Trail and Park Reviews

Miners Creek trail to Peak 6, Frisco and Breckenridge Colorado, Tenmile Range

2014-08-22T14:01:00.000-06:00

Me, standing in an amazing field of flowers!

I've had a little time this summer to enjoy new trails in our beautiful state, exploring in Breckenridge a lot. But before I share my hike on Miners Creek trail, I wanted to say "thank you all" for continuing to make this blog a great hiking resource for others. It's been great to see comments about current trail info, positive words and even making some corrections and adding extra info or mileage on my older posts pre-smart phone days.
Now, enough gushing, onto the posting.
My parents are now retired and spent a month in Breckenridge to visit us and enjoy the mountains. It was a treat to spend each weekend in Breck and to hike with my dad. It was finally our weekend to do a long hike and the group chose Miners Creek trail to the top of Peak 6. My dad had thought the hike would be 4-5 miles, I believed him, but it ended up being much longer.
Getting there: From I-70 at Frisco, drive south toward Breckenridge for 1.6 miles (from hwy) and turn right onto Peak One BLVD. Take the next right onto Miners Creek Road and go left immediately. It pretty much looks like you are about to drive down the bike trail. After just a few yards there is the first trailhead on the left, but you can continue driving through the gate and up the road, drive across the actual bike trail and next the road makes a sharp left turn. You'll see the parking lot on your right for Miners Creek. However, if you have a good 4Wd vehicle, you can drive up farther to the end of the 5 mile road (or as far as you can continue, it gets pretty bumpy) and hike the road to intersect the Miners Creek Trail. We continued to drive up the road as far as we could make it, a mile or more past the Rainbow lake parking lot, and stopped when we got to a creek crossing that looked deep. We parked and crossed the Creek to where we knew the Peaks trail to be and hiked that to Miners Creek Trail which was well marked with signs. However, later we realized it would be just easier to hike up the road directly to the Miners Creek trailhead at the end. We added over an hour of hiking our way, but it was beautiful. Here is the link to the 2nd parking lot on google maps.
Note: We had a 4WD SUV, but couldn't quite make it all the way up in our vehicle. There is also open national forest camping available past the posted sign on Miners Creek Road, about 1-2 miles up. Hiking with me that day were my husband Josh, my dad, and our family from Montana Jim and Deb. My dad, Jim and Deb are hiking the Appalachian Trail next summer (I am jealous!)

We got started hiking on the Peaks trail (which goes from Breckenridge to Frisco), the reason we knew the Peaks trail was nearby, was simply because my dad hiked the Peaks trail the prior week and it crossed Miners Creek road. The Peaks trail continued through the thick pine forest and next to a creek. It was a beautiful morning and I was loving every minute of this hike, it was a long time coming for me. I started my runkeeper app, set to hike mode and started up the trail, eager to track my actual mileage and location. But little did I know, that technology I was relying on, ended up failing me and stopping after just 0.8 of a mile. I didn't realize this until the end. Huge disappointment. What are your favorite hiking apps?

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After we had hiked at least a mile, probably a little more, we came to the sign for the Miners Creek trail and we turned right and started up that. We were greeted with more pine forest, which would open up into flowered fields, and then back into the forest. I was waiting to get above the treeline, I love to have the views galore, but it took us several hours before we reached that high. Above you can see some of the flowers and the first few peaks on the Tenmile range.

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It was great to hike with family, catch up and enjoy the beautiful nature around us. We started the hike around 945am, we had hoped to be back by 2pm, but it was becoming apparent we were farther behind than we planned due to the longer drive in.

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Miners Creek trail is part of the Continental Divide trail and the Colorado Trail systems. We met a young man who had hiked from southern New Mexico and was hoping to hike all the way to Canada, by himself. It was great to chat with him and to hear some of his stories. He was on his way to Frisco for a burger and beer.

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Around 1pm we stopped in this field to eat lunch. This photo does not do the beauty justice. The field was filled with wildflowers of all kinds, with the trail and river winding through the valley. It was one that will stand out in my memory.

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I got just a few shots of this amazing valley. Here are a few of my favorites.

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After lunch we continued up the trail, which has a long steep section from the valley until you reach above the treeline.

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Above the treeline, coming out of the woods (the photo on the left) and the photo on the right is looking back across the tundra. You can see my husband coming up over the ridge.

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You can see the Frisco Res in the photo above. Once across the tundra, you continue up switchbacks to the bow of the mountain. Looking up from here you can see is Peak 4, but we were heading to Peak 6.

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The photo on the left is my dad standing on the bluff or saddle, you can see it better looking back, in the photo on the right. It was about this time that we were deciding whether we should head back down, or continue to Peak 6. My dad wanted to keep hiking and since I have a lot of his adventurous spirit in me, I also was agreeable to keep hiking. The rest of our group were going to walk a little farther and enjoy the views and wait for us to come back down. Josh said after a while a herd of elk came out and played in the fields below them, they watched them for several minutes.

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Dad and I continued until we reached the base of Peak 6 and then realized we still had a major hike up switchbacks to reach the summit. At this point dad decided he was going to go back and I decided to go on by myself. We split up and I went up, he went back.

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I am at the saddle in the photos above. Looking south in the photo on the left, toward Peak 7 and Peak 8. The shot on the right is looking over the other side of the mountain.

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I still had a bit to go to reach the top, and at this point, I decided to head back. The clouds were coming in and the lighting this season is a bit freaky.

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I called Josh to tell him I was hiking back his way and to wait for me. Dad, Jim and Deb started down slowly. We hiked back down Miners Creek trail until we intersected Miners Creek road and we walked down the road and back to our car. It eliminated at least 1-2 miles of hiking on the way back. Even so, it was nearly an 8 hour hike, with a larger group that traveled at different speeds. It was still a perfect day hike and I have several more in Breckenridge to blog about soon.

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I estimate we hiked 7-8 miles and it took us nearly 7 hours.

I'd love to hear about your favorite and most accurate hiking apps. Thanks for reading and helping this blog grow!

Rocks favorite Colorado hiking trails

2014-05-17T09:16:00.000-06:00

It's been an outrageous amount of time since I updated this blog and I miss it! In the last two years, I've spent some time hiking Front Range trails, mostly trails already on this blog, with a toddler. So, that actually means, I walk about a mile, it takes a very long time, and I don't get to properly document the trail.

Now that Magnolia is older, and she is in school a few days per week, I am looking forward to getting back to solo hiking a few times per month. But recently, my favorite hiking buddy, our dog Roxanne (Rock), passed away. She was 16 years old and left us just this past Monday the 12th of May. My heart is broken and its hard to hike on without her. She made each trail more fun with her excitement, and she was one of those dogs that always stayed near my side, no matter what. Rock probably liked to hike more than me, so here are a few of her favorite trails. The next time you hike one of these trails, think of her, her spirit lives on in the mountains.

These are in no particular order. Please click on the link to get to the trail info.

Bear Peak, Boulder

1. Apex; Golden, Colorado. This was the first trail Rock ever hiked, and she was instantly in love. When we lived in Michigan, Rock was just allowed to go out at night to roam the wilderness wild and free. She would leave around midnight and bark to come in at 8am, then she'd eat and fall asleep only to do it again the next night. But living in Colorado, she didn't have that freedom. When we first arrived, Josh and I went apartment hunting and our friend took Rock to Apex to hike and said that she loved it! We took her back for our first hike the next day, and it was obvious that she knew where we were going, and she yelped and whined with excitement until we got on the trail. She was now a Colorado dog, and she loved it.

2. Bear Peak; Boulder, Colorado. I actually wanted to write this about Eldorado Springs, but realized I don't have a trail report there, so that is one for this summer with my daughter. Rock loved to hike in Boulder, her second hike was in Eldorado Springs, and we came across a huge herd of elk in the winter. Rock was so excited by seeing such a huge herd of elk, running, and she broke free to chase after them. We got her back quickly enough, but anytime we pull into a Boulder trail, I swear she is sniffing for those elk. When we hiked Bear Peak in early spring, it was a long hike to the top, in the snow, but with my hiking buddies, we had a great time. The dogs couldn't make it to the very tip of the peak because it's steep, but they waited impatiently below for me.

Mt. Cupid

3. Mount Galbraith, West Golden. I've hiked this trail numerous times, significantly more than documented, and it's usually not packed (although weekends during summer it does get busy). It's close to the city, but gives a big mountain feel, I think. The trail runs along the edge of the mountainside, and offers views the entire trail. Eventually if you hike the entire loop, you hike through pine forests and have views of the Continental Divide. Roxanne loved this trail, we always saw wildlife here and she loved smelling down into the valleys or spotting deer grazing on the mountainsides. I love the trail because there are pretty wildflowers and great views.

4. Cupid Mountain, Continental Divide, Colorado. Not even three years ago, when Roxanner was 13 years old and I was 27 weeks pregnant, we got out to hike a 'big' mountain, one of my last during pregnancy. Rock hiked pretty slow and at elevation, I was not supposed to breathe too heavily, so we were a good match. Cupid Mountain is a small hump that is usually just a pass through for most hikers going onto bigger peaks, but not us on that day. It was perfect, full of wildflowers and views for miles and miles. We had a great time together, just Rock and I. It was one of the last hikes that she and I did together, just the two of us.

5. Any 14er, but for this purpose, we'll choose Gray's Peak. Rock always knew when we were embarking on a camping trip, or a big hiking trip. We would set our gear out and she'd just know. Often she would sit by the door with excitement, even if we were packing for a trip a day or two in advance. Gray's Peak was hiked in 2007 by ourselves and some friends. Rock was happy to run back and forth between the groups, checking on us, and making sure everyone was ok. She always wanted us to hike together, even though on 14ers, I usually hike much faster than Josh. It made her nervous, as dog duty means to keep the pack together. She always hiked with one of us, then ran ahead (or back) to check on the other. She was such a good dog. The best. One of those, 'once in a lifetime' great pets, that we will always remember.

RIP Rock-dog 1998-2014, Rock, Roxanne, Roxanner, we will always miss you and never forget you.

Leyden, Colorado hiking trail

2013-05-16T13:59:00.001-06:00

In my quest to find new hikes, near the metro area, that are at least semi-toddler friendly, I stumbled across a trail outside of Leyden, Colorado -- which is fairly close to Arvada just off Hwy 93 between Golden and Boulder.
When I arrived on a weekday morning, the parking lot was nearly empty and it took me a while to get Magnolia out of the car and into the Ergo carrier. I still have not mastered this and its a struggle each hike to get her on my back. I am much more comfortable when hiking to wear the Ergo (which is extremely comfy on the back), over the hiking backpack. The downside with the Ergo, no place for water. During this hike, I had the baby on my back and the water in the camelback on my front, talk about feeling like a pack mule!
The trail has no sign, just paths, we started up the mountainside, which goes pretty much straight up to the top of the plateau. The entire time we were hiking, we could hear coyotes hollering from across the street, I looked at my watch and it was 11am, so I was surprised to hear them in the day like that.

Once we reached the top of the plateau, we realized we were next to the Westfield Small Aircraft Runway. Magnolia is in an 'airplane, helicopter, car and train' phase, so she was pretty excited about seeing airplanes and all of the prairie dogs running around and chirping at us.
We pretty much followed the trail from the top of the plateau around a small loop and then out toward these weird concrete posts on the top of the plateau. We then followed the path down the hillside and through the meadow back to the car. It was easy to follow, and hard to get lost. Check out the park yourself sometime for a quick day hike, here are some more photos, great for kiddos too!

Views looking West

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Looking down at the parking lot, and across the street is where the coyotes were howling!

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Looking at the trail from above, down into the valley

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Weird concrete things

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What are these, anyone?

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This was hiked in April, still no signs of spring yet here!

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Someone just had to walk.

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Must hike herself, 'down mama' she says

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Thanks for reading! Do you know of any good 'toddler friendly' hikes on the front range? If so, please comment!

Hike a 14er, Mt. Yale, Buena Vista Colorado, Denny Creek Trailhead

2013-02-10T09:18:00.000-07:00

Guest post from fellow hiking sister, Bobbie Rappe. Bobbie lives in the high desert of New Mexico and is an avid hiker and runner, when she's not hitting the trails, she's volunteering at the local animal shelter, helping to change the lives of our furry friends.

So you want to hike Mt. Yale? DO IT!

Mt. Yale sits atop the Sawatch Range and is one of the majestic Collegiate Peaks. Mt. Yale comes in at a whopping 14,196 ft and is truly worth the 9.50 miles you will spend on the Class 2 trails.

Getting there: From the town of Buena Vista, Colorado, take US 24 in thee center of Buena Vista, to County 306 road towards Cottonwood Pass. Drive 12 miles on this road to reach the Denny Creek Trailhead and paved parking area on the right.

Specs: The paved parking lot was easy to find and offered a pit toilet. It was packed on a July weekend in the summertime! The trail was well marked and easy to follow.

