern end of the Park has to offer.