FKT: Eli Boardman - Wyoming Thirteeners (WY) - 2020-08-05

I became the first person on record to climb all 36 Wyoming 13ers in a single year, finishing August 5, 2020, on Francs Peak. I documented my "13er Quest" with photos and mini trip-reports on a dedicated 14ers.com thread which was announced beforehand and followed throughout the project--see verification link. Private Delorme tracking page available upon request--not for public sharing.

I soloed up all of the routes, including a few climbs up to 5.4 difficulty / steep snow; I rappelled on several descents but never climbed belayed. I accomplished this project as a series of 6 backpacking trips (1-2 nights each, first 3 trips unsupported) and 4 dayhikes (2 unsupported). This sporadic schedule was due to the fact that I had to dedicate most of my days to academics since I was enrolled full-time as an undergrad student at Dartmouth College (which requires sophomores to take courses during their summer term--remote due to the pandemic). I spent only 19 days actually hiking, and 6 of these days were spent entirely on approaches. Thus, I climbed all the peaks in 13 cumulative climbing days, a secondary record of maximum efficiency worth comparison in addition to the complete car-to-car time.

I was unaccompanied for all of the summit climbs except Fremont, Gannett, Wind River Peak, and Francs Peak, which I did with one or both parents for fun. I did 3 of the backpacking trips completely solo and was supported by my parents on the other 3 overnight trips. Thanks especially to my parents, whose moral and logistical support made this possible. Thanks also to Teresa and Sarah for beta, to Lists of John and Peakbagger for info, to Kelsey and the Bonneys for guidebooks, to 14ers.com for hosting my thread and the forum community for their support, and to everyone else who supported me throughout this quest. It was an incredible experience--climb on, friends, and Gloria a Dios.