The movie Everest is out. If you have not seen it yet, I highly recommend you go watch it. It’s a masterpiece. It’s beautiful. It’s majestic.

It has been my longtime dream to climb Mount Everest, the ultimate adventure. After years of hiking, trekking, mountaineering, skydiving, and whatnot, I have finally put together a realistic and fun plan to accomplish my death-defying goals.

GOAL SETTING

For me, the standards for goal picking & setting is simple.

“If a goal is not crazy enough, it is not worthy enough to be a goal. It better be just a task.”

“A goal must fit into the grand vision of your life. A goal must be a pillar or a brick in the architect of your vision.”

As a couple, our Goal #1 is to attempt to successfully climb all 14 peaks of Massachusetts (for 14 counties) by Dec 2018. County highpoints are generally called CoHP.

Our Goal #2 is to attempt to climb all 50 tallest peaks of all 50 US states by Dec 2020.

And, this is the most fun part. I won’t be doing this alone. This is something, my girlfriend and I started together and we are now married and we are going to attempt to climb all 50 US highpoints as a couple. If we successfully do this, we will be the first international couple to successfully climb all 50 State highpoints in America.

Our ultimate goal is to eventually climb the Seven Summits and hope to make a Guinness World Record.

Why Highpoint

1. We will be the first international couple to officially do it. And, it will be a good warm-up exercise for us for later, when we take on higher-elevation and more dangerous climbs.
2. Most of these places are easy to access (since we live in Boston and the east coast states are smaller).
3. Therefore, this feat will not cost us a fortune. That would be different if we were thinking of flying to every continent or the Poles. Or if we were to travel from Asia or Europe.

BEING OFFICIAL ABOUT IT

To make sure what we are attempting is doable and in some way officially verifiable, I reached out to Greg, an experienced climber and the creator & webmaster of Peakbagger.com. I wanted to ask his advice on this. (PS: I highly encourage you all to check out peakbagging.com and peakbagger.com. These websites will inspire you to your core.)

The following is my email communications with Greg.

Hi Greg, My girlfriend and I are into mountaineering and hiking. We have been doing it for years. I recently discovered your website and I was wondering, how do you verify the climbs? As a couple, we want to do 50 peaks of US and would like to do it as part of a book project that I have. My plan is to find out how much and money it would cost for a person or couple to perform such a feat. I was curious; how do I make sure that my climbs are recorded which can later be officially verified. Suggestions, thoughts? Best regards, Sal

Greg’s quick reply to my email:

Hi, Salil, The vast majority of accomplishments reported by mountain climbers worldwide are on an honor system.  Most people don’t make any real attempt to conclusively document their ascents, nor question the climbs of others.  For virtually all hiking clubs in the USA, including the State Highpointers, it’s all about fun and friendship, and if you say you climbed all the peaks, they will give you the benefit of the doubt. In mountaineering history there have been some charlatans claiming ascents they never made, usually first ascents of well-known peaks.  And I know of some elderly people with a form of mental illness who started logging all sorts of imaginary climbs, claiming they were real.  But this is a very small minority. There are also variations of the understanding of what getting to a summit means.  For some, they have to touch the highest rock with their boot.  For others, getting 95% the way up counts, for example, the many guided clients who reach the crater rim of Mount Rainier, do not cross to the highest summit, and call it good. I personally like to take pictures of myself when I have climbed a major peak solo, to prove I was there, but no one has ever asked me for proof.  The whole thing is kind of silly, really.  So I would not worry at all about doing anything formal for verification—just take some photos and sign the register. I have completed the 50 state highpoints.  Outside of Denali, it’s not super hard or super expensive.

The main obstacle is getting enough time off, and doing a lot of driving.  If you need a guide for Rainier, Hood, Granite, or Gannett, that can be a little expensive, otherwise your only real costs are gas, food, lodging, etc.

Denali is another story.  It’s about $10,000 to climb that peak, for the guide service, buying special cold weather gear, airfare, park fees, etc. Cheaper without a guide but still probably $5000. 

Best of luck on your quest,

– Greg, Webmaster, Peakbagger.com

My gratitude reply to Greg:

Hi Greg, Good morning! Yours is the first email I have read this morning and I can’t tell how happy I am. (Honestly, I was not sure, if you would reply or reply quick enough). Whenever someone is willing to be approachable and helpful, it just lights up the whole universe. (Ok, maybe not the whole universe but someone’s world for sure). So, thank you! 

Ok – so pictures and registration/entrance log (if any) is sufficient. This makes this whole undertaking more fun. I have registered on Peakbagger.com and would love to meet and make new adventurer friends. Thank you again! Please keep doing what you love to do!

