"There's only one hard and fast rule in running: sometimes you have to run one hard and fast."








Sunday, December 19, 2010

2011=12/2?

I think I've found my stupid goal for 2011: Climb all the peaks in Minnesota over 2000 feet in one day (thus the 12/2). I'm not really sure I even have the number right, much less assessed the possibility!

1) 2301 foot Eagle Mtn., is the acknowledged high point (there are several other Eagle Mtn.'s in MN). It's about an hour's hard climb by itself.

2) 2238 (or 2228) foot Lima Mtn. is near Eagle.

3) 2230 foot Misquah Hills peak of uncertain name

4) 2067 unnmamed?, between  E. Branch of Beaver River and Baptism River in Finland State Forest.

5) 2245 Gaskin Mtn. near Isabella MN.

6) "Peak 2266" near Isabella MN

7) 2224 Brule Mtn (same as #3?)

8) Pine Mountain (same as #3?)

9) Kelso Mountain near Tofte

10) Stony Tower Hill near Isabella

11) Peabody Hill near Isabella

12) Moose Mtn. near Hovland (there are two better known tall Moose Mtns in MN)

Sure, Sue Johnson did the 48 NH 4's in 5 days (see here) and all 54 CO 14's has been done (Rex Headd, probably others). But the Minnesota 2's? One day? Doubtful.

added: 13?) 2008 foot Height of Land Lookout Tower on White Earth Indian Reservation, east of Itasca State park. That'd kill any possibility of doing all in one day.

5 comments:

wildknits said...

Sounds like a challenge! Especially getting to those peaks. Most likely no roads that lead near some of them.

Oh yeah - thanks for reminding me I live near Minnesota's version of the mountains! ;-> Seems like those are all part of the Sawtooth Range.

Keith said...

Minnesota has "peaks"??? Who knew? Hmmm, 2000 ft is just over 600 m. And some of them are called mountains. Sheesh. I suppose you have to take your peaks where you can get them.

SteveQ said...

@Wildknits: That's the whole point - no access! Fortunately, the peak in the opposite corner in Pipestone's only 1967 feet, or the whole thing would be inpossible.

@Keith: Yes, we laugh at some of them being called mountains too, though visitors frequently comment that "Minnesota does not believe in switchbacks." Hike the Superior Trail and you'll see some of the real mountains in the Rocky's look like paved roads.

Glaven Q. Heisenberg said...

Well, you sure nailed the "stupid" part. Congrats.

When I was out in the Pacific Northwest - Oregon, to be exact - the foax out there used to mock our East Coast "mountains" because of their comparative smallness, which I thought a bit ridiculous. Yeah, Oregonians, your mountains are way bigger ... but what? Did you build them or something? (You catch a glimpse of this pride-in-something-I-had-nothing-to-do-with attitude in Keith's comment, too, making me wonder: Is he originally from Oregon?)

Dicks!

Actually, they weren't dicks. They were so polite (the mountain issue aside) that it was disgusting. They even let people merge into their lanes on expressways without a fight! WTF?

I got back at them by pronouncing "Oregon" thus: OR-a-GAWN. They preferred something closer to "ORgan".

Which pronunciation brings us full circle back to the issue of dicks, organs being just another name for them, and all.

Circle of life and/or phalli.

Keith said...

I think you were around for some of the ou words thing since it happened on LuMu's blog and GQH's a bit too, and maybe Missy as well. I've always been just a bit puzzled by the people who think we pronounce the ou words oddly. Well, maybe some Eastern Canadians do, but as they say "we're so poor we only got but one vowel".

And that's a pretty faint flavour, GQH. And it IS pronounced ORagawn. Isn't it? (Chuckling into my sleeve.)