Engineer Mountain

Every time I passed by Engineer Mountain on my way to Silverton I knew I wanted to summit it. Engineer Mountain has an elevation of 13,218 feet. This is one of my new favorite hikes in the Durango area. The first third of the hike winds up the mountainside through all varieties of wild flowers. The grass is splattered with pink, white, orange, purple, blue, and yellow origami shaped flowers. August is prime time to see the purple Colorado columbines, the state flower. We even found pink and white columbines. They cover the hillside on the North face of Engineer.

The last third of the hike is where it gets interesting. You need both hands and feet free to climb to the summit. It starts almost like a slot canyon where you cross unto the rock mountainside. It gets harder to breathe as your lungs get slowly pressed in the elevation gain, the scenery becomes more beautiful. It seems like the mountain goes up forever and the end is not in sight. But when you pull onto the summit you get a breath taking 360 degree of all the mountains from Durango to Silverton; it’s one of the most rewarding hikes I’ve ever done. It’s also one of the most interesting technically. It’s very much a full body experience, and I really enjoyed having to use my whole body and mind to summit it. OneT of my best friends, Rachel Moore,

conquered this one with me, and at the top we both almost cried from it's beauty. Sounds a little cheesy, but it's true! This one really does take your breath away, really... we had to use some ujjayi yoga breaths at the top to reset ourselves.