The LA Freeway was first envisioned by Carl Pfiffner back in the 1950s. He had the idea of traversing from Longs Peak (14,259ft) to the Arapahos (13,501ft) along the Continental Divide, linking the tallest point in Rocky Mountain National Park to the tallest point in the Indian Peaks. In 2002, Buzz Burrell became the first person complete Carl Pfiffner's original idea of linking Longs Peak to the Arapahos in a massive 2 day effort. After completion, Buzz dubbed the route the "LA Freeway" and laid down the foundation for this iconic line. Sticking strictly to the Divide and tagging every peak along the way (listed at the bottom), Buzz was able to fulfill Pfiffners original vision. It's also worth noting that Gerry Roach helped push the creative bounds of this route by extending the traverse from Milner to Berthoud Pass, this is known as the Pfiffner Traverse. The LA Freeway has been something I've wanted to try and tackle ever since I moved to Boulder and saw the line for the first time. Driving down Highway 36 into Boulder, the LAF dominates the skyline. It is such a logical and aesthetic line that really inspires me. It wasn't until this summer that I felt like I was really ready to give it a shot. Below is a recap of my day along the LA Freeway.

Traversing from Mount Audubon to the Arapahos first came into my mind when I heard about the LA Freeway a few years ago. Starting from the Brainard Lake Recreation Area and finishing at the Fourth of July Trailhead outside of Eldora, Colorado is a logical minimization of the full Freeway that allows one to explore the best that the Indian Peaks have to offer (minus the Lone Eagle Cirque). This section is also home to some of the more continuous and technical sections of the Freeway, with lots of 3rd and 4th class scrambling and even a few spots of 5th class depending on how true you stay to the ridgeline. It is the perfect type of outing that gets me excited about being in the mountains.

On March 30th, I decided to do what is known as the White Rim in a Day (WRIAD for short). The White Rim trail is a 100 mile loop in Canyonlands National Park that circumnavigates the Island in the Sky Mesa. "The "White Rim in a Day" (WRAID) has been a classic for mtn bikers since it was first done (probably) by Buzz Burrell in the mid-1980s." The trail is most commonly done as a bikepack or with a sag wagon and broken up into a 2 to 3 day outing. The White Rim has been completed on a unicycle , single speed , and even hand cranked.

The excitement and joy of running through the landscape motivates me to get outside in winter. Just get out the door and let your feet do the rest of the work. A lot of the time, the conditions dictate the speed of an outing. Winter is the perfect setting for heading out the door with zero expectations. Conditions could be groomed and fast or it could be a postholing nightmare, the variety in conditions help keep things fun and interesting

It's cliché, but the beginning of the new year is a great time to reflect back on the previous year (which I did in my first post) and to look ahead into the future. It is a time to brainstorm objectives, get excited about days to come, and maybe even rest the body a bit.