The Hike: I followed the standard route from the 14ers website and as usual, it was clear and accurate. I came up the night before my hike and found a nice, free camping spot along Cottonwood Pass right outside of Buena Vista. I saw several pull outs with ready-made fire pits along the way and enjoyed a quiet night under the stars. I stayed just a few miles from the Denny Creek Trailhead so I could get an early start. When I arrived at the trailhead around 5:50 am, it was packed and people were already hitting the trail!

The Denny Creek trailhead is easy to find from the parking lot and you start out on a fairly smooth path.

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About a mile in, you see this log crossing.

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Continue on the trail to ~1.25 miles and see this sign which will send you in the correct direction

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I was alone, training for a mountain race, and pushing to get above tree line fairly quickly since clouds were already moving in and I wanted to summit my very first 14er. It started out with a gradual incline, but I quickly started to feel the burn around 11, 050 ft. Some sections were very steep, but there were openings in the trees that took my breath away and it was the perfect motivation to keep going.

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Time to dig in and keep going!

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The trail peeking out from the trees and the amazing views!

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I hiked in July and the trail was fairly empty except for the marmots and their families.

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I would say I got above tree line around 12,000 ft and it was worth all of the burning in my legs. Mt. Yale has some of the most incredible views!

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The trail was mostly smooth, single track and I hit the “death march” nearing 13,000 ft.

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When it felt like I couldn’t take another step, I reached a scramble section. Nothing but large boulders to the summit and a few cairns to help lead the way. I felt it was easiest to take a path that helped me feel most comfortable instead of following the cairns, but just a personal preference. The scramble gave my legs a break and it was a lot of fun! There is a small false summit, but I had no problem finding the true one I worked so hard for. People had dogs with them, and the dogs made it to the top, but I wouldn’t recommend it personally. It took me a little under 2.5 hours to summit and I sure felt it the next day. I wouldn’t change it for the world.

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Looking up to the peak, so close!

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The views from the top are what you’d expect from the top of the world. Majestic and magnificent!

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Clouds were rolling in quickly and I didn’t spend much time up top. I chose to run the single track back to the parking lot and I’m glad I did. I got about a mile from the truck when it started hailing and raining buckets. This was about 10:45 am, so if you choose to hike during monsoon season, get an early start! People were just starting up the trail and it ended up raining the entire day. You are extremely exposed above tree line and the true dangers of elevation are real. Be safe out there and have fun! Mt. Yale was the perfect mountain to get the 14er fever and I plan on summiting many more of the Collegiate Peaks this year. Hope to see you out there!

***And please, encourage others on your way back down. You never know what has lead someone to that trail and they may feel defeated and ready to quit. Remind them they’re almost there and it’s totally worth it J Spread the love in the mountains!

Palmer Lake Colorado, Hike the Reservoir Trail

2013-01-21T11:19:00.000-07:00

Wow, in the entire time I've had this blog, I don't think its been this long since I've updated. This fall and then winter were very busy for our family, my daughter turned 1, we had a barrage of visitors from out of state to visit her, then after they left it was holiday season and we were busy making gifts and decorating our house. Then, just when things started to settle down, we all got sick. And it wasn't just a little sick either, I ended up with pneumonia, Magnolia had 2 ear infections and a horrible cold and my husband also caught the mess and was sick himself.   The pneumonia was very bad and I ended up with complications that landed me in the hospital for 5 days. It was miserable.   While I am not better yet, I'm getting there.
This hike was done back in November, before all the illness began. We had planned on taking a small weekend getaway to Monument, Colorado and decided to hike the Palmer Lake Res Trail that took us to 2 reservoirs just outside of the town in the mountains.

Getting there: N39 7.184 W104 55.367
From the town of Monument, Colorado just north of C. Springs, head North on Hwy 105 to the town of Palmer Lake. The trailhead itself has no parking, and no restroom facilities, the place to park is on the street before the trailhead on Glen Street, Palmer Lake, 80133. If you plug that address into google (I know there is no street number, but it works) then you can see where your destination is. Glenway Street, from Hwy 105 is the most direct street to turn down. Park on the side of the road, we parked in front of a huge mansion. We happened to see a police officer driving by and asked if it was alright to park here, since its a residential area, and he said it was fine. From our parking spot, it took only a few minutes to walk down the street toward the canyon, the trail is an old dirt road that you hike up.

Specs: No parking lot or restrooms. Trail is easy to moderate, an uphill incline to two reservoirs called Lower and Upper Palmer lake Reservoirs from what I could attain. The hike is about 2 miles to the far end of the upper reservoir one way reaching an elevation of around 8300ft.

The Hike: We have learned that 2012 just isn't the year to travel with a new baby. Unfortunately, she is resistant to going in the car, staying in hotels or at other friends/families homes and she lets us know by not sleeping the entire time and being really grumpy ;) As parents who love to travel, this is hard on us, but we try to keep some of our favorite past-time alive with small trips away. We had a groupon to spend a weekend at a hotel in Monument, complete w/ meal vouchers and a brewery nearby. I think the groupon might have been bought during the early days of Magnolia's life, when we were awake crazy hours and probably thought a night away was a good idea. One year later and we still hadn't used the deal and it was about to expire so we packed up for a weekend away after Thanksgiving.
After a long night of a crying baby, we awoke Saturday to find a sunny day waiting for us, we drove to Palmer Lake and eventually located the trailhead and started the hike.

The start of the trail is just past these buildings.

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Josh and Magnolia hiking up, the trail wasn't steep, but it was a good workout for us.

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We reached the first reservoir and the waterfall was frozen. Very cool.

The trail was also quite busy, lots of hikers, people fishing or jogging or biking.

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Views of the Lower Res.

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After you pass the Lower Res, you don't have to hike very far to find the upper reservoir.

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Me standing in front of the Lower Res. I'm wearing my awesome hiking shirt from Mountain Mama Expecting Adventure, you can see my review on it here.

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The beauty of the upper res.

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We hiked along the path to the middle of the Upper Res and then found a place to stop and eat some lunch. After this we decided to go ahead and hike back, we probably hiked just under 2 miles, one way.

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Giggling, deliriously tired, baby

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We enjoyed our hike and loved the town of Palmer Lake, if you've been here or have more info or any questions, please leave a comment.

Thanks for reading.

Review of Cloud Rest Base Layer Top from Mountain Mama, Expecting Adventure

2012-11-29T19:18:00.000-07:00

Several weeks ago I was given the opportunity to test out and review two items from one of my favorite maternity/nursing clothing companies, Mountain Mama Expecting Adventure.
(let me set the record straight, I am not pregnant)
Its been so warm in Colorado, and their Base Layer Top is so snuggly, that I haven't had the chance to properly hike in it, until our trip to Monument, Colorado last weekend.

Several years ago I found Mountain Mama clothing on facebook and loved their style! I wish that I could find non-maternity clothing this well made and comfortable, so I was super excited when they asked for ambassadors to try out both maternity AND nursing clothing and I was one of the few chosen to review. Hurray for me!
I was given the Clouds Rest Maternity Baselayer Crossfront, which you can find on their site here, and the first thing that I noticed after putting the top on, is that it is very well made, thick and warm. It's more of a non-bukly sweatshirt, rather than a base layer, in my opinion, its warm like a thick sweatshirt, without doesn't have the bulk. It has a flattering fit for a non-pregnant mama, and I could see how this can easily be worn well into maternity and then the comfortable fabric would snap back into place when the baby belly is gone.

Nursing at the Upper Palmer Lake Res.

On our hike, the temps were in the low 50s and cooler as we gained altitude and entered the canyon, but this shirt with a tank top underneath kept me perfectly warm. If I got too cold, I'd pull down the sleeves and put my thumbs in the thumb-holes which kept my hands toasty and I was able to take pictures of the scenery without pulling gloves on and off all the time. This is a huge plus for a photographer!

The top is not only comfortable and warm, but its definitely great for nursing, its easy to be discreet when breastfeeding while wearing it.   And ease is what every nursing mama wants most!
The only thing that I didn't like about the shirt, is that its a cross front top and you can see the seam underneath and its a big unflattering. However, if it wasn't made that way, it wouldn't be as easy to nurse. With that said, its a great shirt and the quality is top notch. I wouldn't endorse it here, if it wasn't! You should check them out for yourselves, click here.
Here a few more photos of our hike to the Palmer Lake Reservoirs just north of Colorado Springs and Pikes Peak.

I'll be posting another blog on the Palmer Res Hikes in Palmer Lake, Colorado. An easy-moderate trail that offers great views of two beautiful reservoirs.

Thumb-holes to keep your hands toasty warm.

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Looks great while hiking - which is a huge plus.

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Magnolia after a snack near the Upper Res

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She loves to drink out of the camelback

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Its a glorious day, yes it is!

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Amazing views!

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Sleeeeepy baby

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The lower Res.

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Coyote Ridge Natural Area, Loveland and Fort Collins, Colorado

2012-10-24T14:50:00.001-06:00

Guest post from fellow blogger and father, Andy Hawbaker, you can check out his site here and more information at the bottom of this post.

Coyote Ridge Natural Area is a wonderful spot for a fun family hike. My kids enjoyed seeing a snake, prairie dogs, and lots of birds. The Natural area is a City of Fort Collins Open Space located between Fort Collins and Loveland about 1 mile south of the Larimer County land fill. Visit the Larimer County Site for information about this trail.
This particular open space does not allow dogs and I have seen Fort Collins police ticketing people with dogs, so please leave the four legged ones at home.

Getting there: The Larimer County site provided this information on location. Coyote Ridge Natural Area is open to the public and is an example of a transition zone between grasslands and montane forests sometimes called montane shrublands. This property is located between Loveland and Fort Collins approximately 1 mile south of the Larimer County Landfill on the west side of County Road 19 (Taft Hill Road from Fort Collins - Wilson Street from Loveland)

It is an easy one mile hike up to a cabin where a restroom is available. There are informational signs located along the first part of this trail as it is often used for outdoor education programs for elementary students. If you continue hiking one more mile past the cabin, you will reach the top of the ridge. From the top of the ridge you can overlook all of Fort Collins and Loveland on a clear day. It is truly a beautiful spot to look back at the open plains and many lakes.

The trail continues on from the overlook down into the valley and connects with the Blue Sky Trail. You could follow the Blue Sky Trail north to Lory State Park or south to Devil’s Backbone Open Space.
The area is dry and open grass land. There are very few trees but it is precious habitat for rattle snakes, prairie dogs, spotted skunks, coyotes, mule deer, golden eagles, bald eagles, hawks, and other birds. This is truly a gem and easily accessible for families to get out and enjoy the natural areas along the Colorado Front Range.

-Andy Hawbaker lives in Northern Colorado with his wife and two daughters. As a family they enjoy hiking, camping, and exploring the Rocky Mountains. He blogs about the outdoors at http://hub.sierratradingpost.com

Here are some more images from the day. If you'd like to sign up for our mailing list, you can be notified of recent posts just a couple of times per month. Click here to join. I also sell the photography shown on this site, you can click here for current photos available and if you like a particular shot, just email me.

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Fort Collins on Dwellable

My favorite Colorado hiking trails; need a hike suggestion?

2012-10-15T15:03:00.002-06:00

Mt. Sniktau, Continental Divide

Lately I've been asked by several readers and a few hikers on the trail about which hike is my favorite and I'm always stumped by this question because I love so many trails for different reasons. Some hikes I love because of the trail itself, maybe the scenery is great, or the hike ends in an awesome peak, lake, waterfall, arch or view that leaves me amazed. Other hikes are memorable because of the way that I felt on the trail, maybe it was just a great day overall, or the hike was difficult and I felt accomplished when I completed it.
After much thought on my part, I have included some of my favorite hikes and trails, they are my favorites for various reasons as well.
The first trail I'd like to include (in no particular order) is Mt. Sniktau, which starts on the Continental Divide at Loveland Pass near the Eisenhower Tunnel. This trail is at high elevation, starting at the top of the pass and my reason for listing this trail as one of my favorites is twofold. First, I love looking at views while on the trail and I'd rather hike where I can see scenery than in a treed forest any-day. Mt. Sniktau offers views in all directions including great views the Continental Divide; its also a high altitude hike which leads to a peak and when I reach a peak I always feel a sense of accomplishment. But the reason that this trail stands out to me was because I was just having a great day on the trail.
I hiked this trail back in 2010, which was the year that I had quit my job to pursue my artistic dreams, this hiking blog and my photography career; so I was in a great place personally, the day was beautiful and I was with my two doggies, there were wildflowers everywhere in August and I spent a good hour or more on the 13,234 ft peak, reading, talking to family on the phone, and enjoying the solitude and views. Click here for info and directions on Mt. Snik' as its called.

