Backpacking Holy Cross Wilderness

Cami and I took a quick overnight backpacking trip to Holy Cross Wilderness near Minturn.  This was such a pristine location.  Even though we knew this was such a heavy snow year and a cool summer, we were surprised to see that the high lakes were still partially frozen over....in August!  Also, there were waterfalls everywhere.  I don't think I've been on a hike with more waterfalls.  This was truly a hidden gem!

We only met one other person up there on the whole trip.  A man stopped us and asked if we could filter some water for him because his filter wasn't working.  He was a minster who worked in hospice care and we had a great talk about our faith and Jesus.  I have found that the kind of people that you run into deep in the woods are generally very friendly folks.  Or maybe its that friendly folks tend to enjoy getting out to enjoy God's creation. 

Sunrise over Lake Constantine - Prints available

Can you spot Cami?

As we approached the end of the hike, there were some more difficult rocks to scramble up what were smooth and wet.  Cami decided to wait at the lower lake while Molly and I continued to the upper lake.  The sun came out just for a few minutes and the views were breathtaking!  I always love to hear the marmots chirp at you as you trespass in their tundra territory.

Lower Lake

Upper Lake

KD's First Mountain - August, 2019

Our daughter hiked all the way to the top of an unnamed peak at 12,812 from Independence Pass.  The trip was about 4 miles and 800 ft. of elevation gain.  She was a TROOPER and never complained once.  We were so proud of her!  One of the ways she was motivated to keep going and get to the top was the hope of finding "gems" under the rocks at the summit.  She found a couple along the way on the trail (carefully placed there by unknown mountain creatures) that kept her excited to get to the top, but also slowed her down as she was searching for more along the way :) 

Sunrise at Twin Lakes before our hike

Unnamed 12,812

La Plata in the distance

Anderson Peak

Keeping with tradition - Victory pepsi

Mt. Lady Washington - July, 2019

Lady Washington is that "little" bump of a hill to the right of the famous 14er, Longs Peak.  It sees little traffic due to it's elevation being only in the low 13,000's.  Longs is a physically and mentally challenging peak to climb.  When you finish, you have a sense of accomplishment, but you just want to sleep afterward.  For about half the distance and a thousand feet of of elevation gain less, you get to enjoy your day a bit more and have one of the coolest views from the summit of any mountain in Colorado.

The hike was pretty fun and there was a bit of scrambling up large boulders toward the top.  Tim has been running marathons and pushes me on the trail sections of our hikes, but slows down closer to my pace when we start scrambling up or down.  Overall, I think it took us about 6 hours of hiking time from car to car with the true reward being the airy view of the east face of Longs Peak!

The Diamond - Prints available

The Diamond reflected in Tim's sunglasses