Welcome back all!! So much has happened since my last entry. Upon getting back from our last adventure in 2017 I was soooo swamped with work that I neglected to post our hike on three sections of the Colorado Trail. No worries I retired from my job in June and now ready to get the blog back to the care and nurturing that we have enjoyed.
Now off on our first adventure. Kathi and I headed to the airport and pulled into the parking spot at 3:30 am. On the plane by 5:30, on the ground in Colorado by 7 am, sitting in Pat's car by 7:15. We arrive at Pat and Wendy's new home by 7:30. Un-statch everything we had to put in suitcases and make the final packing of our backpacks. We loaded up the packs, stashed them in the car, and hit the road. the drive to the trailhead was 3.5 hour drive from Denver. We hit the trail at 3 pm. Perhaps not the best idea to start hiking in Colorado so late in the day due to sudden storms. We cut a fast pace up the 1109 foot elevation gain and put a quick 3.7 miles on our way back towards our first set of lakes. The conventional wisdom of figuring out how long this should take is for every 1000 foot of elevation add one hour, add your walking pace of around a mile every 40 + minutes of trail hiking to arrive at your estimated travel time. We were really moving! Pat set the pace for us, and at times, I thought man, we are running up this trail! I was huffing and puffing but enjoying every step. Pat later fessed up that she was sure it was going to rain, and wanted to have camp set up before it started. Good news is that it remained blue sky until dark. If you might recall from our other trips to Colorado, Kathi and I have a magical way of producing a summer phenomenon called the "Monsoon rains". (Sudden afternoon rain/hail storms.)
As we tucked into our tents at dusk, I wrote in my notes: early morning, fast flight, long drive, fast hike, wonderful smells, so much to look at, fast camp set up, our new recipe of dehydrated chile for supper...living the dream! Hope to sleep well! All so worth the effort. The bad news is it was a chilly night and we woke up to frost. We were warm enough in our sleeping bags, but I had my sleeping bag hood cinched up tight up and over my head. Where is that hot flash when you need it?
Once the light of the morning broke, it warmed up quickly! Happy to have that first cup of coffee:)
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| Pat is buckling down her pack named Oscar. Secretly, I think Oscar must come in at 50 pounds. Pat has some new dinner items packed, and I think they have added to the overall weight. Kathi checks over her pack named Jade (47lbs). |
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| The telltale sign that the pack is packed correctly is...will it stand by itself? My pack, which I have named Lucy, is standing and ready to go. With water, she weighs in at 47 pounds! |
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| Headed back towards the Mt in the diastance and then turn right, for many more breathtaking miles. |
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| Pronounced Ray Whaa. I'm adding to my collection of photos of the "wilderness" areas in the US. |
Within two hours of our starting time, we were making a river crossing to our first night of camping. Here Kathi took the high road. Pat and I walked through the creek, with the hope that the waterproofing and height of on our boots were in good order.
I forgot to get a picture of our tents set up for the night. This is us trying to tear down camp and make everything go back into the packs.
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