Views looking west from Bear Peak, Boulder Colorado

The next trail that I'd like to include is Bear Peak in Boulder, Colorado. I hiked this peak in the winter of 2010, on a balmy Monday morning; that winter I got out often to hike peaks because I was working toward getting in shape for the 13 and 14ers that I planned to climbed that summer, and I was also pretty tired of hiking Jefferson County Open Space because I had done the same trails over and over for years, especially in the winter due to other trails being covered in very deep snow. Bear Peak in the winter was quite a trek! It took several hours to reach the top, but when I did, I was greeted with amazing views in all directions; looking east I was able to see Boulder, Denver and the airport. Looking west I could see all the mountains of the Continental Divide on that clear day and south Pikes Peak was visible and to the north Longs Peak. The top of Bear Peak itself is a little rocky and requires some scrambling, especially in the winter months. I felt very accomplished when I completed the 7 mile round trip hike and the views were some of the best that I've seen, ever, in Colorado! Click here for Bear Peak.

Harmonica Arch in Lost Creek Wilderness

Next I'd like to add Harmonica Arch to this list, which is located in the Lost Creek Wilderness west of Colorado Springs. I like the Lost Creek area because it boasts unique rock formations and has lots of hiking trails. It's also located in part of the Hayman Burn area and the undergrowth is lush with flowers and new growth. The hike to reach the arch takes you through lots of different scenery, next to the river, in the forest, and then ending in a climb up the rocks to reach the arch and views for miles. Click here for Harmonica Arch.

The next hike I'd like to include is also near Colorado Springs, Raspberry Mountain, which was hiked one weekend with my husband and dogs. This trail was stunning in the fall and offered sneak peek views while hiking in the brightly colored aspen and pine forests and then the final part of the trail gets you out of the trees and you climb up to see views of Pikes Peak and the surrounding mountains and mountain towns. This is definitely a hike to save for the fall foliage because it was amazing! Click here for Raspberry Mountain.

Diamond Lake

Diamond Lake and the Fourth of July trailhead is one of the few trails that I've hiked twice, and thats because its just that great! This trail offers scenic views, several waterfalls, amazing wildflowers, and a high altitude lake in a field of beauty! It takes a bit of driving to reach this location, including a long 5 miles up a bumpy dirt road to reach the trailhead, which is typically busy. But the hike is worth it! I have two reviews for this trail, one just recently this fall here, and another from the summer with the wildflowers at their peak and that time I hiked all the way to Diamond Lake, here.

As I type this post, I think of many other trails that I really love, so maybe a part #2 is in order, sometime in the future. Here are a few other trails that you might like. If you are into rock formations, there is an arch in Boulder called Royal Arch, you can find that review here.
If you like waterfall hikes, try Upper Maxwell Falls or Lower Maxwell Falls in Evergreen Colorado, this is a very popular trail in the area, and you can even hike on the Rim trail to see views of the surrounding cliffs and mountains.

My favorites list wouldn't be complete without at least one 14er (peak over 14,000 feet) included. It is hard for me to pick a favorite for a lot of reasons, first 14ers are hard and can be somewhat punishing, also the views are incredible from every 14er and its hard to pick a favorite. Mt. Elbert, which is the tallest peak in Colorado and the second tallest peak in the Continental USA behind Mt. Whitney. It was amazing to stand on the tallest mountain around and the views are incredible. I also loved hiking Mt. Belford; the trail up to the top and back is fairly short, but very steep and punishing. The views on top were amazing, the color during the fall season was beautiful and it was one of the harder hikes that I've ever done. I actually remember sitting down on the trail near the end and telling Josh to leave me because my legs were so tired; I told him I'd catch up later. It wasn't one of my finer moments, but it was memorable for that reason.
Another very cool trails that are at high altitude and must be included in this list are James Peak at St. Mary's Glacier, on this hike you can go just a short way to reach the glacier and lake, but you can venture all the way up to the top of James Peak as well. Also, Mount Audubon is another high altitude hike and one of the first peaks that I summited by myself; it was truly a cold and windy day and I wasn't sure that I could hike all the way up to the peak and back by myself, but I made it and it opened the door for me to hike lots of others solo. It offered good views and a pretty scenic location, but the main reason its memorable is because it was something that I had accomplished.

From the top of Mt. Elbert

If you want to hike in Golden, I have two favorite places; Table Mountain, which I have nuked numerous times and offers views of the town of Golden and City of Denver.

But my absolute favorite trail near Golden is Mt. Galbraith; I like this because it was one of the first hikes that I ever did when moving to Golden 10 years ago and it offers scenic views and a longer trail that offers a backcountry experience close to home.

Here are a few more shots of my favorite trails, I hope you like this post and it helps you figure out your next hike. I plan on doing a favorites #2 in the future.

This photo was taken at Harmonica Arch in the Lost Creek Wilderness.

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This photo was taken on North Table Mountain, you can find many reviews of Table Mountain in Golden.

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Tunnel of aspen trees on the Raspberry Mountain trail in Colorado Springs.

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This was taken on Mt. Sniktau, the wildflowers and views were amazing on a beautiful summer day!

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Josh climbing up Mt. Belford.

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Thanks for reading, and please post a comment with your favorite hike and why, I'd love to hear about them and possibly hike them myself. If you'd like to join my mailing list to be updated when I post a new trail please subscribe here. You can also find some of my photography for sale here to commemorate your favorite hike; I also sell prints directly off my site so if you see a photo you are interested in, please message me!

Hiking a social trail in Coal Creek Canyon - Boulder Colorado

2012-10-11T17:37:00.001-06:00

The Flatirons are some of the most well known mountains visually, on the Front Range of the Rockies here in Boulder; the flat rock faces reflect the sunlight in the morning which creates a stunning glow and they are full of wildlife, scenic views, steep climbs and even an arch! Today I stumbled across a trail that took me through a burn area on the southern end of the Flatirons near Coal Creek Canyon. Before you read on, I must first say this trail was not marked and I just happened across it; there is no map or parking lot, I just stopped on the side of the road, parked and hiked. As far as I could tell, the trail was on Open Space land and it lead to the train tracks that you can see from Hwy 93. After hiking through the burn area, then up a steep hill and down toward the train tracks, then the path continued on a service road beside the railroad.   Eventually the road crossed over the tracks and at this point we turned around and went back.   I wondered if the trail was a social trail to get to the train tracks, for photos maybe? Or maybe that is just my guess, because I love photography.

Getting there: From the intersection of Hwy 72 and Hwy 93 in Arvada. Drive west on Hwy 72 and turn right on the first road to the right called Plainview Rd. Drive for about 2.4 miles up Plainview Road and you'll see a burn area, the trail starts on a sharp 'S' curve in the middle of the burn area, 2.4 miles from Hwy 72. It's a social trail that I only happened to see when driving past and it panned out to be a great trail on a beautiful sunny day.
Specs: This is on the side of the road, no parking lot or toilet. The trail to the tracks is fairly short, it only took me about 20-30 minutes to reach the tracks and it could be hiked much faster without a baby. After reaching the tracks, we continued along the dirt road that probably is a service road for the train. We walked until the road crossed over the railroad and Magnolia was tired and fussy, so we turned around after eating some snacks.

The hike: I really didn't know if this trail would pan out when I started on it with Magnolia in the Ergo Carrier and my camelback on my back. I always feel like a pack mule these days. Initially, I had planned on hiking a trail near the intersection of 72 and Plainview Road; I always see cars in a parking lot there and there are small open space signs nearby. But when I stopped, the gate to the trail was locked with about 5 padlocks and I wasn't sure if hopping the gate with a baby was the best idea, so I got back in the car to continue down the road. There were a few other cars in the lot, I am not sure if they were hiking/biking or if they were there for another reason. If anyone has any information on the Open Space trails in that area, please post!
Anyway, the dirt road looked promising so I drove up the road and kept hoping I'd see a trail; I drove for nearly 3 miles until the road crossed the train tracks, here the road turned private and I turned around to head back down. Then I happened to see this trail as I was driving back. Since I had no-where else to go, I figured I'd hike there and even if the trail didn't pan out, I would just walk up and down the dirt road, which boasted eastern views of Hwy 93, the vast plains and windmills beyond. The trail was better than a social trail, but definitely not popular and I thought it was ending a few times, but I kept walking and would see it again.

This is the start of the trail from the road. It isn't super obvious, but its on a large S curve, and in the burn area, 2.4 miles from the intersection of 72 and Plainview Rd.

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I love walking through a burn area, the flowers in the undergrowth are always beautiful.

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The last of the flowers....until next season. I don't know what these are, but maybe one of my readers do?

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There were several places that I had to step over fallen trees on the path.

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It was such a sunny day today, a perfect fall day and I felt very grateful to live in this beautiful state.

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Flatirons.

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Some golden hues

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Magnolia in the Ergo, sucking down some water. After the burn area the trail heads up a short steep section and then there is a rock outcropping on the top of the bluff, then the path continues down the other side and toward the tracks. At about this time I heard a train coming, but hadn't seen the tracks yet, it got suddenly very loud and I got a little irrationally worried that it was coming straight at me and I couldn't see it over the mountain. Eventually, I could see it through the trees and the trail continued toward the tracks so we walked over to watch it.

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I love the graffiti cars -- art.

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It was pretty loud, Magnolia was so interested in it, but would bury her head in my chest.

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Views from the tracks
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By far my favorite shot of the day, the caboose.

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Here you can see the service road next to the tracks.

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We continued walking down the service road, stopped for a snack and then hiked back to the car. No more trains came through, thankfully, and we could see the long train in the tunnels on the side of the mountain in the distance.

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Thanks for reading, if you know more about the trails in the area, please post some info!

If you'd like to join our mailing list and receive an email when a new trail is posted a few times per month you can sign up here. You can also purchase photos on this site, just contact me for details.

Boulder on Dwellable

Upper Maxwell Falls, Hiking in Evergreen Colorado

2012-10-01T14:37:00.002-06:00

The lower Maxwell Falls trailhead is one of the most popular on my website and I wanted to put up another post about it, this time I went to the Upper Maxwell Falls instead of the Lower Falls as I hiked here. I actually hiked this trail mid-September, but am just now posting about it, the little lady keeps me so busy these days!
It took me about 10 minutes longer to reach the Upper Parking lot, there were 2 other cars in the small parking lot when I arrived on a cloudy weekday afternoon. It took me a while to get Magnolia situated in her pack, and then we hit the trail. Immediately, I was faced with 2 trails from the parking lot, since there is no formal map, I just chose left and started walking. The trail is wide and continued through the forest and next to the stream. Eventually the trail comes to another trail split, there is a trail sign here (although it was knocked down), and you could take the trail left and up to the Cliffs Loop or down/right toward the falls. I decided that I wanted to check out both the Cliffs Loop (since I was not familiar with it at all) and the falls, so Magnolia and I took the Cliffs trail up for about 20 minutes and shortly after the split the trail continues out of the woods and you have views of the surrounding mountains which were full of fall color!   We hiked on this until we reached another trail split; I wasn't sure which way to go, and so we turned around to go back to Maxwell Falls.

Getting there: The Upper Maxwell Falls Parking lot can be found on a google map here.
Basically head to Evergreen, and from the center of town and take Hwy 73 South for 1 mile, turn right onto Brook Forest Road and drive for 5.2 miles, then Brook Forest Road turns into Black Mountain Drive on a curve (you barely will notice this) for 1.2 miles. The trailhead parking lot is on the left.
Also, here is exact location -- 39.562323408383634,-105.37657856941223
Specs: There are no rest rooms, trail maps, or any facilities at this parking lot.

The Hike: The Cliffs loop, from what I read online, is a 3-4 mile loop that offers views galore in the Maxwell Falls area, up above the falls on the cliffs above. I must get back to do this hike sometime this fall, hopefully the color will still be there.   It was truly beautiful, we had the trail to ourselves, and we enjoyed it!

Near the parking lot, shortly after the sign (which has no map); if you are looking at the trails, I took the one to the left.

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On the Cliffs Loop Trail

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Views and Color.

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Fall is my favorite season in Colorado! I love love love love the fall colors!

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Here you can see some of the cliffs. I found some great information about this trail;

"The Cliff Trail Loop: 3 Miles – Start at the Upper Maxwell Falls trailhead lot. The trail will split a couple times and you’ll want to bear left, following the signs that point you down the Cliff Trail. You’ll climb a bit to a rock promontory that gives you beautiful views of the valley below. You will begin a descent to the creek bed, then the trail will turn and head upstream. Follow it until you hear the falls. After the falls, follow the trail back up to the upper lot." -- Info that I found on this site Day hikes near Denver.

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Rocky path

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A little aspen tree in full color. So cute.

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Cliffs near the waterfalls.

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One of my favorite shots of the fall trickle left at Maxwell Falls, I offer this print for sale here; and many other photos are available in print if you'd like to contact me for more information.

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A little chipmunk came up and said 'hi' to Magnolia and I.

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The creek, and the fall trickle.

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Pinecones and aspen trees

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Standing in the falls and looking DOWN, there is no way you could do this in the spring/summer months, but during the fall, the water is a trickle of what it can be.

