I had wanted to climb something this weekend, but I was just invited to help with a controlled burn on Saturday, and with a storm headed this way Sunday, I decided to climb Bierstadt on Friday. I left home at 7:30 and drove through Evergreen to Georgetown and the Guanella Pass Road. The road condition was good overall, 4x4 might be required on the upper stretches, especially past the Silver Dollar Lakes trailhead. A rock about 2' across lie in the middle of the road near the power station.

I started hiking at 9:10 from the lower parking lot. My plan today was to go fast and light, so I left some items behind that I didn't think I would need. I brought snowshoes in the Jeep, but decided to leave them as well. The trail on the way up was well packed and showed little evidence of postholing activities, even with the recent warm weather, so I hoped the snowpack wouldn't soften too much on my descent.

I made good time across the willow flats, and was above the headwall in 30 minutes. I was hoping to set a personal speed record for this mountain, just because I'd never tried before. I slowed down as I started climbing, but still maintained a good pace. I passed a couple on the way up, and as I drew closer to the summit, I realized that if I pushed hard I could make it in 2 hours. I pushed, rested, pushed, rested, and climbed to the summit in just a minute over 2 hours. Not the most efficient hiking technique but I made my goal. My time in January, 2002 was 3 hours, so evidently the little bit of hiking I've been doing lately has helped.

The weather was absolutely gorgeous - I didn't think it could be this nice in March. The wind was not blowing much at all on the summit, and the sun was shining. I don't know what the temperature was but I'm sure it was in the 40s. I signed the register, noting that Steve Hoffmeyer was the first to sign in that day, and I was third. Just as I reached the summit a guy was heading down, so he must have been number two. I wondered where Steve went; maybe he started early and had summited and already descended. I didn't see any tracks leading down the Sawtooth or Bierstadt's East Ridge, so it was a mystery to me.

I stayed on top for 20 minutes, then started back down. It was warm enough to spend more time but I never hang out on summits very long. I pushed hard on the descent, shooting for a good time again. The snow conditions were good on the trail most of the way down, and I only postholed half a dozen times. I thought it was worth leaving the snowshoes behind today, but for future ascents I might take them along and stash them at treeline for the return trip across the flats. I think if I had been on the trail later in the day I would have done a lot more postholing.

I thought I might be able to catch up to Steve, but he must have reached the trailhead while I was still in the willows. I reached my Jeep at 12:50, for a 1:20 descent time. This climb marked my first 14er of 2003, my first 14er in March, and my best ascent/descent time for Bierstadt.