Spotlight on Jim Rickard!

C

Q: At what point did you decide to go for the Highest Hundred?
I don't know that I ever did exactly -- When I had 10 or fewer left, I made a conscious decision to finish the list.  Prior to that, the list was more of a standby if I didn't happen to have a better idea for a given weekend.

Q: What are some of your favorite centennial routes?
For fun, Unnamed 13,823 "Lackawanna" via Lackawanna Gulch in winter is definitely one of my favorites.  While the so called "winter route" directly up from the highway looks distinctly unappealing, this round-about route brings you into a wonderful 600 acre "ski bowl" that I've always had all to myself. 

For more of a thrill, the Dreamweaver Couloir on Meeker is hard to beat.  The north couloir on Pacific is remarkable too, and less crowded. 

For a warmer thrill, the Wham Ridge on Vestal is not to be missed. 

Finally, a loop trip over Unnamed 13,828 "Huerfano" up the Iron Nipple side and down to the north, eventually looping back to the road, was one of my favorites; combining a good climb with a nice "walk in the woods."

Q: How would you compare the technical difficulty and danger of climbing the 14ers verses the technical difficulty and danger of climbing the Highest Hundred?
The rote answer to technical difficulty seems to be "oh, the Centennials are harder," but I'm not convinced that's true.  One can find a "hard route" up any peak, and since many of the Centennials have a less well marked and traveled "easy way," your chance of wandering off the easy path and finding yourself on the hard route is certainly greater.  But to be fair, without the well marked and described route, climbing Longs Peak with just "a map and a mind" would be very difficult.

As far as danger, there's certainly a better chance of being helped, or found, if you get yourself into trouble on a 14'er than on the less traveled lower peaks.  On the other hand, there are far fewer people creating a hazard by, for example, rolling rocks on Unnamed 13,932 "Thunder Pyramid," than on 14,018 Pyramid half a mile away.

Q: In your opinion, what are the most beautiful centennial peaks?
Oh, there are too many to choose from! 

From a distance, Rio Grande Pyramid is an amazing "beacon" in the San Juans, and looks just like a mountain should. 

The Three Apostles add a little spice to the Sawatch. 

Turret, Pigeon, Vestal, and (just barely out of the running for the Centennials) Arrow remind me what "steep" means. 

Closer to home, Meeker rising behind Camp St. Malo makes a postcard setting fit for a pope.

Q: During the time it took you to finish the centennials, did you ever have any moments of doubt?
None in the "big picture" sense, objectively I knew I could complete the list; but there were plenty of early mornings, trudging up the trail, before I caught my second wind or was far enough along to catch an inspirational view of my goal, that I though "why am I doing this?  I could be home sleeping."  Fortunately, that phase of malaise generally only afflicts me for about 15 minutes during the first hour of a climb.  Then I remember why I'm there, doubts are banished, and the world becomes a wonderful place.

Q: What is the single most important piece of advice that you would give to someone just finishing the 14ers and thinking about doing the highest 100?
Don't do it!  Ok, I'm mostly kidding, but not entirely.   

One spring I realized I only had eighteen 14'ers left, and set out to climb all of them that summer.  Well, it was ok, but all the long drives (of course all my remaining peaks were far away) got to be a bit of a chore.   

After I finished, I felt a great relief:  I decided to get back to climbing mountains that interested me, rather than mindlessly following a list.  For example, just after finishing the 14'ers I finally checked the "cover photo" information on the edition of Guide to the Colorado Mountains I had been carrying around for years.  "Peak C, huh?  Never heard of it."  Despite being late in the season, on some scary verglas, it was a terrific climb.   

It has taken me more than 10 years to go from completing the 14'ers to completing the Centennials; by not taking any particular list seriously, I've had the opportunity to climb a lot of interesting lower peaks, harder routes, foreign mountains, and even "other stuff:" rock climbs, desert canyons, and so on, without worrying that I'm "wasting time" when I should be knocking off Centennials, Bicentennials, etcetera, etcetera. 

Lists are great, they provide a ready store ideas when you can't think of anything, and get you into areas you might otherwise never visit, but don't let them rule your life.

Q: Which group was more fun to climb, the 14ers or the centennials?
Definitely the Centennials; less crowded, and a little more mental challenge involved in some of the route finding.   

Honestly, I'm glad to be done with the 13,800+, and out of Roach's wonderful guidebook (with which I have a love/hate relationship):  It's more interesting to just look at a ridge or a map and say "I think that route will go."  Of course, sometimes it doesn't.  If that was clearly stated in a book, you're a "bone-head;" but if you're climbing a peak not in a book, you're an "adventurer."


Q: What was your final centennial and why did you save it for last?
Jupiter Mountain, for no particular reason except, perhaps, that it's far from Denver.  Some people work through lists from high to low, some from easy to hard, I seem to work out in concentric circles from home.

Q: Do you have any plans for future mountain lists?
I have lots of lists lying about:  13'ers, 12'ers, state high points, county high points, country high points, range high points, etcetera.  Plenty to keep me entertained wherever I happen to find myself; but I don't have a burning desire to finish any particular list.

The End.