After taking photos of the falls, Magnolia and I hiked the 20+ minutes back to the car. On the hike back, I came across a couple visiting Denver from out of town and they asked about trails in the area. After chatting for a while, I mentioned that I had a hiking blog and my daughter and I hike often in the area; they were planning another hike and asked for suggestions. What was my favorite hike, ever? I couldn't answer, I guess I don't know because I have so many favorites, but it made me think that I should compose a list of favorite/best hikes in the area. Look forward to that post soon!

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Back to the parking lot with a fussy baby on my back, we lost a second pacifier on this trail, somehow, even though it was clipped to the carrier. But Magnolia still managed to find sleep in the car on the way home.

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Tired fussy baby in her Kelty backpack.

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Thanks for reading my post, please comment if you have any questions or information about the hike. If you'd like to join my mailing list and be updated when I post new trails (2-3) times per month, click here to subscribe.

I also offer some of my photography for sale here, and will sell prints of my photos if you'd like to commemorate your hike with a professional photo. Just contact me for more info.

Evergreen on Dwellable

Pence Park, Hiking in Kittridge Colorado -- Where does this trail go?

2012-09-28T14:32:00.003-06:00

Pence Park is not a well known park within the Denver Mountain Park System, but it connects to the Bear Creek Trail and is often used by mountain bikers now that the trail system connects from Pence Park to Lair O' The Bear, approximately 12 miles, the trail continues through Corwina Park as well, making it a shorter hike/bike if desired.
I arrived at the park back in July when I first hiked this trail with Magnolia, the parking lot was empty and we went the opposite direction of the Lair O' The Bear Trail, it took us up into the woods and the trail was quite steep. At one point it became so very steep that I decided it wasn't the safest idea carrying Magnolia on the front of me in the Ergo, so we turned around, went back to the parking lot and hiked down the Lair O' The Bear trail (another post on that hike to come). I decided to go back to Pence Park with my husband because I just needed to know where the trail went!

Getting there: First, let me say that I've noticed google maps shows the Pence Park entrance on the south side of the park. Maybe there is an access there, but I reached the parking lot on the S. Meyers Ranch Road side. This is the most accurate address to put into google maps; S. Meyers Gulch Rd at Paramalee Gulch Road, Evergreen Colorado or click here.
Specs: There is a large parking lot and a port-o-pot and trail map with sign.

The Hike: Josh, Magnolia and I came back to the trail one evening, I had packed our dinner and Josh hurried home after work, we jumped into the car and left. It took about a half an hour from our house to reach the trailhead, and then another several minutes to get Magnolia, the dogs and gear situated. Josh carried Magnolia in our pack and we started walking, we reached the steep section where I had turned around, which proved to be quite steep even without a heavy baby, then the trail opened up and we were able to see some views beyond. We noticed a great field perfect for sitting and eating dinner, but we walked on to see what was around the next corner. It was a steep descent, so we decided to go back to the field, eat dinner, then hike down.
After dinner, we went back and started to climb down, it was very steep, even for me without a baby and pack, and we decided that maybe we shouldn't go down, this late in the evening, on an unknown trail.   So, here I am, tried to hike twice on this trail and both times turned around due to difficult terrain with a baby. I wish I knew where the trail went, and will have to go back, sometime.   We hiked back down the trail and to the parking lot, then we decided to hike on the trail that continues beside the road and in an open field. We noticed two deer eating, at sunset, in the field, and we hiked down to them and let Magnolia watch them for several minutes before turning around and heading back to the car. We left at 8pm and drove home to put the baby to bed. She was tired out from all the 'hiking' she did.

Here are some photos of the hike...

Steep incline in the first 1/2 mile of the trail.

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Looking down, it doesn't look that steep in this photo, but it is!

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After the steep incline, the trail levels out a little bit and provides you with views.

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Views and the meadow we ate our dinner in.

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More views

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Looking West

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Josh and Magnolia at Sunset using our Eddie Bauer hiking pack.

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Magnolia and I after dinner.

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This is where the hike stopped for us, it was super steep and late in the evening, so we turned around and hiked back to the parking lot, then out into the meadow trail, which is to the right of the trail sign.

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The trail heads down the mountain and then turns toward the left. I am not sure where it goes beyond what you can see from the road.

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The deer in the field

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Skinny deer right?

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Very pretty doe, but very skinny.

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Have you hiked Pence Park before? Do you know where the trail continues to, or how far it is, or any details, please post.

You can join my mailing list here for emails when I add a new hike (2-3 times per month at most), and you can find my photography for sale here to commemorate your hike.

Thanks for reading!

Getting out of the house, a Green Mountain Hike

2012-09-26T15:33:00.000-06:00

Today is a day that I feel more like a mother than anything else. A mama who is trying to work from home, part-time, while taking care of a very high energy baby who demands my time and protests loudly when she doesn't get what she wants. Its hard. I struggle.
This week has been particularly hard, you can read more about that here if you'd like, but Magnolia is cutting a couple of teeth and when she is in pain, she just screams constantly despite whatever I try to do to give her relief. Today, after a morning full of no naps and cranky-ness, I decided we needed to get out of the house; I grabbed the ergo and filled my camelback with some water and we jumped in the car to go to Green Mountain to find a trail.
I had planned on hiking at a different trail, one that you can find on my blog here, but I missed my turn and ended up at the same trail that I hiked just days before Magnolia was born last November.
When we first started hiking, Magnolia was very happy and we happily walked along, talked about the trees and birds, and she babbled about how much teething really hurts. Of course, the happy mood didn't last long and soon she was fussing and squirming in the carrier, which quickly escalated into screaming. We stopped and had a snack, which helped some, but eventually I had to put her back in the carrier so that we could hike back to the car. She fussed and babbled throughout the hike back and even though her mood didn't really change, mine did. I was able to get outside, do something that I like, and teach my child a little bit about nature in the process.

Getting there:   The best way to give directions is to give the address; S Holman St at Flora Way, Golden, CO. Here is the google map of the location. Park on the side of the road, you will see the path in the greenbelt of Green Mountain.
Specs: There are no facilities, hiking maps, just a trail.

The Hike: Magnolia and I hit the trail and our day immediately got better, she babbled happily and I told her about the last time we were here, I was pregnant, it was fall, the weather was beautiful and the trees golden. This hike, I chose to go east at the trail split, toward the city and we hiked to the top of the large bluff shown in photos below with great views of the city and the mountains. We continued down the bluff and kept walking east until Magnolia got squirmy then we headed back toward the car. We only got about an hour hike, but it was worth it to get outside and share some time with my daughter, maybe I taught her something new and hopefully she enjoyed the experience, I know that I did. I started the hike very frustrated and ended it much calmer.

Start of trail.

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For a few minutes anyway, the camelback hose was a great chew toy.

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The bluff you can see from the road; its much bigger than it looks in this photo, I promise.

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Views looking west from the top of the bluff, table mountain, the storm rolling in, and the Flatirons can be seen.

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Views of the City of Denver

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Cactus in bloom

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Snack on the trail.

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Hike still ended in screams.

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Even though her mood didn't change, mine did, and getting outside and doing something that I love makes me feel better. Hiking with kids is not always perfect, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be tried, and for some reason, on the trail, a temper tantrum doesn't bother me nearly as much as it does at home.

Moms, do you get outside and hike?

Gary R. McDonnell Park, Lakewood Colorado, Playground with lots more

2012-09-18T16:09:00.000-06:00

I've been visiting more parks than I normally would, now that Magnolia is here and at that age where she enjoys the playground a lot. I grew up in Michigan, and there weren't any playgrounds near our house, you just had a swingset in your yard; and here in Colorado there is so much public space to enjoy and I would have loved this when I was a child. However, I did have an amazing tree swing that my dad built, but no slide, rock wall, tree house, and more. This park is well hidden from the road and probably wouldn't be found by someone who didn't know it was there.

Getting there: Don't expect to see this one from the road! The park is located off Simms Street and 6th Avenue. Click here for the Gary R. McDonnell Park website, with map and address. The playground and park are located behind the businesses on the west side of Simms Street; park and walk west down the sidewalk and the gazebo will come into view.
Specs: The park has a port-o-pot, playground, covered gazebo, large grassy area, softball diamond, basketball court and it's beautifully landscaped.

This park was one that I had noticed the sign for when I drove by, very often, but I never knew where the actual park was because of its location behind the businesses. The other day, when I got tired of taking a walk in our normal neighborhood, I packed up the stroller and drove to this park to play and walk. We practically had the park to ourselves with only one other person with kiddos playing; but we were there over the lunch hour and several of the workers from local businesses used the rotunda for lunch. Here are some of my favorite shots of the park:

My daughter is a little particular about the things she touches, she doesn't like the feel of grass on her feet/hands for instance; but she seems to love the playground!

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Lavender, one of the prettiest Colorado flowers (in my opinion).

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Views from the top of the playground's jungle gym.

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Swingset, although the seats were way to hot to put a baby in! (Really, why aren't swings white?)

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Love the tire swing!

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Walking path toward basketball court, on the right (not shown) is the softball diamond.

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One more shot of the awesome playground, Magnolia loves the slide!

If you'd like, you can sign up for my mailing list to be notified when I post a new trail or park; I update 2-3 times per month. Click here if you are interested. I also sell my photography from some of the hikes/trails and other beauties if you'd like to browse here. As always, thanks for reading!

Hiking at Diamond Lake Trailhead, Indian Peaks Wilderness, Eldora Colorado

2012-09-17T11:13:00.000-06:00

Buy this as an art print here

This weekend I really wanted to get out into the mountains with Josh, Magnolia and the dogs to see the fall colors, and I decided that we should hike the Diamond Lake trailhead outside of Eldora, Colorado. This was a trail that Josh had mentioned he'd like to hike after I had hiked it solo back in 2010, you can see the report here. At that time I hiked all the way to Diamond Lake and beyond.    Yesterday however, we only made it to the large falls with our whole family of hikers, baby and dogs, also both Josh and I have been feeling under the weather and that was plenty far enough for us on this day. Even with only going about 2-3 miles round trip, the hike still took over 3 hours, we did stop often so that I could take pictures, we hiked slowly because we had Rock with us, our 14 year old dog, and Magnolia was pretty squirmy, so it we often had to attend to her needs. We managed to loose another pacifier on the trail, but otherwise had a great afternoon. The trailhead parking lot was completely packed and the trail was very busy.

Getting there: It took just under an hour and a half to reach the trailhead from my home near Golden, Colorado. Drive toward Nederland and just outside of Nederland take a left turn at Hwy 130/Eldora Road west toward the Eldora ski resort (also toward High School); continue on this road for 3 miles to the town of Eldora. Do not take the fork in the road which takes you to the ski resort. Drive through the town of Eldora, (watch your speed) to the end of town, where the road turns to dirt. This is Fourth of July Road; continue on this road for 5 miles when it dead ends at the parking lot for the trailhead.
The road is bumpy, but does not require a 4wd vehicle and the parking lot was completely packed at noon on a Sunday; overflow parking on the side of the road was also packed, but we managed to find 1 spot as a person was leaving; it took me about 25 minutes from the town of Eldora to the trailhead due to the slow, bumpy road. Click here to see google map of area.
Specs: There is a pit toilet at the parking lot, which is also parking for Buckingham Campground, a primitive campground with just a few sites. The trail to Diamond Lake is stated as 2 miles per the sign, however I estimate it's closer to 2.5 miles after hiking it and reading some other information regarding the trail and the sign states the large falls are 1 mile from the trailhead, but again, I think it might be a little farther than that.

The Hike: As usual, Magnolia fell asleep about 10 minutes before we made it to the trailhead parking lot, so we had to wake her up for the hike and it took us a while (of course) to get all of our stuff, 2 dogs, and Magnolia around for the hike. After about 30 minutes in the parking lot getting situated, we finally started hiking. The trail was very busy with people and dogs as you'd might expect when the fall colors are at their peak. The views from the trail are amazing, of the Indian Peaks Wilderness and Arapaho National Forest.

Beautiful aspens in all shades of fall colors; yellow, orange and even some reds!

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Even though we had our Kelty backpack in the SUV at the last minute I decided to carry Magnolia in the ergo carrier. Its so much easier and lighter and more comfortable for me, the downfall however is that there is no place to carry water and other items, which is why, when I hike alone, that I need the larger carrier. But for days when Josh can carry a pack of food/water/etc, the ergo works just fine. Well, usually it does. On this day Magnolia was particularly squirmy and restless and I am not sure it was the right choice. Josh ended up having to carry Magnolia so that I could take photos because she was so squirmy I was getting camera shake. He prefers to carry her on his front, so it was much more slow going on the trail when we switched.

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I am so in love with the aspen trees and their beautiful glowing color! Shortly into the hike, you walk right through this aspen grove and it was so pretty that I stopped and got some great shots with the blue sky!

