Quandary moonlight hike

So what do a bunch of The North Face employees do at night when there is a full moon in July? Well, why not hike to the top of a 14,000 foot mountain in Summit County!! It was one of those kind of days at work, we wanted to do something fun…..something outside and we didn’t want to wait until the next day for an adventure.

My name is Andy, I work at The North Face Breckenridge and with our webstore (www.breckgear.com). Most of my life I spent in the mountains and lakes of Maine where I was a snowmaker and whitewater guide for the last few years. Came to Breckenridge about two years ago and started working for The North Face Breck right away.

Moonlight hikes and 30 mile bike rides…this is the kind of stuff we do all the time. At the trailhead for Quandary was about 4 other groups, they had the same idea we did in a way. Most of them told us they were going to start in a few hours to take advantage of the full moon and clear sky for the hike and also catch a great sunrise the next morning. One beer and one Red Bull later we were on our way. This was Cari’s first 14er, but the rest of us had been up Quandary multiple times. The hike was amazing, we didn’t even need head lamps below tree line in the woods but we had them just incase. The climb is not technical, no ropes needed and just about anyone can do this!!

The pictures here are taken at the summit. The camera didn’t pick up everything WE could see, but I promise you the views were amazing. It’s a pretty amazing feeling being at 14,265 feet in the middle of the night. Quandary is close to Breck and very accessible, but we felt miles away from everything. Myself and Kelly still work at the store, Josh and Cari have moved to the big city…..Denver. Tony should be back for the winter, he spent the summer working (sailing!) at Lake Dillon. Check out www.14ers.com for great daytime photos and info about all the 14ers in Colorado.

We are always doing stuff like this and we have all the right links, so check back to see what’s going on here in Summit County. I also look forward to hearing from YOU! Send us pictures and stories of your adventures, wherever you are.