6 days after the Georgia marathon, time to refuel mentally and get my Colorado hike on.
Decided on a local Boulder hike since I already had Sunday plans snow-shoeing 8 hours in RMNP. I previously attempted Green Mountain in December 2012 but took a wrong turn & finished Flagstaff that day.
2014, no excuses. Trekking with Ash & Tom means hiking’s been upgraded to GPS 🙂
Hiked UP a mile before being sign-restricted from continuing Green Mountain — $1,000 fine? Well that’s no good. Most of our local trail system was destroyed in September’s historic Boulder Canyon flood. I had not first-hand witnessed the damage & naively assumed everything was now back to normal. NOT!
Just beyond the trail closure, witnessed a huge gorge created by last fall’s destruction. Bushwhacked UP thru fallen trees & rock, across snow & ice fields, until miraculously we reached Greenman Trail – which empties onto Green Mountain summit.
Next restriction? No dogs allowed. Guessing this is a new law since my guide book specifically states ‘dogs allowed’. ARGH!
Beautiful day for me and my dog this day. One older guy grumbled – but Ro & Marty were soon greeted by 3 other canine hikers. Warmed in the sun and enjoyed a black bean burger before return hiking down.
As luck would have it, Gregory Canyon trail was also destroyed so met up with Flagstaff trail, adding an extra ½ mile to our adventure (but no crazy bushwhacking climb DOWN the canyon – whew).
Not a fan of random Republic of Boulder ordinances, but today’s summit view – FAAAANNNNNTASTIC!
Leave a Reply