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The beginning of the trail has lots of wooden walkways, in the spring the water is very high from mountain runoff and the trail can get very wet.

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After about 1 mile there is a trail split and you can choose to continue up toward the pass, shown in photo above or head toward Diamond Lake and the falls, which is what we did. I haven't hiked that trail, yet, but am looking forward to doing it next summer.

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Josh and Magnolia; and the ergo carrier.

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All of the plants were changing color for fall, these leaves are normally bright green.

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After about an hour of hiking we reached the trail split, and we took the trail toward Diamond Lake, but didn't quite make it to the lake this trip.

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This really cool tree is along the trail close to the large waterfalls, I love interesting things in nature. It looks like it would be a great place for a seat.

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After an hour or more of hiking, we reached the largest falls on the trail. While they weren't as loud and large as they were in the middle of the summer of 2010 when I was here last, but they were still very beautiful and a great place to stop and eat lunch. I was able to get some amazing shots of the waterfall while Josh, Magnolia and the dogs ate lunch. This print is available for sale here, commemorate your Fourth of July Trailhead hike with an amazing print for your favorite frame.

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I climbed up to the top of the falls for this shot, there are more waterfalls above that can't be seen from below. I stool precariously on the side of the falls, on a slick rock, to get this amazing shot. You can purchase this photo and some others here. This is a great way to commemorate your Diamond Lake hike.

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This print is also for sale here.

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I love the difference in shots, this one was taken as an action shot, you can see the individual droplets of water, but the above photos were taken with a longer exposure which created a feathery and peaceful effect.

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Can you hear the water?

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As one of the larger and more popular waterfall trails in Colorado, this is definitely worth the hike, check out Diamond Lake soon, or you'll have to wait until next summer! Summer is beautiful here too, with lots of wildflowers and faster flowing falls. Ok, enough of my waterfalls pics, but I just really love the falls!

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After lunch, we hiked back toward the parking lot, instead of going to the lake. I would have liked to continue hiking, but Josh wasn't feeling great, and The Lions played at 6:30, so he really wanted to be home. Ahh football season, you ruin my hiking plans!

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Josh, Magnolia and the doggies!

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The field behind the big waterfall. It looks like a great place to spot wildlife.

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Since Magnolia was due on Halloween last year, I wanted to make her a pumpkin hat. Here it is! Cute right? She'll only keep it on with it tied securely (as with every hat) but its warm, cozy and kept her from getting too much sun! I have this as a custom order in my etsy shop.

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More signs of fall, everywhere.

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Goodbye flowers, see you next year.

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This amazing image is available as an art print here
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All in all, we arrived at the trailhead around 12 noon and left around 3:45pm. It took an hour and a half to get home, but we made it in time for the unfortunate Lions game and loss. I am looking forward to coming back to Diamond Lake next summer to enjoy the flowers.

Did you enjoy this post, then please leave a comment or any questions. Have you hiked here, or on any of the other trails in the area, I'd love to hear about those.

You can join my mailing list here for emails when I add a new hike (2-3 times per month at most), and you can find my photography for sale here to commemorate your hike.

Thanks for reading!

Box Canyon Trail, Vedauwoo Wyoming, Rock Climbing and Scrambling

2012-09-02T07:25:00.002-06:00

I'm still trying to catch up from two weekends at Vedauwoo, Wyoming in the Medicine Bow Mountains between Laramie and Cheyenne off I-80; there were tons of trails to write about and great camping too. Check out my previous posts about the Turtle Rock trail here and the Vedauwoo campground here. When hiking the Turtle Rock Trail a few weeks ago, we mistakenly thought it would take us to the top of the rock formations, however, the Box Canyon Trail does continue up the rock formations and we spent the day climbing, scrambling and hiking up the amazing and unique rock formations.

Getting there: From the Denver Metro area take I-25 North into Cheyenne Wyoming, head west on I-80 and exit 329, follow the 'camping' signs and turn right at the stop sign then turn left onto Vedauwoo Rd. and go 1.2 miles. Turn left at sign and go 0.3 miles to campground but instead of turning right into the campground, continue straight to the day use area and follow the signs toward the Box Canyon Trail, its easy. (Latitude: 41.1608157 Longitude: -105.3685959)

Graffiti trees along the trail.

Specs: Hiking in the day use area costs $5 per car; there are pit toilets, picnic tables, running water, a rotunda with tables, grills, hiking trails and more. The Turtle Rock trail is 3.2 miles around the formation and there are several other trail intersections that can make the hike longer; paper maps are available at the pay station near the park entrance that has all the hikes in the area.

The Hike: After speaking with the rangers and finding out that the trail to reach the top of the rock formations was the Box Canyon Trail, so we decided to hike that on Saturday morning. It takes quite a while to pack up all that is needed for a few hours away for 2 adults, a baby and 2 dogs; including food, hiking pack, enough water, diapers, toys, etc, but we finally got into the car around 11am and over to the trailhead. It was very popular but we found the last parking spot in the small parking lot (there are overflow lots) and started up the trail (after taking a while to load up dogs, kid, carrier, food and etc). We walked down the paved trail and then it splits (its a small loop) to continue around the picnic area, and at the end of the picnic area the trail turns to dirt and crosses a small ravine toward the base of the rock formations. Initially, we thought that the dogs wouldn't be able to climb up the rocks, so Josh stayed down with Magnolia and the dogs while I climbed; which was disappointing after all of that work. But I enjoyed an hour to myself on the hike and after about 35 minutes of being completely confused on the rocks, I found the Box Canyon Trail (after starting in the wrong spot) and decided to hike a little further by myself before going back to tell Josh that we could, in fact, all hike this trail.

To start the Box Canyon Trail have one of the frequent rangers show you the path ahead of time, or just start climbing; the best place to begin is where the rocks slope down not far from the bridge and canyon. There are no real trail markers and its hard to know if you are going the correct way or not, but there are small markers, like a bridge that continues across the rock surface, or a set of stairs that makes one of the huge boulders accessible otherwise I don't think the average person could make it past that point. Eventually the trail continues toward the back of the rock formation and you have amazing views of the surrounding valley. Here the trail gets pretty tricky; to reach the top of the formation you need to squeeze through a very narrow path beside a rock wall and another boulder and then you have to stand on some smaller boulders with a small ravine between you and a large boulder that needs to be scaled to reach the top. I actually got so confused as to where to go at this point that I waited for some people to come down and watched how they did it to confirm that scaling that rock by the ravine, was in fact, the correct way to go. We talked for a few minutes and the gentleman helping his 10 year old daughter down said it continued to be difficult a little farther up the rock, then got easy as you reached the top. Again, I went to the place where they came down and tried to scale this rock, had their been a hand hold, I would have done it, but it was so steep and at my chest height, with nothing to hang onto and the rocks are made up of granite that is very sharp and slices your skin easily and I was wearing shorts on this 90+ degree day. I didn't risk it and hiked back down to go meet with Josh.

Me looking down at Josh from the start of the trail

I told Josh that we could all hike it, we talked with the ranger again who told us of another rock formation that we could climb with the dogs and Magnolia in the pack. He showed us the way (there is no way that I can explain this, it was very hard to find ourselves) and we started up the path he suggested, but again got to a point where we just could not go any farther with 2 dogs and a baby in a pack. We climbed all the way back down and then Josh wanted to hike the Box Canyon Trail, so I went up with him again. At this point, I was pretty tired and hot; I'd been hiking for 2+ hours on the rocks, but he had not, so I continued up with him. We reached the same spot that I got hung up at before and I again tried to climb it, but with no avail and it was driving me nuts, I could see the top but I couldn't reach it for fear of getting sliced by the granite, or falling into this small ravine if I lost my footing. Josh wasn't even able to make it through the narrow path by the rocks with the hiking pack on his back. So again, we reached a stopping point and went back. Here are some more photos of the hike.

View of some of the rock formations while on the rocks, its shaped like a large horseshoe of rocks, and its easy to see why its called a box canyon.

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Cross this bridge to get over the largest boulders and then find the rickety stairs that continue to take you up Box Canyon Trail

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Views from the middle of the canyon.

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Find this second bridge to cross after the stairway.

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I am not sure what this flower is, but its a beauty.

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Once you reach the views on the far side of the formation, the Box Canyon Trail gets tricky, at least it was for me.

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This is where I got stopped, this photo is taken with me standing on a small rock and leaning onto the rock that I needed to scale which was right at my chest level. If you look closely, you can see a rock climber (shown below) in the rocks in the center/right of the photo

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You can see the guy climbing in the orange shirt in this photo, its such a tall, steep rock surface, this photo doesn't do it justice!

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Here is a closer look at the guy, but you still don't really get a feel of how high he is or how steep and difficult this climb is!

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Views looking up at the water lines, this would be awesome to check out after it rains, or during the rain, the water will roll down each of those grooved lines and look amazing!

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One of the many chipmunks that live on the rocks.

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Josh took this shot of me on our hike back down.

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Now that we were able to at least hike on the Box Canyon Trail, I felt like we got to see the best of Vedauwoo and I look forward to visiting it in the future with Magnolia!

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Turtle Rock Trail at Vedauwoo, Medicine Bow Mountains, Wyoming

2012-08-21T13:52:00.001-06:00

When we go camping, one of the things that I always look for in a campground is if there are hiking trails nearby. Vedauwoo doesn't disappoint in that department! The Turtle Rock Trail, which is the most popular in the area, encircles the large Turtle Rock formation, and there are numerous other trails within the area as well. We opted to hike the Turtle Rock trail because there was a way to pick it up from the campground and because I thought it would take us to the top of the rock formation. How wrong I was! We actually came across some other hikers on the trail who asked us if that trail continued up the rocks and I said that we had hoped the same thing, but since we had both done half of the trail we realized it did not. And after looking online after the hike, we realized that it was pretty obvious that it did not continue up the rocks when we were given a map by one of the park rangers. Here is a great map of the trail and area. We still had a great hike even though it didn't go as planned. Click here for my post on the Box Canyon trail which does continue up the rocks.

Getting there: Hike is off I-80 in Wyoming between Laramie and Cheyenne. From the Denver Metro area take I-25 North into Cheyenne Wyoming, head west on I-80 and exit 329, follow the signs toward the campground and instead of turning right into the campground, continue straight toward the 'day use' recreation area and park near the turtle rock trail access, which can be found in several different places throughout the day use area. (Latitude: 41.1608157 Longitude: -105.3685959)

The Hike: Like every hike that our family does, it doesn't always go as planned. We had assumed that we'd hike to the rock formation and then climb up the rocks; instead we hiked partway around Turtle Rock and after realizing the trail didn't head up the rock, we chose a trail intersection to hike toward Reynolds Hill. Then we stopped because Magnolia got fussy so we ate some lunch in a beautiful field, enjoyed some family time and then hiked back to the campsite. The hike and lunch took about 3 hours, and we got to see part of the Turtle Rock trail and part of the Reynolds Hill trail. We did get to see a moose mama and baby along the trail and our little baby had a great time! Here are some of the trip photos.

One thing that I noticed right away at Vedauwoo, its near perfectly beautiful, but there are lots of dead trees everywhere. At first I assumed it was because of the bark beetle that we have here in Colorado, but came across this sign at the trailhead.

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Turtle Rock formation, the trail continues for 3.2 miles around this rock, it passes through the pine forests, aspen groves, other rock formations and more

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We were lucky enough to run across this moose mama and baby after hiking for about 40 minutes near the Reynolds Hill trail split. She was very docile and watched us from afar, but I was still a little nervous because in Colorado you hear news stories of moose charging people and seriously hurting them.

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Here is a great shot of the baby looking at the camera, but the mama had turned away. I was surprised to see the mama moose was so dark, in Colorado when I've seen them, they are usually more brown similar to the baby. We spent about 20 minutes watching the moose, they weren't always in good photo range unfortunately, but we were able to see them for quite a while from our position higher up on the rocks. It was a really cool thing to witness and it reminded both Josh and I of our trip to California in 2007 when we came across a bear and her 2 cubs. It was scary but we stayed away and everything was fine. ***

After the moose we continued up the trail where we came across some other hikers coming from the other direction who asked if this trail went up onto the rocks. We both then discovered it did not and they continued hiking and so did we, but we decided to turn around to check out the Reynolds Hill area which was a trail intersection we had passed back where we saw the moose. So we turned around and hiked back.
Here's Josh carrying Magnolia in our Eddie Bauer carrier gifted to us from a friend. He likes that carrier a lot, I don't fit into it quite as well as Josh does.

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Josh and Belle at one of the stream cliffs along the trail.

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Does anyone know the specific flower species or type of butterfly? Please post a comment!

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This stream with its many rock waterfalls can be seen from the trail. It was great for the dogs to cool off in.

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The train continues through the aspen trees, the understory is filled with greenery and beautiful wildflowers.

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Josh, Magnolia and Rock walking through the aspen grove.