– Sal, Boston, MA

MASSACHUSETTS COUNTY HIGHPOINTS

1. Berkshire, Mount Greylock, 3487 ft
2. Franklin, Mount Crum Hill, 2835 ft
3. Hampshire, West Mountain, 2106 ft
4. Worcester, Wachusett Mountain, 1998 ft
5. Hampden, Round Top Hill, 1781
6. Middlesex, Nutting Hill (Northeast Slope), 1585 ft
7. Norfolk, Great Blue Hill, 640 ft
8. Essex, Holt Hill, 423 ft
9. Plymouth, Manomet Hill, 395 ft
10. Bristol, Sunrise Hill, 394 ft
11. Suffolk, Bellevue Hill, 325 ft
12. Dukes, Marthas Vineyard High Point, 311 ft
13. Barnstable, Pine Hill, 306 ft
14. Nantucket, Sankaty Head, 111 ft 

The reason I am posting this publicly on my blog is so we remain accountable to our goals. The goal completion date is to finish all climbs by or before 12/31/2016.  Here are the United States 51 tallest peaks (including DC). We will do the 48 states + DC first and then attempt Denali and Hawaii in the end.

We have already been to Alaska and it is expensive to go there. Besides, you can see in Greg’s reply to me that there are other expensive costs associated with Mount Denali. Some say that climbers attempting less commercialized peaks, like Denali, are often expected to carry backpacks that weigh over 30 kilograms (66 lbs) and, occasionally, to tow a sled with 35 kilograms (77 lbs) of gear and food. Now that’s a real adventure. That’s challenging, crazy, and fun.

50 STATES HIGHPOINTS (US)

1. Alaska, Denali, 20,310 ft
2. California, Mount Whitney, 14,495 ft
3. Colorado, Mount Elbert, 14,433 ft
4. Washington, Mount Rainier, 14,411 ft
5. Wyoming, Gannett Peak, 13,804 ft
6. Hawaii, Mauna Kea, 13,796 ft
7. Utah, Kings Peak, 13,528 ft
8. New Mexico, Wheeler Peak, 13,161 ft
9. Nevada, Boundary Peak, 13,140 ft
10. Montana, Granite Peak, 12,799 ft
11. Idaho, Borah Peak, 12,662 ft
12. Arizona, Humphreys Peak, 12,633 ft
13. Oregon, Mount Hood, 11,239 ft
14. Texas, Guadalupe Peak, 8749 ft
15. South Dakota, Harney Peak 7242 ft
16. North Carolina, Mount Mitchell, 6684 ft
17. Tennessee, Clingmans Dome, 6643 ft
18. New Hampshire, Mount Washington, 6288 ft
19. Virginia, Mount Rogers, 5729 ft
20. Nebraska, Panorama Point, 5426 ft
21. New York, Mount Marcy, 5344 ft
22. Maine, Katahdin, 5268 ft
23. Oklahoma, Black Mesa, 4973 ft
24. West Virginia, Spruce Knob, 4861 ft
25. Georgia, Brasstown Bald, 4784 ft
26. Vermont, Mount Mansfield, 4393 ft
27. Kentucky, Black Mountain, 4139 ft
28. Kansas, Mount Sunflower, 4039 ft
29. South Carolina, Sassafras Mountain, 3554 ft
30. North Dakota, White Butte, 3506 ft
31. Massachusetts, Mount Greylock, 3487 ft
32. Maryland, Backbone Mountain, 3360 ft
33. Pennsylvania, Mount Davis, 3213 ft
34. Arkansas, Magazine Mountain, 2753 ft
35. Alabama, Cheaha Mountain, 2405 ft
36. Connecticut, Mount Frissell (South Slope), 2372 ft
37. Minnesota, Eagle Mountain, 2301 ft
38. Michigan, Mount Arvon, 1978 ft
39. Wisconsin, Timms Hill, 1951 ft
40. New Jersey, High Point, 1803 ft
41. Missouri, Taum Sauk Mountain, 1772 ft
42. Iowa, Hawkeye Point 1670 ft
43. Ohio, Campbell Hill 1549 ft
44. Indiana, Hoosier Hill, 1257 ft
45. Illinois, Charles Mound, 1235 ft
46. Rhode Island, Jerimoth Hill, 812 ft
47. Mississippi, Woodall Mountain, 806 ft
48. Louisiana, Driskill Mountain, 535 ft
49. Delaware, Ebright Azimuth, 442 ft
50. Florida, Britton Hill, 345 ft

Bonus: District of Columbia (D.C.), Reno Reservoir, 415 ft

WHAT ELSE ARE WE DOING?

While doing the US 50 States Highpoints (mountains), we will simultaneously also cover two of our ancillary goals.

1. A road trip and covering all 50 states of USA
2. Having the best moments from all 50 states and turning it into a picture-book

Next, we will start with The Seven Summit and with Mount Denali (tallest peak in the North American continent) already covered, we will only have 6 more to do.

Well, this is only a dream for now.

First thing first. The secret to success is one baby step at a time and being consistent.

Please join us in our quest to conquer all 50 States High Points in the USA. We need your support, love, and prayers.

If you are a climber and would love to join us, please feel free to message me. We have a long way to go. So, it’s time to shut down the computer and go to the rocks.

Talk to you soon, my friends!

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If you would like to share your thoughts, please feel free to leave a comment and I would love to read it. If you have already climbed some of these mountains, please share about your experiences.

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