
The trail ended at 10,000 feet. Footprints in snow continued ahead, a scattered field of post-holes fading into trees above. “I guess we head uphill and west,” I said, looking at my topo map.
We’d anticipated a clear trail run up Flat Top Mountain, a 12,324-foot peak in Rocky Mountain National Park. But heavy snow and cold temps have kept the snowpack later this year.
Terry Chiplin moved from Great Britain to a high-altitude home in Estes Park, Colo., for just this kind of thing — thin mountain air and snow in June. “There’s something about being up here I can’t describe,” he said.

Chiplin lives near 9,000 feet. He operates a business called Active at Altitude, which hosts camps and retreats in and around Rocky Mountain National Park.
GearJunkie managing editor Sean McCoy met Chiplin last October at the inaugural Estes Trail Ascent, a trail-running conference in Estes Park. On a family trip to Colorado last month, I used the excuse of interviewing Chiplin to get him to lead me up a peak on a morning trail run.
He said every athlete can benefit from training at altitude, no matter what their ability level. “We have amateurs to Olympic hopefuls training here with us.”




