Grays Peak and Torreys Peak | Hiking Colorado 14ers

Hiking Grays Peak (14,278 ft) and Torreys Peak (14,267 ft)
My friend John from Kansas City wanted to climb some 14ers in Colorado, so I booked a campsite near Lake Dillon and brought the Airstream up. He drove out from Kansas City on a Friday and we went for the hike on Saturday, giving him minimal time to acclimate to the altitude. I highly recommend this hike, the scenery really exceeded my expectations.
Climbing both peaks is around 8 miles round trip and has approximately 3,500 feet of climbing.
0:00 - Intro at Heaton Bay Campground
0:44 - Grays Peak Trailhead
2:12 - Kelso Ridge View
3:05 - Grays and Torreys trail split
4:10 - Grays Peak summit
5:49 - Torreys Peak summit
6:56 - Mountain goats on the way down
To access the trailhead from I-70, use exit 221 just east of Loveland Ski Area and take Stevens Gulch Road south 3 miles. This road is steep and very rough in places so I strongly recommend 4WD and some good ground clearance. This road is passable in something like a Subaru Outback if you are carful and take the right line in a few places. Ground clearance is the main concern.
Mapping App that I was using in the video - Colorado Trail Explorer (COTREX) - Free app for iOS and Android, shows hiking and 4WD trails and roads, what kind of usage is allowed. Maps can be downloaded of offline use.

[@anantdabholkar685]

I climbed Gray's peak about a 1/4 century ago in the last century, and I gave up on Torreys Peak once I made it up Grays! It was another 14'r just there to bag, so close but yet too far. Looking at your friend John who looks about my age back then, I'm feeling jealous as to how easily he agreed to scale Torreys once you had summitted Grays. There used to be a metal shelter that you could see at the top of Argentine pass you could see from the top of Grays Peak. Its long gone. You can faintly see the trail down Argentine pass though, which apparently was a horse carriage toll road in the 19th century. The Stevens gulch road is badly beaten up from rainwater runoff; it was drivable in a car back then. The steel bridge was there at the beginning of the trail. Leavenworth mountain and the road up the railroad grade from the East to a lookout point is still the same. Things look a lot greener today than they did back then.

[@AustinsADV]

Hi Anant, thanks for sharing! John did a great job on this one, he had been training back home in KC and was very determined, we also had great weather. The road is so rough now that many people park near I-70 and hike up, I'm happy we didn't have to do that. I'd like to check out Argentine pass sometime.

[@roymeetsworld1]

Out of all the 14ers I've done recently Grays & Torreys kicked my butt the most, good work getting to the top

[@AustinsADV]

Thanks! It's always a good feeling when someone comes out here for a hike and it's a success. I'll check out your hiking video. Cheers!

[@cgoliveri]

Man, what a beautiful hike and a beautiful job you did documenting this!

[@AustinsADV]

Thanks Christopher!

[@JimL2883]

I agree!

[@JimL2883]

What time of the day did you start? I’m going there this summer because my sister lives nearby. I want to hike these but have been told to start very early because of crowds.

[@AustinsADV]

We were at the trailhead at 8:00 in early September. The parking was pretty full and the road to the trailhead is very rough so be sure to have plenty of ground clearance. I didn’t think the crowds were bad when we were there.