On the morning of New Year’s Eve, eagle-eyed Colorado Springs residents might be able to catch a glimpse of flashing mirrors just below the tree line. By the time the clock strikes midnight, the AdAmAn Club sits at the summit, ready to light up the sky for the town below.
Among them is chemistry teaching professor Elise Naughton. On New Year’s Eve, Naughton scaled Pikes Peak alongside 31 other climbers with the AdAmAn Club, a mountaineering group that makes the climb every year. Last year’s climb marks the club’s 104th trek.
The group ascends the mountain using Barr Trail each year, accompanied by a trailer full of fireworks, which the group set off from the summit at midnight to usher in the new year.
On the club’s 100th climb, Naughton was able to attend for the first time as a guest climber. “I didn’t expect to love it so much, but it was so much fun. And really, it’s about the camaraderie,” Naughton said.
Naughton has accompanied the group for their New Year’s climb for the last four years, but her history with the club stretches much farther back. “I’ve grown up with these guys, so it’s like they’re kind of part of my family,” Naughton said.
Climbing runs in the family. Her father, Patrick Naughton, started climbing with the club when Naughton was 11 years old. “My dad got me into hiking. I’ve always liked it. He took me up my first fourteener when I was 7 years old,” Naughton said.
Naughton recalls attending the group’s annual team dinners and pre-climb breakfasts. According to Naughton, her love for the club grew from seeing her father participate, and from seeing how significant the event was for the city.
Alongside the fireworks, the AdAmAn club flashes mirrors at the city down below. Colorado Springs residents flash mirrors back to signal their support. “We had so many mirrors from the city [this year], and it was absolutely beautiful. That’s one of my favorite parts,” Naughton said.
According to Naughton, her favorite part of this year’s climb was the team dinner at Barr Camp. Members of the group bond by telling stories about the club’s history over tea and coffee.
The tradition dates back to 1922, when climbers Fred Barr, Fred and Ed Morath, Harry Standley, and Willis Magee, known as the “Frozen Five,” used the Cog Railway tracks to reach the summit on Dec. 31, according to the AdAmAn website.
The climbers set up rockets and flares on the mountain for a New Year’s watch party below. The original event was sponsored by the Colorado Springs Gazette. On Dec. 31, 1922, The Gazette reported: “An hour before dawn this morning, five men, black dots on a carpet of white snow, will leave Manitou for their ascent of Pikes Peak, on the crest of which they plan to greet the new year.”
Gazette Telegraph Article, December 31, 1922, Pikes Peak Library District.
Since then, AdAmAn and guest climbers like Naughton have kept the tradition alive, adding one new member to their ranks each year (hence the club’s name, add a man).
When weather permits, look up to Pikes Peak on New Year’s Eve. You might just see your chemistry professor.
The Pikes Peak New Years Eve climb. Photo by KOAA.