June 5th found Strode taking on a first time challenge. A fellow at work put out the call that he would be leading a "hike" up to the top of Mt. Bierstadt about one hour from Denver. It is reputed to be the easiest of the 54 14,000 foot mountains in Colorado. So with only one week of preparation, Strode spent about 45 minutes to an hour each day walking up and down the dam that is close to their home in Lowry. The day started early (4:30 wake up) the group assembled and 27 of us took off to try our hand at mountain "hiking". The trip is three miles each way and a gain in elevation of about 2,200 feet from the trail head. The first two thirds is as best described a climbing hike. The surprise came closer to the top. This early in June that is still a lot of snow covering the peak and we had to do some pretty significant 'bouldering' since the normal trail was covered in snow in a number of places. Strode is shown on the left with a look of relief that came with reaching the summit. Top left shows the many stops that we took to catch our breath. Top right, we had to test our balance going up and down crossing the stream. On the right the view from the summit shows the beautiful distant views and the boulder field that we climbed through to enjoy that breathtaking view. After lunch at the top we headed down.