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Belle at the trail intersection to go to Reynolds Hill (none of the sign shows the trail names, the paper map found at the park entrance is invaluable if you want to hike in the area)

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Lots of sage along the trail, I love how beautiful it is, and the contrast with the blue sky is amazing.

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We sat in the field and had lunch, I played with my new camera and took pictures of everything!

The trail toward Reynolds Hill continued and it looks like it hikes up a separate rock formation (Reynolds Rock) across the field shown in photo below.

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Reynolds Rock formation.

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After our lunch, we hiked back to the campground, all three of us completely beat (dogs too) and chilled in the campground for the rest of the evening, relaxing. I really love Vedauwoo, and can't wait to come back again soon!

If you have any questions or comments please post them, also, if you'd like to join our mailing list to be notified when the next hike is updated then join here. If you want to check out the Box Canyon Trail click here.

Vedauwoo Campground, Buford Wyoming - Finally, some summer camping!

2012-08-12T09:36:00.000-06:00

We haven't camped all summer; which is crazy for our family because we love it so much, but July was packed with things to do each weekend and when August rolled around and my 33rd birthday; Josh asked what I wanted to do and I replied "go camping!"
Since this was our first camping trip with Magnolia, we wanted to stay in a campground for conveniences like use of port-o-pots and running water and we wanted to camp somewhere that it didn't get super cold at night, which meant not camping at 10,000 feet in Guanalla Pass, it meant finding somewhere new. I can get easily overwhelmed with all the places to choose from while searching online and can spend hours looking at one place after another. But I don't have time to be indecisive anymore, Magnolia keeps me very busy, so I asked for some suggestions from friends. My friend Suzy from Hip Mountain Mama (an amazing family owned shop) suggested that we check out Vedauwoo in Buford, Wyoming (pronounced Vee-da-voo); they often frequent the campground and have a great time with their kids. She sent me her photo album with amazing shots of huge rock formations and big sky; I took one look and decided Vedauwoo was the place to go! The one thing that I liked about this campground was that every review I found online remarked that each site had lots of privacy from the next and there are views from every site. Privacy is the main reason we don't often choose campgrounds, we enjoy being far away from everyone, but Vedauwoo provided the best of both worlds; a port-o-pot and running water, combined with secluded sites and great views plus a trailhead which you can pick up from the campground.   All of this meant, staying put and enjoying the weekend hiking, camping and checking out the great views and big sky.
Getting there: After years of driving up winding, bumpy and often scary dirt roads to reach secluded sites; it was refreshing to see that Vedauwoo was just off I-80 in Wyoming between Cheyenne and Laramie. From the Denver Metro area take I-25 North into Cheyenne Wyoming, head west on I-80 and exit 329, follow the 'camping' signs and turn right at the stop sign then turn left onto Vedauwoo Rd. and go 1.2 miles. Turn left at sign and go 0.3 miles to campground. (its easy, just follow campground signs) (Latitude: 41.1608157   Longitude: -105.3685959)
Specs: $10 per night. The campground has two sections; the first section has 28 sites, some are tent only the rest are for either tent or RV. There are no hookups here. All of the sites are well spaced with a lot of seclusion between most sites. There are no pull through RV sites, just a few back-in sites for RV's and then many of the other sites just have a pull off on the side of the road beside the campsite for RV's. The tents can be placed anywhere in the site, there are no tent pads or restriction on tent placement. At least 4 of the campsites are walk-in tent only sites; and are amongst the rocks and look very cool. When we arrived at the campground by 5:30 on Friday afternoon, there were only a few unoccupied spaces but we managed to grab one with some privacy, views and some shade. The campground also has potable running water and port-o-pots. There is an additional overflow type campground farther down the road past the main campground, there is a sign that reads 'no RV's recommended beyond this point', but when we drove down there I wasn't sure why this was a recommendation. A small camper would be just fine on the paved roads. There are additional tent sites here which were not completely full on Friday night, I didn't see any RV's in this campground aside from the camp host. These sites were still fairly well spaced, but with less privacy than the other campground. Additionally, there are national forest (free, no services) campsites farther down Vedauwoo Road, just don't turn onto the campground road at all, continue straight where the road turns to dirt.

Our weekend, photos and more info: Vedauwoo means "land of the Earthborn Spirit" in Arapaho and its comprised of amazing rock formations in the Medicine Bow National Forest. Its easy to see why this area was a place that Native Americans believe contained spirits of the rocks, and outlaws used the area as a place to hideout from the law. The land is very interesting and reminds me a little bit of Moab, Utah with lots of grippy rock, great for climbing, hiking and mountain biking. There is the Turtle Rock Trail which continues for about 3 miles around the Vedauwoo Rock formation, it does not go up onto the rocks, however. There is a place to hike partway up the rocks within the park, we didn't make it to do this, unfortunately and will save it for next time. We did hike the Turtle Rock trail and came across a moose mama with her baby, she was pretty close to us and we stayed up on the rock and watched them move past us, while I snapped photos, of course!

Magnolia checking out the outdoors from inside our little Chalet.

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A little fun around the campground :)

Rock and Belle waiting for chipmunks to chase, well Rock doesn't chase them -- but Belle does, which is why she is leashed. Rock, the old gal, just watches.

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Amazing big skies and beautiful sunsets!
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Views from the campsite looking toward I-80, which is slightly visible from some of the campsites. However, it wasn't bothersome.

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Fires were permitted at Vedauwoo, I was pleasantly surprised, but we didn't bring firewood, assuming there was a fire ban. We did find firewood around the campground on Saturday morning left by other campers and were able to have a fire Saturday night and left some wood for the next people at our site.
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Mama moose and her baby (which is pictured, but obscured some by the stupid branch that I didn't notice being in the picture until later).

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Baby checking us out.

I love a good campfire, there isn't much better!

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Belle and our campsite and amazing views!

Lots to do in the Pole Mountain area!

We really enjoyed our time here and are busy planning our next trip to Vedauwoo; there is lots to do in the area and we barely scratched the surface. Now, if we could just figure out how to get Magnolia to nap/sleep while camping - it would be perfect! We had a rough time which lead to her not sleeping the entire day Saturday, which is hugely rare for her, and being very cranky which isn't much fun for anyone! She is 9 months old. Does anyone else have advise on how to camp with a baby, or more information regarding Vedauwoo and great things to do in the area, or a better area map? Please leave a comment if you have any questions or information regarding this post and click here if you'd like to be updated when a new hike, campground or park is posted!
Click here if you'd like to check out more about Vedauwoo hiking.

Sunset Park and Bellows Park, Lakewood Colorado - take a walk in the park

2012-08-07T15:23:00.004-06:00

Now that my days are occupied with Magnolia and I can't just (as quickly) jump into the car and go to a trail, so I often try to find parks to walk in. I can take our Bob Stroller, which will cover most terrain that any of the parks in the city can dish out and we hit the pavement/dirt/concrete!

Last week, I decided to load up the stroller and drive to Bellows Park, a place that I noticed a few times while driving. I wasn't sure of the size of the park, but figured that it would be at least an hour of walking and if worse came to worse I could just walk the stroller into one of the nearby neighborhoods for a stroll down the street. However, I ended up finding that Bellows Park is a pretty neat little place, and it connects to another Lakewood Park called Sunset Park which is significantly larger and offered more walking trails and a playground.

Getting there: The address of the park is 1070 Quail St. Lakewood, CO 80215 and more info can be found on the site here. Information and directions to Sunset Park can be found here.

Specs: There were no bathrooms that I noticed at either park, but Sunset Park does have a playground that is pretty substantial, along with a covered picnic area and plenty of shade under the trees down by the creek. Bellows Park is much smaller and is more of a sidewalk that connects Quail Street and 9th Place with some cool sculptures and a shaded picnic area.

The Parks: I wasn't sure where to park at Bellows Park, so I just stopped on the side of the road where there was parking off Quail street and walked onto the paved path. Here the path goes both directions (east and west), I chose east and walked down the path which goes past a shaded picnic area and some sculptures that were in shapes of molecules, atoms and DNA strands for playing on. The path continues by the creek and comes to an end on 9th Place, but with a sign that points you right toward 9th Place, and basically you cross the street and are then in Sunset Park of Lakewood. There is a paved trail with houses lining one side of the trail higher up on the hill, the other side is private property for a few hundred yards. The park is much bigger than Bellows Park and boasts a fancy playground complete with huge slide and swing set. Here are some photos of both parks:

I parked on Quail street (in photo to left above) and just started walking down the path (shown right photo above).

Here is the picnic area and sculpture climbing toys. Very industrial, there are businesses and factories surrounding the park. What a nice greenbelt to have as an employee nearby though.

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Waterfall in Bellows Park with sculptured rocks and park information in photos above.

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I love the 'science nerd' feeling in the park, so unique!

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Looking west from 9th Place near the end of the park, photo on right above shows continuation of park by crossing 9th place at the crosswalk. The other park is directly straight ahead from the sign above (photo rt.).

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Sunset Park, with houses on the south side of the park and private land to the north for part of the park, then the whole park opens up. Its not super big, but large enough for a short, 1 mile walk, approximately around the park.

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There are nice benches along the path, as well as smaller social trails made by animals and followed by people. There is a creek and lots of trees in the park!

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There is a large playground, complete with baby swing to let your daughter try out. She likes it for a few minutes, and then is over it!

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Trail sign on North entrance to park.

Super awesome playground for kiddos!

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Sunset Park offers a beautiful backdrop for professional photography photo shoots and I'd love to do a session in the park if anyone is interested. Contact me for rates and more information.

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What a great tree! Its offering nature's bench for you to sit on.

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Back to Bellows Park for our walk back to the car; and no park is complete without super cool concrete stamps of lab equipment, atoms and more!

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If you have a really neat park in your area, or know some more information about these two; please leave a comment. I'd love to hear more about the best little parks in your area.

Meyer Ranch, a great getaway from the heat!

2012-08-02T12:57:00.001-06:00

I've hiked at Meyer Ranch numerous times over the years, but when I went to search for it on my own blog I was shocked to see that I had never done a blog post about it before. Meyer Ranch is a great place to get out of the heat in the city, the trail is a shaded pine forest and the hike is a gradual incline up the mountainside.

A new friend that I recently met asked if I wanted to hike, so I suggested Meyer Ranch, easy, shaded and out of the city. We were on the trail before 11:00am, hiked up the Lodgepole Loop out to the neighborhood access, then back down the loop to the picnic tables for some lunch. I carried Magnolia in the Eddie Bauer hiking pack gifted to us by my friend Christina; and it felt pretty good, although a lot of the weight was carried in my hips and I still have some adjusting to do on the pack.

Getting there: Meyer Ranch directions per the Jefferson County Open Space website:

10508 S. Turkey Creek Road, Morrison CO 80465 Located on Route 285 approximately 1/2 mile east of Aspen Park, Colorado. The hike is right off 285, if you go into Conifer you have gone too far. Its on the left side of the hwy if heading South on 285.

Specs: There are picnic tables and pit toilets, but neither are at the parking lot trailhead, instead they are .2 of a mile up the trail to the bathrooms and farther to the picnic tables. But they are in the shade (the tables) and there is also a picnic table higher up on the trail as well.

The Hike: Sara and I were both new to our backpack hiking carriers, but she got hers on real quick and even got Elodie onto her back without a hitch, I had a harder time -- but managed. I am very sensitive to the weight on the backpack because I have back problems that I continually go to physical therapy for, and while I still enjoy hiking and want to share that with Magnolia, its not as easy for me to carry her as I'd like it to be. I've heard if you have a good pack you don't feel the weight, but I've tried most in the market on, and own 2 of them, and none really suit me very well. Nonetheless, the pack felt as good as any ever had after we got hiking for a little bit; we basically just walked around for an hour, then headed toward the picnic tables for some lunch. After lunch we walked back to the parking lot and on the way saw two other mama's with kiddos eating lunch by the trail map sign. They said they just saw a bobcat on the trail by the picnic tables and instead of it running away, it stared at them and they were pretty scared. They waited for another hiker to come up the trail and asked them to walk back to the parking lot with them. The gal said she hiked all the time, but the last two times on the trail she has seen a mountain lion and bobcat; the mountain lion scared her so badly she didn't hike again for 6 months after! I sure hope that I don't see one...

Here's some of the photos.

Birch trees

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We hiked the Lodgepool loop and then out to the neighborhood access (not on the open space map) out to the road and back. This bridge crosses over that part of the trail.

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Magnolia leaning out of the carrier, she just wants to see more and has to lean out the entire time!

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Views!

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Heading out to the neighborhood access which is the trail that can been seen just outside of Conifer off 285.

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Neighborhood access road, here we turned around.

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More views!

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Stopping for some lunch on the way down.

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Two cute babies!

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Magnolia and I

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View from the parking lot, trail sign, and trail toward the forest.

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What other trails do you know of in Conifer or the surrounding areas? I'd love to know if there are more nearby that aren't Jefferson County Open Space.

