Too much run, run, run – not enough Colorado fun, fun, fun. Well folks…that ends today 🙂
This weekend – my bro & his family flew to Denver for their 2nd Colorado Spring Break ski-cation. Add Ash & Tom to the mix, now 6 of us would be traversing down the slopes Saturday morning. FAAANNNNTASTIC!
Travelled to A-Basin, just south of Loveland Pass on US-6. Ski & boot rental – a few runs down the Bunny Slope before graduating back to Green (yep, ski novices). It was everyone’s first ski of 2015; all re-found rhythm by lunch.
When not skiing, we were eating. Must have been all that mountain air & activity. LOL> Cell phone pics revealed breakfast in Georgetown, pasta lunch at Arapahoe Basin, dinner in Louisville – topped off with ice cream at Sweet Cow.
LOVE my family – nothing like it.
Next up on my 50 State Quest? Climbing Cape May lighthouse with my friend Stephen, touring Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello with Aunt Joyce, riding St. Louis’ iconic Arch with my Sis, then exploring Kentucky horse country with CT bestie Dawn.
Life, it’s one amazing ride.
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- Arapahoe Basin (11,000ft base elevation)
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- sunshine & snow – no jacket required
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- carb loading lunch – YUM!
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- Breckenridge 2014, A-Basin 2015 – where to in 2016?
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- ice cream ending to a super fun weekend
Last March I first snow-shoed in Rocky Mountain Nat’l Park (with a guide through Apex Ex). LOVED it! This year purchased 3 more tickets and treated Ash & Tom as a Christmas gift.
Temps kicked up after weeks of snow – just above freezing, sunny in the mountains. Pretty much perfect 🙂
Same gig as last year – met up at Beaver Meadows Visitors Center in RMNP, followed by a 20 minute drive to Glacier Gorge Trailhead. Poles, shoes, group introductions, porta-potty – then, hit the snowy trail to Nymph Lake.
Today’s snow-shoe itinerary – Nymph, Dream & Emerald Lakes, a 3.6 mile round-trip trek, crazy popular this time of year.
Guide was more aggressive with elevation gain & hill climb than last year’s adventure to Lake Haiyaha. Wasn’t exactly the walk thru the meadows tour I touted to Ash (sorry) – that said, LOVED it!
Highlights? Trekking across Dream Lake – ice formations were stunning. And of course, 3-cheese fondue & apples high in the Rockies aside Emerald Lake. Honestly, absolutely nothing like it – highly recommended!
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- shoeing across Nymph Lake
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- good attitude, another hill climb
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- today’s WOW pic – snow & sun high in the Rockies
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- trip highlight: trekking across Dream Lake
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- stunning ice formations
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- all smiles kinda day
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- Hallett Peak
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- day’s obligatory selfie – can’t believe I live here!
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- destination, Emerald Lake – left the group & hiked UP past tree-line
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- kickin’ back, hot cider
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- 3-cheese fondue, bread & apples – YUM!
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- high-altitude fondue feast
When it snows East Coast, folks cancel marathons & barricade indoors. In Colorado, we go outside & play — LOVE our fluffy precip.
Woke early Saturday – destination Brainard Lake. Roads looked relatively clear after yesterday’s snow – small 2” preview of a storm forecasted to dump 20” later tonite.
DECISION TIME: (1) take the longer route to Brainard – thru Boulder Canyon to Nederland, then north on Peak-to-Peak. Major roads are plowed more often; however, also risk battling ski traffic to nearby Eldora. OR (2) choose the more direct route thru Ward – more direct, more scenic but whole lotta curves & lotta vertical incline.
Entering Boulder, roads still looked clear, so headed up Lee Hill Road to Ward. 20 minutes later, winter wonderland. Downside, I drive a Prius. Upside, had the road to myself – not many crazy enough to take this path in winter 🙂
Steady speed, wide on the curves. No slowing down, or would never make the elevation incline in my front-wheel-drive hybrid.
The road thru Ward is straight up – one stop sign mid-way thru town. UP, UP, UP, 30mph steady.
Past the stop sign & around the curve – sprayed wide but kept enough traction to continue forward. Popped up on Peak-to-Peak, then gunned the left turn into Indian Peaks. Only 5 more miles – on snow-packed state forest roads. Car, don’t fail me now.
Sped into trailhead parking – unplowed, pushed into the first open space…and that’s where I’d berth.
Most of the day’s trek would be on paths forged above summer roadways precip-buried in winter. Tall lodgepole pines, crisp thin air, fresh powder, no noise. Impossible not to smile. This is why we live in Colorado – need this as much as I do food.
2 ½ miles in, walked across Brainard & ate a sandwich near the dam water spill. Beautiful day.
SNOW came early – big flakes – so started back. Return was mostly downhill, so picked up pace & enjoyed some high elevation snow jogging 🙂 Snow jogging above 10,000ft – highly recommended.
BBQ in Nederland; ended the day with snow ice cream, my favourite childhood dessert (thanks Cliff).
Day in the mountains – smiling on the outside, beaming from the inside. LOVE LOVE my Colorado life!
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- lodgepole pine, fresh powder, thin air — impossible not to SMILE
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- FRESH POWDER – tasty, good any time of day
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- no worries, left my motor boat home 🙂
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- snow jogging at 10,000ft – highly recommended!
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- fave childhood dessert — snow ice cream (w/ raspberries), YUM!
