We had a wonderful Christmas and we were able to visit so many family members we don\’t see often enough. One of those was my cousin Bob and he is always talking about rock climbing and how we have to
Category: Vacations
When we decide to make a big trip out of it
Winter Park, on the way to the Alpine Slide
This is the first part of the video I warned you about. I\’ve decided that if I have to edit video then I didn\’t shoot it correctly, so this is the one piece of video that I didn\’t have to edit. We were
Oh the videos…
Ok, we shot a TON of video on our trip to Winter Park and I\’m really dreading trying to put it all into an edited piece of content for the blog so if you guys don\’t mind I\’m going to break it up a bit
Visiting the Mile High City
We headed back into Denver and had heard that there was a marker on the steps of the State Capitol marking 5,280 feet above Sea Level (One Mile). So we had to check this out and sure enough we found the
Back at the Trail Head
We made it back to the trail head after a few hours of hiking. The trip down was much easier than the trip up the trail but we would have loved to stay in the mountains for longer if we could.
We
One more trip over the log bridge
Once again we hit the log bridge over the stream as we were heading for the parking lot. This time we had experience on our side and the knowledge that plenty of people had crossed this same set of logs
Preparing for the hike out
We took our time packing up our gear and getting ready for the hike out. The benefit to us was that the longer we waited the warmer it was going to be as we hit the trail. From our campsite the parking
Our Campsite at Night
We woke up in the middle of the night (probably because it was so frigging cold) but we had to take some long exposure photos to show you how awesome our view was at night. We could see more stars in the
Another 14’er Trail
Just to explain, these mountains are known as 14\’ers because they are 14,000 feet (or just over) at their peaks. We were camping somewhere in the 13,000 foot range close enough to the trails that would
The Mountain Landscape
There really is no way to describe how incredible the view was from anywhere around our campsite. The wildflowers were in bloom and they covered the ground for as far as you could see.
Keep in mind
Cold Mornings on the Mountain
We woke up early but didn\’t climb out of the tent until the sun broke over the peak of the mountains. It was freezing at night and our sleeping bags were rated for -15 degrees but it was still very cold.
Afternoon Fog
We decided to spend some time at our campsite and picked out our gourmet dinner in a bag. The meals were actually pretty good but for some reason we just were not that hungry, maybe it was the altitude
Safety and Fresh Water
We finally met up with Warren and Ernie on the trail again and took a break along the head of the stream that followed our trail up the mountain.
Sandra took the opportunity to get a drink from
Our first day at 13,000+ Feet
For our first day we decided to hike to the top of our first 14,000 foot peak. (or 14\’er if you want to talk like a local) We headed up the trail and started to fall behind Warren and Ernie because Sandra
The Final Stretch
Remember that stream we crossed earlier in our hike? Well we came across it again further up the trail and although it was much smaller it was much prettier at this elevation.
We decided to take
Missouri Gulch Trail
This was not an easy hike. Even though it was only 3 miles we were climbing nearly 4,000 feet, but with each turn the view just got better.
We planned on camping above tree line and we could tell
The Missouri Gulch Trail
We arrived at the trailhead just after 9:00 am and packed everything that was staying behind in the trunk. We also “trashed” the car, leaving used coffee cups on the dash and other trash visible inside
Exploring Leadville, Colorado
We were driving around Leadville when we discovered the coolest fence anyone could ever have!
And what a great background for a self portrait!
We also stopped by the Ranger Station to
Preparing for our hike
We checked into our hotel in Leadville and broke out our hiking gear. This is when Ernie goes to work, picking out the stuff that you get to leave behind. Our goal was 25 pounds of gear per person and
Family Reunion at the Denver Airport
We met up with everyone at the Denver Airport. Sandra\’s Dad Warren and Uncle Ernie were both flying in to join us for a backpacking trip and lucky for us, her Cousin Mike was bringing his wife Marianna