Minton Park Cemetery Trail, Empire Colorado hiking

2012-07-24T11:50:00.000-06:00

Empire Colorado is one of my favorite towns on the Front Range; its at the heart of the Rocky Mountains and the gateway to Berthoud Pass with Clear Creek River running through it. Last weekend I wanted to try a hike with Josh and the dogs someplace new, farther into the mountains to get away from the 100 degree heat in the city! I also wanted to test out the second of two hiking packs that we were given by friends now that Magnolia fits into this one. I tried out the first pack by myself at the Centennial Cone trail but it bothered my shoulders, and this second one that I wanted to try with Josh around so that he could help me adjust it while I was wearing it. This pack is an Eddie Bauer pack, and I was hopeful that it would work for me after trying on every single pack at REI and not finding one that fit me comfortably. Even with the staff helping me to find the best fit, none were quite right. I guess that's a downfall of being petite.
I was pleasantly surprised that after several adjustments with the Eddie Bauer pack, that it ended up feeling pretty good, not great, but I could get used to it and this trail starting at Minton Park in Empire Colorado happened to be a great trail to test out the pack on. The hike was easy with scenic views of the river and surrounding mountains and no other hikers to speak of, probably because its more of a local walking trail than a hike.

Getting there: From the metro Denver area take I-70 west to exit #232 toward Empire Colorado; continue into the town of Empire and when you reach the town center turn left (south) onto S. Main Street (also called Baird Creek Road), after just .3 of a mile turn left into Minton Park.
Specs: At Minton Park you can find restrooms, a playground, picnic tables, a ball field, skate park and the old Empire Cemetery. The trail starts behind the restrooms to the LEFT of the horseshoe pit and to the left of the cemetery (the trail is outside of the cemetery). The trail continues along the river and circles around toward the highway and to the east end of the town of Empire. Finish the loop by walking through the town, turning on S. Main street and walking back to your car.

We parked at the Minton Park lot, but across the street from the park was what looked like a trail (which was the reason we stopped in the first place *note* photo above is across street from Minton Park). I wasn't sure where this trail would lead and decided to walk it a little bit while Josh got Magnolia and the dogs ready. I happened to pass a lady who told me this was just a meadow loop of about 1/4 of a mile and she brings her dog here to chase the marmots. She told me that there was a trail by the cemetery at Minton Park and gave me these directions:
'To the left of the cemetery there is a trail that runs along the river; its about 30 minutes and ends up back in town and you can loop around to your car. Part of the trail is on private property, so be respectful.'

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Minton Park sign and ball field.
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We walked over to the start of the trail near the playground and picnic tables and behind the bathrooms to the left of the cemetery. We decided to walk through the park and cemetery first because it was a pretty cool playground and a very old cemetery. ***

The trail is to the left of this gate, however we wanted to check it out, so we walked around inside first.

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The tombstones were very old, and many were hand carved. I wouldn't mind laying to rest in this peaceful place, after a long, long healthy and happy life of course. ***


After checking out the cemetery we walked out the gate that we came in and then past the horse-show fields to the start of the trail. The trail has views of the town of Empire and a water supply below from near the beginning of the trail. ***

You can see the trail follows the cemetery fence for about 400 yards. Belle, our dog, is on the trail.
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Eventually the trail went downhill rather steeply toward the river below.
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Once down the steep embankment there was a decision to make, right or left, we chose right because the trail look wider and more traveled. I was doing pretty well with Magnolia on my back for the hike, so far, although I definitely felt the added weight and I was much slower.
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The trail went through an aspen grove and then up a hill into a beautiful field of flowers.
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We hadn't hiked very far yet, otherwise I would have suggested we stop in this magnificent field to eat our lunch. It was so pretty with all of the wildflowers and I kept thinking it would be a great place for a photoshoot!
In the photo above, the top right side, you can see a white sign, it says "no trespassing." I am not sure if it meant beyond the sign, or the entire area; but the trail doesn't get very close to the sign and I didn't see any more signs along the trail.
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Purple Locoweed (I think?)
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The trail leads down to this bridge, and we continued across the bridge and then turned right on the trail just after the bridge.

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Standing on the bridge
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Family photo :)
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We took the trail to the right after the bridge, it looked wider and lead away from the home that we saw after the bridge crossing.
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This is such a beauty, not sure of its name.
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The trail that we continued along got real trashy. Many pieces were car parts, presumably from a car crashing over the guardrail (above us) and wrecking in the river valley.
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The trail continued beside, and then above the river.
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You can see the river and waterfall below.
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The trail comes to another intersection; this one was obvious; one direction had 4-5 huge "no trespassing" signs, the other direction was this dirt road. (shown above).
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Views from the walk up the road.
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It was at this point that I decided to have Josh carry Magnolia for the remainder of the trek, so we swapped baby for camelback and continued on.
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We continued up the road for about 1/4 of a mile or more.
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When the town comes into view you can see the path (photo above) that takes you out to the Hwy 40 that you came into town on. We chose not to take the path to 40, but instead just continued along this dirt road, parallel to Hey 40, back to S. Main Street. We had to walk through some neighborhoods, but it was pretty easy to find our way back to S. Main street, we made a left onto S. Main and walked back to Minton Park and our car.
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Magnolia seemed to have a good time! Although she would have liked to have a chin rest in the pack and I am wondering if I can make one for it...
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These pretty daisies were near our parked car. I can't resist flowers with a view!
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After we hiked, we were starving and had brought lunches with us but the sky was clouding up, so we decided to save what we packed and stop at one of the restaurants in Empire. I've gone to Jenny's cafe a few times, but wanted to visit someplace new; we saw the sign on the way into town for 1860 Tavern and their special was $3.99 burger & fries and they boasted 'The Best Burger in Empire." So we decided to give them a try. We pulled up and I said to Josh, 'are we taking our daughter into some dingy bar?' But we were pleasantly surprised when we walked in, the place is very nice and modern; outside there is a deck with great views of the surrounding mountains, the owner was very gracious and allowed us to bring our dog outside on the deck so that she didn't get too hot in the car. (Otherwise we probably wouldn't have stayed)

The deck had great views of the surrounding mountains and it seemed like a great place to hang out, I was very surprised that this place was nearly empty. I said to Josh, 'if we didn't have Magnolia we could hang here all afternoon, playing horseshoes and drinking beer on the side of the mountains!' We ordered beer and burgers, the owner brought us a high chair for Magnolia and a leash for Belle and continued to check on us. I checked out the cool deck (which is huge) and surrounding horseshoe pits, there is a second pit up a stairwell higher up on the mountain that looks down on the restaurant and deck, very cool! ***

Eventually the rain started and we had to head inside to finish our food. The burgers were indeed the best in Empire, I have no doubt of that, I think it was the best cheeseburger of my life actually (and I am not one who orders burgers very often), and the fries were cooked to perfection. Our bill was under $20, and I said that if this place was in Golden, we'd be here all the time! We will definitely be back and in fact, I am looking for another hike in Empire just to go back to the 1860 Tavern!
Overall it was a great Sunday and a fun new trail in an area that I haven't been to before; its fun to explore new trails, but I would have liked this one to be a little longer. If you'd like to check out other hikes in Empire I've hiked Jones Pass here and the North Empire Loop Exploratory hike here, I'm especially interested in more information regarding the North Empire Loop if anyone has any info!
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Do you have a hike suggestion, or more info on this trail or others in Empire. If so, please leave a comment or question -- thanks.

Denver Mountain Parks, hike in Morrison Colorado with Yeti Sighting!

2012-07-14T20:47:00.001-06:00

Yes, a Yeti sighting!
Our friends recently moved into the foothills outside of Morrison, Colorado and found this trail last summer. I had been meaning to hike on it numerous times, but just never got around to it until now.
I hiked this trail with Laura her daughter Amelia, who is the exact same age as my daughter Magnolia, who was also in attendance. On our way back down the trail, we came across this scary creature (in photo to left) and it stopped us in our tracks! The hair on the back of my neck stood up, and I was pretty sure we were seeing something crazy, a small bigfoot perhaps or a bear in a tree? We stood there, it stood there...then Laura said that she didn't think it looked like any of the primates she saw at the zoo the day prior and it wasn't moving, so she ventured forward. I was still a little tentative, and decided to hang back with the camera to take some pictures, ha! As we got closer, we got braver, it got smaller and it still wasn't moving and I said "its a fake bigfoot" and indeed, it was. There was a tube with paper for your signature attached to the tree that said 'Yeti Registry' and I actually remember seeing the tube as we passed it on the way up the mountain, but the Yeti was out of site from that direction unless you looked back on the trail and I just ignored the tube because Magnolia was fussing. There are more photos of this farther down in my trip report.

Getting there: This is one of those trails that I agonize about giving directions on my blog because it was pretty confusing to get there. However, the trail starts at a dead end street with this address, just put this into your GPS or map it, and you should get there just fine. 6165 Northway Drive, Morrison, Colorado, 80465. As you drive down the road, you will be going through a residential area, and you will definitely think that this is not a place for a hike, then you arrive at the destination and there is a gated community at the dead end road, just stop and park to the left of the gates and go up the trail to start. Once you get uphill a short distance the trail becomes more defined.
Specs: This is part of the Denver Mountain Parks Trail System, you can find a map of the DMP here,. The map is not of the trail, but of all of the DMP trails. The best that I can tell from their map is this trail is the Birch Hill Tract, number 22 on the DMP map. There are no facilities here, there is however a picnic table at the top of the mountain on one of the trails, where we ate our lunch and that was the destination for the hike.

The Hike: We parked our cars, loaded up the babies and packs and started up the trail which is a little steep in the beginning and then levels out and immediately there is a 3-way trail split. Laura knew which way to go (the center, most traveled trail) and we continued up the trail, but I thought to myself; 'this is going to be so hard to describe on my blog' because there are numerous side trails, none with names. Our plan was to hike to the picnic table which is at the top of one of the foothills with nice views, and in the shade, Laura knew where to go, since they found this trail last summer when we were both pregnant and she was pretty sure she could get us back there.


Start the hike and take the trail (in this photo) that is on the right, but there were actually 3 trails that split off, we took the one in the middle that was the most well worn.

The trail continued through the pine forest, which was nice in the heat for some cool shade. We walked slowly with both girls in the Ergo carriers on the front of us and carefully avoided the rocks and tree roots as we walked up the trail. There were several trail splits or side trails along the hike, we continued down the path that was the most main and well traveled, Laura lead the way.

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There were rock outcroppings along the trail and I remember actually thinking that this reminded me of an episode of Finding Bigfoot, which was a really coincidental after out Yeti spotting on the return. There was another trail split near these rocks, the trail we took was straight/right.

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Eventually we crossed over a fallen tree, came out of the woods into a field where our trail intersected at a T with a more well worn trail (see above) and we turned LEFT. We made a mental note to be sure not to miss our turn on the way back down because our trail was much less worn (and you can barely see it in the photo above) when compared with the T-intersection trail. I wondered where the trail came up from? Laura assures me she'll be going back and will find out sometime!

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The field was full of wildflowers, past their peak, but still beautiful!

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Magnolia spends part of every hike trying to get her hat off, but she seems to enjoy hiking! Our little Colorado Girl. The trail went back into the trees and then out again and we came across some views ahead of us, we could also see some houses in the distance and a huge trail split.

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Then we came to this intersection, the camera can't get a shot of all 4 of the trail shoots, but it was like two V's, >< and there were 3 choices as to where to go. In the photo above Laura is standing on the trail we came up on, and the trail you can see in the photo going back and to the right of Laura is the trail we took. However, in front of us (not pictured) were two other trails going to the left and right. Laura paused here and was really unsure of which way to go, but she decided (correctly) that we needed to go right on the trail that went uphill. So at the two V- intersection, turn right.

It was confusing for us, and I hoped that I could make sense out of all the intersections for my readers. Of course, this our hike is to go to the picnic table on the top, if you want to just hike around, you can choose any trail, several of which looked like they went uphill to lookout points as well. I am just posting our trip route, but there were lots of options.

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At this point, we still hadn't seen anyone on the trail, nor any trail markers and the trail continued through another field and uphill toward a reddish house in the distance to the left. (eventually the trail turns away opposite of this house).
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We continued along the trail Laura had chosen, but she wasn't convinced we were going the right way, the trail went through the trees again, then through another field and there were views of the surrounding foothills (shown above) and some houses nearby. Eventually we came across a mountain biker that told us, indeed we were going the right way for the picnic table and to continue up to the trail until it hit a two track trail, turn left, and go uphill for just a few minutes and we'd be there. He was correct!

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Here you can see a manmade teepee (shown in pic, click to enlarge) and this was just before the top where there was the picnic table in the shade.

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We ate some lunch on the top, we were joined by a young deer who ate her lunch in the field next to us the entire time, not even scared by us in the slightest.

