“Summit by noon.”
It’s a common adage among hikers who seek to conquer Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks. Others argue that a better rule of thumb is to get below tree line by noon to avoid getting caught in summer storms and to reduce the risk of being struck by lightning.
But Lloyd Athearn, executive director of the , a nonprofit that builds and maintains trails on the state’s highest peaks, takes a more nuanced stance. Forget the rules you’ve heard, he says, and respond to weather conditions as they develop in the moment.
Because conditions can change rapidly and unexpectedly in the high country — it’s not uncommon to witness a whole year’s worth of seasons in one hike — he suggests that hikers prepare for all of them. “In my pack, I usually have full Gore-Tex rain gear. I’ve got insulation. I’ve got extra hats and gloves and things like that, even if itap in the middle of summer because I know it can get windy and rainy and snowy at the top of a 14er effectively every day of the year,” he said.
One of the scariest things hikers can encounter, though, is lightning. July, which is prime 14er season, is historically the stormiest month with an , according to the National Weather Service. August ranks second with 4,811 daily flashes, followed by June at 2,856.
Those statistics directly correlate to human-involved lightning incidents. From 1980 to 2024, 101 people were killed, and 490 were injured by lightning strikes in Colorado, the National Weather Service reports. Of those,
The most recent fatality occurred this July, when five people were struck by lightning atop Mount Blue Sky near Idaho Springs. One of them, a teenage boy, died from the strike.
While lightning strikes can happen at any elevation, they are attracted to the tallest thing on any given landscape, which can often be people above the treeline. And even if it’s not a direct hit, the residual shock from a nearby strike can have serious consequences.
Here are Athearn’s tips for managing lightning risk while hiking 14ers:
Adequately prepare and be flexible
The first thing Athearn suggests is to check weather forecasts ahead of time. This may seem like a no-brainer, but it bears repeating because forecasts can change in the days leading up to your hike or even the day of.
There have never been more tools to get a sense of what weather may be coming, so “there really should be no excuse for people being unprepared, not carrying equipment or not being informed about what weather risks are going to be for their destination,” he said. He suggested using the on a desktop or laptop computer, which allows users to plug in the specific 14er they want to visit and receive highly precise forecasts for the area. That includes the chances of precipitation and thunder and estimated wind gusts on an hourly basis.
Still, Athearn cautioned not to take the outlook as gospel. Unexpected weather can roll in even when the outlook is favorable. For example, on Aug. 1, Athearn summited 14,230-foot Mount Shavano, in Chaffee County’s Sawatch Range, as part of a statewide effort to to celebrate Colorado’s 150th anniversary. The forecast was picturesque, with little to no rain predicted. On the hike down, however, clouds coalesced, and Athearn still saw some lightning.
“Weather can’t read the forecast; it doesn’t know what itap supposed to do. Itap just going to do what it wants to do,” Athearn said.
If the weather looks questionable, the safest thing hikers can do is to change their plans or cancel their trip. Then they can return to the high country when the conditions appear less sketchy.
“As the saying goes, Mother Nature bats last,” Athearn said. “It’s just going to be a better experience if you go when the conditions are going to be better than if conditions are going to be super windy or high lightning risk or monsoon rain… if you can, why not shift to a better spell of weather?”
“Keep your head on a swivel”
The primary reason hikers aim for the summit or tree line by noon is that Colorado storms usually occur in the afternoon. But again, Athearn cautioned against expecting that to be the case every day.
In 2015, for example, the National Weather Service recorded an incident in which 1 around 10:30 a.m. roughly 500 feet below the summit of Mount Bierstadt. Everyone survived, except for one dog.
Itap important to “keep your head on a swivel” and monitor conditions as they develop throughout your adventure, Athearn said. If the clouds start building up, getting taller and darker, itap time to turn around. In other words, no matter what time of day it is, “if all the signs and sounds around you are indicating storms are building, lightning’s already happening, and you’re hearing thunder, you probably need to dramatically reconsider and get out of there.”
What about driving to the summit?
A select few 14er summits, such as Mount Blue Sky and Pikes Peak, are accessible by car. And while having a car as shelter offers an extra level of safety, Athearn advised that drivers follow all of the same guidance as hikers in preparing for a trip and assessing the weather.
Best practices include scheduling your visit and buying entry tickets after checking the forecast, and being mindful of how conditions develop while you’re there. If the weather starts to turn while you’re out exploring the terrain, return to your car or get inside a building to wait out the storm.
“If you’re standing on the mountain, you’re as much at risk as if you hiked up there,” Athearn said. “The car is your island of safety.”
