Hiking 14ers in Colorado

Has anyone climbed Mt Elbert and Mt Massive outside of Leadville? I hope to climb Elbert and perhaps Massive this summer. Not sure how to prepare. Planning on working on cardio and taking long hikes. Any other suggestions?

Good hikeing boots are a must. Lori and I hiked a 14er Mt. Quandry just south of Brekenridge. Good hikeing boots would have made the trip down a whole lot more pleasurable.

Greg:
Travis Clark and I climbed Mt. Massive about 12 years ago. It is a long days hike by the time you summit and come back down. The fact of the matter is, we thought we were climbing the route to Elbert but ended up on top of Massive. It was in June if I remember right and there was lots of snow pack toward the top.

We were definitely off the beaten path as I remember climbing through scree piles and actually doing some bouldering. Somehow, we had ended up on the west side of the mountain. Once we found the summit, I remember opening the sign in cannister and found out we were on Massive. I yelled over to Travis, "Hey Travis, does that mountain over there look like it is 12 ft. taller than this one!" We found the main trail for the return trip and it was much easier. I was along for the hike and hadn't did any "scouting of routes" etc.... It was something to do on a day off from riding so we weren't exactly "doing it by the book!"

I've never done Elbert but I've been told that it is one of the easiest climbs of the 14ers. More about conditioning than technical ability.
You climb a little over 4,300 ft for massive and I think the round trip distance is about 16 miles.

Just put a pack on and start at the campground loop and hike to the top and back. That would put you in the range of mileage. Just no altitude to deal with. Make sure you raft the Arkansas River while your in the area. The most popular trip is "Brown's Canyon". Back in my whitewater days we used to paddle: Pine Creek, numbers, and Royal Gorge sections of the Arkansas. If you drive past these sections in June, you'll see some real white water.

Greg:
Seriously, I don't know what your fitness level is right now, but if you hike out at Indian Creek with the current snowy conditions, you'll get a tremendous workout. Just think what it is like to do toe raises and squats for a couple of hours.

On top of that, the winter hike in the snow is so pretty. Be sure to take water and I'd suggest having two cars, one at the start and finish. Or, you can do an out and back. The hike from 510 to #16 or #17 is a perfect shuttle hike. If you start at 510 and go north and want to bail out, it's easy to come over the ridge and access 510 via the old Carlton property where the education center is.

I had to take a bail out a couple times back in the early 90's.....I wouldnt recommend it, the attorneys were the only ones who profited from that!!!!! And the holding cell wasnt much fun!!

THanks for the input. Will definitely be getting back with you guys. My plans right now are to work on cardio and do long (6 hr) hikes around here. Can't agree more on the boots. Have been wearing some hikers that are a little small. They have worked the ends of my toes over pretty good.