September - Day to day

The boys run a pet walking and care business. We currently have three dogs on the roster along with Rocky. Walk times are quite a handful! (pic)

The elk mating season is here again and last week we were marveling at the amount of elk bugling we could hear in our neighborhood. We have been watching beautiful 6 point elk strolling through our yard surrounded by their "harem" of ladies. Nature can be so majestic. Over the weekend we were shocked to discover that most of the bugling was recordings and hunters were in the neighborhood. They brought down one of our males Saturday morning but after the outcry against them I do not think they will be back again. The bow hunting season ends next weekend. I can hear another male out there at the moment - life goes on.

We had a great bike ride through the lower trails of Elk Meadow on Sunday. Mike took a major tumble but showed great courage and hopped straight back onto his bike.

September 19 - Mt Evans

We live within 25 miles of the peak of a 14er. During the summer one can drive all the way to the top on a paved road - the highest paved road in North America. At this time of year the peak has snow, the road is not plowed and one can only drive to about 13000 ft. We also recently discovered that some of the bristle cone pines at tree line are about 1700 years old. School were closed on Friday so we decided to do some hiking up to the trees. We parked at a trail head at about 9500 ft and ventured into the forest. After hiking for two hours we realized that the trail was not going to take us up to tree line, so we turned around and returned to the car. We drove up to tree line (11500 ft) and took a short walk through the bristle cone forest. The texture and shape of the trees was really beautiful (pic). We continued further up the road and had a birds eye view to the west. Groves of aspen created a lovely patchwork in the distance (pic). The sleet on the road became too scary so we turned around and headed home. All in all another good day in Colorado!

September 12-14 - Chicago Creek

Another lovely campground close to home! Six miles up the Mt Evans road from Idaho Springs, followed by three miles of gravel leads one into a quiet, beautifully situated campground. The sound of the creek and the rustling aspen make this a great place to relax. Rocky, Ant and I enjoyed a sunrise hike up the "Hells Hole Trail" (pic). The boys discovered a fort in amongst the willows along the creek. It was a large complex of connected "rooms" and they loved conjecturing the use of each room. They each claimed a personal room, and declared a room for meditation, Rocky's sun room, the weaving room, a treasure room and others I cannot remember the details of. They were busy in their complex for hours(pic). Rich and I were able to go for a peaceful walk along the creek (pic). On our return to the camp ground we tried ambusing them but their defences were good and we could not penetrate the fort.

The chill in the air is quite refreshing and the aspen are changing color. We may return to see the colors at the beginning of October.

September 7 - Bergen Peak so close to home

10 miles from our house there is an Open Space park where we did our first ever "hike" in Colorado. The boys were two years old and we walked approx. 1/2 mile into the meadow. It was very pretty and quite exciting. Since then, I have always loved the park and have returned there often. There is a great meadow loop and I have done it under all conditions. Dry, wet, icy and snowy. If one ventures a bit further along the trails one can climb pretty high above the valley below. During the week one of the boy's friends convinced us that a hike to the highest peak in the park is quite achievable. We wanted to do a hike with the kids so we decided to do it instead of attempting a 14er. We were on the trail by mid morning and spent the next three hours slogging to the top, almost 2000ft above the car park. We kept hearing the chant that "the view from the top is worth it". It really is worth it! One can see Denver and gaze over the plains to the east.(pic) Looking west are endless peaks.(pic) After completing the 10mile hike we treated ourselves to great milkshakes. We returned home exhausted and I was so pleased to drop into bed early.

August 31 Grays and Torreys

Last year a friend of mine introduced me to two ladies from Aspen. We spent the day hiking Mt Bierstadt. It was a great achievement because it was the first peak over 14 000ft I had hiked. Today we got together again and we conquered both Grays and Torreys Peaks. (14 270 and 14 267ft high) (pic) The weather was fantastic, the hike was enjoyable and we reached both summits before noon. The hike was especially good because I had the company of Rocky - our new dog.(pic) The trail was full of hikers but I have come to expect so many people and it is fun seeing the different groups all working towards a common goal. I cannot wait until next years hike!

August 22-24 Clear Creek Campground

With the rising cost of gas we are determined to find campgrounds closer to home. After searching the topographic maps we discovered a campground near the head waters of Clear Creek. It is called Mizpah - There are only 10 sites and one cannot reserve sites. Rich went up early Friday morning to ensure we would get a site. He found a lovely secluded spot with a great big camp fire area. We arrived mid afternoon and all but one site was occupied. We could hear the cars on Hwy40 - a small price to pay for the convenience of the campground. The river was 50ft from our camper and the boys spent a lot of time exploring there. An old decaying log cabin was a source of rusty tin containers. We spent Saturday morning volunteering with the Forest Service at the headwaters of Clear Creek(pic). The weather was a bit wet by late afternoon, but we were able to spend the evening around a huge campfire with friends from Lookout Mountain. On Sunday morning we could not resist a hike up to Hassel Lake(pic). The short drive home was a great end to a good weekend.