Lloyd Athearn - Protecting and Preserving Colorado's Highest Peaks

Lloyd Athearn is the Executive Director of the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative (CFI), a non-profit organization whose mission is to protect and preserve the natural integrity of Colorado’s 14,000-foot peaks through active stewardship and public education. CFI's work includes building and maintaining trails, educating hikers and climbers on best practices in the high country, conserving the native alpine tundra ecosystem, and generally helping to ensure that these popular mountains are not inadvertently "loved to death" through overuse. • Much of Lloyd's career has centered around mountains, so we had a fun and wide-ranging conversation with topics including 14ers, climbing adventures, ecology, books, advice to first-time hikers, and plenty more. Lloyd is a super interesting guy who's doing very important work, so I hope you enjoy the conversation as much as I did! • http://mountainandprairie.com/lloyd-athearn/ --- TOPICS DISCUSSED: 2:50 - How Lloyd describes his work 3:45 - What is a 14er? 4:30 - Officially, how many 14ers are there? 7:50 - Why do 14ers need protecting? 11:55 - How CFI prioritizes 14er projects 14:30 - CFI’s trail inventory project 20:50 - How many people climb 14ers annually? 24:00 - How is CFI funded? 26:40 - Youth crews 28:30 - How private land can impact access to 14ers 33:00 - Specific 14er success stories 35:20 - Explaining the class rating system 36:45 - CFI’s April Fools jokes 38:20 - Lloyd’s personal background and early outdoor experiences 40:30 - Lloyd’s career path 43:40 - Lloyd’s advice to young people who are interested in a career centered around the outdoors 47:50 - Advice for a first-time 14er hike 52:20 - Lloyd’s scary Ecuador lightening experience 54:10 - Lloyd’s favorite 14er 55:15 - One of Lloyd’s (and Ed’s!) favorite books 57:45 - Favorite documentary 58:55 - Favorite non-14er outdoor activities 1:00:15 - Craziest thing that’s ever happened to Lloyd in the outdoors 1:02:50 - Favorite place(s) in the West 1:04:00 - Biggest challenge and opportunity facing Colorado in the future 1:06:10 - Lloyd’s request of listeners 1:07:45 - How to connect with CFI --- This episode is brought to you by Mountain Khakis. Rugged. Authentic. Reliable. Timeless. What started as a casual conversation at the Shady Lady Saloon in Jackson Hole, WY has become a top-performing mountain-inspired lifestyle apparel brand. Established in 2003, Mountain Khakis quickly became a staple in the wardrobe of everyone from ranch hands to golf pros, those who travel by jet, as well as those who travel by thumb. The Mountain Khakis brand story continues to resonate as it connects to the enthusiast who believes that freedom and rugged adventure is a way of life. Join the conversation at www.mountainkhakis.com