November Summit: Mt. Shavano 14,228.3’

View from the top of Mt. Shavano on 11/16/2025, looking southeast towards Salida, Poncha Springs, The San Luis Valley, the Sangre De Cristo Range, and Mt. Blanca in the distance.

Friends picked me up and we drove towards the peak that stares back down at me daily from my desk. It was a second fourteener attempt in a week, and with it being mid November, the pleasant weather cast a haze of uneasiness on the atmosphere. If we made it up, the friends would celebrate their first 14k foot summit, which added a little extra reward for this one.

There was a light breeze out of the west, but a trickle of air compared to the gusts we walked against the week before. This isn't my first time up Shavano, but a new trail pattern was constructed this past summer. The new route shortened the lateral distance to travel, and in my opinion made the trail much more approachable. Still very steep. Five miles to go up 4400 feet of elevation without any flat sections for relief. It takes it out of you, but as always is worth it. We made it up a little after noon and reckoned with the experience of a chillier summit in August.

As always, grateful to spend a day walking ✌🏼

Congrats 👏

First time up!

Looking south at the Sangre De Cristo range.

Arkansas Hills, South Park, Pikes Peak.

Saw some elk on the way down.