Who has hiked Crested Butte to Aspen

Haven't done the hike, but was just in Crested Butte for Mardi Gras and could see Aspen from the mountain. In the summer, would probably be beautiful. Let me check to see if I have a photo...

ETA: Got 2 photos. I'm trying to gauge which range the hike goes through. First picture is facing NE so it might be one in the middle left (little cloudy). Second picture is facing the town (NW) so it might be all the way on the right? Might be out of view though

sounds like a great hike

Some guy named Jim.

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Who has hiked Crested Butte to Aspen

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I really want to do this hike

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Do it. You'll never regret trying. I've never done that hike but have done several Colorado climbs in the 15 to 20 mile range, site unseen. You can acquire all the beta you need via the net.

The most important thing is to start early because afternoon storms can pop up and ruin your day with the quickness. Lightning is the biggest danger and can be really nasty up high. Flash flooding can also be an issue and getting hailed on is never fun.

That hike looks pretty tame, 11 miles and just over 2,000 feet of gain. The pass is at 12,500, which is high but not nearly as hard as pushing through the next 1,500 to get up to 14,000+ at Maroon Bells. The faster you move the less you need to carry. Be sure to have plenty of water up there and some calories.

You can probably make that in 2.5 to 3 hours depending on how hard the altitude hits you. Any pair of comfortable athletic shoes will do, blisters are a bigger concern than terrain. You'll be surprised how smooth most of the trails are up there and you don't need specialty footwear until pushing into Class 4 or 5 stuff.

Really all you need to do is make sure you have enough water and follow the crowds

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Crested Butte

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:snickers:

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rds dc

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^^^^What he said.

I can't emphasize enough how important it is to get off the top of a mountain by noon. I found this out the hard way after getting to the top of Byers Peak ~12,800 at 2 pm in July only to see pitch black clouds heading right for us once we got to the top. Temps dropped from 40s/50s to 30s and it starting snowing/raining. Getting down class 3 scree in that kind of weather and down a ridge above treeline is scary as shite and leaves a distinct memory to never do it again.

2.5 to 3 hrs, I was thinking 6 to 7, especially when taking time to enjoy the scenery.

I get the afternoon thunderstorms that develop so you do not want to be at altitude during that.

Has anyone actually hiked it?

Thanks

Yeah definitely start early to be over any passes by noon. Pack light too and know your egress routes in case of storms. Be acclimated as much as you can before.

I did a 3 day trip last summer on Gore Range trail leaving from Copper Mountain. We were carrying a bunch of camping gear. We got passed by a 60 year old guy with a light backpack making some serious time. He was doing the whole trail in one day.

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Elbert

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Massive

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Both mountains I want to do. If only I lived out there...

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I can't emphasize how important it is to get off the top of a mountain by noon. I found this out this out hard way after getting to the top of Byers Peak ~12,800 at 2 pm in July only to see pitch black clouds heading right for us once we got to the top.

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This. Lost a good friend this way a few years ago.