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Here's Amelia eating some lunch with her mama :)

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Our deer friend is hiding in plain sight in this photo, right in the middle, my camera battery was dead and I was borrowing Laura's camera and her zoom wasn't working, so it didn't really capture the deer as well as we could see it.

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I love pinecones :) Lots along the trail, along with this yellow wildflower.

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More beautiful views of the foothills and mountains beyond! On the top of the hill, there were other trails leading back down other than the one we came uphill on, but we weren't sure where they led, so we just went back the way we came.

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We hiked back down without much incident, although we did have one missed turn and quickly retraced our steps; it took much less time to hike down, as usual and we were in the pine forest again in no time. Suddenly we came across this guy!

We stopped dead in our tracks, my stomach dropped, the hair on the back of my neck stood up and we waited and watched. After a minute our bigfoot/bear/unknown animal didn't move and Laura decided to venture forward saying, "it doesn't look like any of the primates that I saw at the zoo yesterday." At this point we were certain it was fake, then we laughed and I said "it's a bigfoot!" When we got closer we saw the canister hanging in the tree next to it that said, "Yeti Registry."

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I actually saw the canister on the way up, but didn't stop to look at it because Magnolia was fussing and I was trying to watch my step. We signed our names and the date and read the funny comments inside.

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It looks like a pretty obvious spot and he'd get noticed going up the trail (from the photos) but the trail is actually rocky right here and its likely you are looking at your feet, but its not very far from the road where we parked, maybe a 1/2 mile (I am guessing). I wish I knew more about the Yeti Registry, I googled it but didn't have a hit on anything that was relevant to canisters and fake bigfoots in trees along trails.

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We finished up our hike through the trees and then back to the car, we did manage to take a side trail accidentally, which lead us back to the main trail and we barely realized we had made the mistake until I noticed the rock outcropping that we missed somehow and a new outcropping that I remember passing which was off the trail on the way out.

Some of the side trails do loop right back to the main trail, which is helpful...sort of...use caution on this trail and be sure to turn around and look behind you while hiking and at every intersection! This helps you remember what that intersection will look like on your return so that it's not unfamiliar to you. Trails look very different when hiking the opposite direction!

Do you live in the area, or have you hiked this trail before? If so, I'd love to hear where else this trail goes and if there is a map somewhere! I'd also love to know more about the yeti registry. Please leave a comment!

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Denver on Dwellable

Baw Beese Walking Trail, Hillsdale Michigan - part of the North Country Trail

2012-07-05T15:07:00.001-06:00

Road trip! We spent half of June in Michigan to spend some quality time with our families and introducing Magnolia to her extended family who hasn't seen her yet. During this time I was itching to get out on a trail for some hiking and one of our friends suggested the Baw Beese walking trail, which connects to the North Country trail which is a huge trail that spans 4600 miles in 7 states from New York through Minnesota. There is a section of the North Country Trail which is around Baw Beese Lake and I was glad to hike on such a cool trail which was so close to my mother in law's house. I wondered why my husband never rode his bike farther on the trail, but he didn't really get into hiking until we moved to Colorado 10 years ago.

With the entire family in tow, we loaded up the stroller with water and started out of the house. It was at least 1 mile before we reached the paved trail and started down the path.

Getting there: The Baw Beese trail map can be found here, we picked up the path near Bacon street, but the path spans from Jonesville to Hillsdale to Osseo. The trail can be hard to navigate through the city, but the paved paths are great for biking, walking, and more.

Specs: The trail passes through several parks which have port-o-pots and a playground area and a place to swim. The trail is very scenic with flowers, trees, benches and continues beside Baw Beese Lake for a time.

Start of the trail.

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The trail is a great place for walking your dog

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Lots of wildflowers along the path, however, not nearly as many as Colorado offers. The flowers were very different, and I don't know the names of these either :) Any one?

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The trail provides informative nature information, but its hard to tell what the signs are actually naming along the trail. Buckhorn is a small flower (or weed) that is found all over the Midwest. This is a super large sign, for such a small flower :)

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Sumac.

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Not as much shade as we would have liked, but some.

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The trail passes through several parks that offer swimming, boating, playground, picnic area and lots more!

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Lots of places to rest along the way

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One of the parks the trail passes through.

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This is a great place to stop and take a swing, if you are Magnolia. We also ate some lunch before walking further down the trail.

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Eventually the trail actually looks like what I am used to a 'trail' being -- a dirt path. We didn't go much farther than this, however, because the crew of people we were walking with were tiring out in the 90 degree heat and humidity.

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I'd really like to come back next summer and explore this on our bikes, if we can bring them. It looked like a great place to ride, very secluded and peaceful.

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The path continued beside the lake, this is part North Country Trail per our friends information. I can't believe I never hiked here as a youth, it wasn't far from my house, but I was a runner back then and don't think that hiking crossed my mind much until I got older and moved to Colorado.

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Passing the beach on our way back home, looked so enticing and I wished I had my suit!

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Baw Beese path sign.

Do you know any more about this trail, the North Country Trail, or others near Hillsdale Michigan? If so, please leave a comment or thought.

Corwina Park and the Panorama Point Trail

2012-06-05T14:36:00.001-06:00

As an avid hiker, especially along the Front Range, I expect that I know a lot of the hiking trails in the area and when one is brought to my attention that I haven't hiked, well I just need to go hike it!

Since having Magnolia, I have become familiar with some local mama's hiking groups, but I only recently decided to do a hike with the Colorado Mountain Mama's group. We had a great time on the trail at Lookout Mountain and I checked their schedule to see when we could hike again and came across the Corwina Park hike. Unfortunately, Magnolia and I weren't able to hike with the Colorado Mountain Mama's group that day, but we hiked it as a family over the weekend. The hike was perfect, a beautiful trail with scenic views, a pine forest to keep you shady, a stream that the dogs were able to drink from (for part of the trail) and tons of wildflowers along the way! The trail is part of the Denver Mountain Parks System and the trail is actually the Corwina - O'Fallon Trail.

Getting there / Specs: From the Denver area take C-470 into Morrison and drive through the town and continue on Hwy 72/Hwy 8 for about 7 miles until you see the Corwina Park sign, skip this lot and keep driving another .7 of a mile to the trailhead on the left side of the road. There is a brown Corwina Park sign immediately before the turn off, which looks like you are entering a driveway rather than a trailhead. There are no bathrooms here (the closest are back at the first Corwina Park parking lot) but there is a trailhead with a map of the area's hikes. You can see the trail map here. When we hiked here last Sunday, I thought that the trail would be very popular because Lair O' the Bear (which you will pass on your way up 74 to the parking lot) was packed, but to our surprise the trailhead was not crowded on this beautiful weekend day.

Check out the trail map when you begin, but the route was easy to follow, take the trail from the lot and after about 1 mile it intersects with another trail but its well marked and just continue to follow the Panorama Point signs to the top! The trail is moderately difficult and the distance is 2.8 miles in total going out and back.

The Hike: We arrived at the correct trailhead after stopping at the first Corwina Park parking lot and realizing we were in the wrong place for the hike, thankfully the smart phone told us to keep driving to the second parking lot. Once we arrived to a surprisingly sparse parking lot, we quickly got the dogs and baby re-loaded up and started hiking!

After seeing this post, one of my readers Nicole posted a link to the Denver Parks Map of the area, click here for this. Thank you Nicole! Here is a photo that I took of the trail map on a very sunny day.

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The large trees along the trail reminded me of Oregon; I guess they aren't large to the oak trees where I grew up in Michigan, but seeing huge pine trees in the foothills is rare here unless they are near a water source.

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Shortly after we started the hike, I felt dead weight on my back and Josh confirmed that Magnolia had fallen asleep. While she was chewing on the strap of our Ergo Carrier. I love carrying her in the Ergo, its super comfortable, but the drawbacks are that it doesn't hold my water and I can't get Magnolia onto my back by myself. I'd like to get a hiking backpack, but we were gifted two of them and neither fits me very comfortably, however they fit Josh great, so he carries her in the backpack often as well. I just wish they were cheaper, price is well over $100 typically for a good pack!

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After some moderately difficult hiking along the creekside, the trail levels out in a beautiful meadow, complete with aspen trees and wildflowers!

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This is the second trail split sign (first is not pictured) and you can see my husband and our dogs in the distance heading up the path. After the meadow the trail gets steeper as you get to the top of the mountain. Its still moderate compared to other hikes, and it was a great hike for carrying a baby.

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(penstemon)

The trail was filled with wildflowers and I couldn't help stopping and snapping a bunch of pictures along the way. The trail was lined with many different kinds of yellow, purple and white flowers.

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Magnolia and I nearing the top of the trail, she is still sleeping in this shot, but not for long! And she made herself heard on the hike back down!

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I kept thinking we were going to be at the viewpoint and then we'd round another corner and walk through more meadow-type terrain. But after about 0.5 of a mile, according to the trail map, you reached the top.

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(penstemon)

After rounding the bend, there was another small field to hike through full of, yup, more flowers!

Nearing the top we started to get a glimpse of the great views we would be appreciating and I remarked that I couldn't believe I hadn't found this trail before! It's so close to us, and offers such great views and miles of trail; we've been to Lair O'the Bear numerous times, but I never knew Corwina Park had trails. Maybe its one of the better kept trail secrets?

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On the top there were great views of the town of Kittridge and Mt. Evans and the Continental Divide in the Distance! It started to sprinkle lightly on us as we sat on the top, ate some snacks, fed Magnolia and rested under the pine trees on the rock outcroppings. The trail does continue past this viewpoint, which is not shown on the map, and I assume it loops up to the Lair O' the Bear trail, but I am not certain of this. We continued on the trail for a little ways, but it went downhill and so we turned back the way we came. The hike took about 2.5 hours, but we didn't go fast at all, stopped often and ate lunch on the top.

Have you hiked here recently, or nearby, please leave a comment with any questions or info you might have? I am looking forward to hiking at O'Fallon Park in Kittridge in the near future. If you'd like to be updated when a new hike is posted, please click here to sign up!

Alderfer Three Sisters Park and Open Space, Evergreen Colorado

2012-05-28T21:19:00.010-06:00

Hiking with a baby is part of our lifestyle now, and I am constantly trying to find a good hike that I haven't blogged about or visited lately, which is not too difficult making it comfortable to carry Magnolia. This weekend we visited Alderfer Three Sisters, a park that I have frequented many times, but oddly, had never blogged about. This park has over 10 miles of trails, some in the pine forest and others with views of the surrounding foothills but the park is most popular for its rock formations. The formations are named the Three Sisters and The Brother. This weekend we hiked the Sisters Loop and then continued along the Ponderosa Trail back to the car. In total we hiked 2.5 miles and it took us about 1.5 -2 hours of moderately slow hiking with a few stops along the way to nurse the baby, take photos and to let the dogs sniff around.

Getting there/Specs: The physical address for the park is 30229 Buffalo Park Road, Evergreen Colorado 80439.   Travel south of the town of Evergreen on Hwy 73 and then turn west onto Buffalo Park Road, continue down the road for about a mile and you will come across the first parking lot on the right side, there is a second larger lot about a half mile down the road. There are bathrooms at both parking lots, along with picnic tables, a trail sign and maps. Click here for the Jefferson County Open Space Park information, map and more history about the park.
The Hike: We decided to go for a hike at about 3:30 on Sunday afternoon, so with a baby and gathering all of our items, two dogs, water and getting dressed for the hike, it took us until 4:30 before we got out the door and beyond 5pm before we hit the trail. The weather was much cooler in the mountains and even though we accounted for some of that coolness, it wasn't enough and both Josh and I were under-dressed for the hike. Magnolia, of course, was well prepared with layers and a blanket!

We started out at the first (smaller) parking lot and hiked the Sisters Trail Loop to Ponderosa Trail which was a total of about 2.5 miles. The hike starts in the ponderosa pine forest and continues gradually uphill with moderate difficulty toward The Sisters rock formations. There are great views of the foothills and eventually Evergreen Lake in the distance along the trail.

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(Wild Chamomile) (Western Wallflower)

In the spring and summer seasons I love to photograph all of the beautiful Colorado wildflowers along the trails. It used to annoy my husband that I would constantly stop and snap photos, but after selling some of my prints, he doesn't complain so much anymore. Recently I purchased a book, Wildflowers of Colorado Field Guide as suggested by one of my readers, and I'm hoping to get better at the local flora and fauna. Now I can accurately name the plants along the trail, or at least most of them.

Early on during the hike, Magnolia began to fuss and wasn't easily soothed, so we decided to stop on the rock formations so that I could nurse her and we could have good views in the meantime. Josh snapped this photo of me and its pretty typical of any hike, on any day: me nursing, views in the background, happy baby and a happy mama!

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Views from one of the rock formations of Evergreen High School and the foothills surrounding the area.

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(Fendler Groundsel?)

I never tire of seeing the pine forests of the Rocky Mountains along the trail. The foothills haven't been very affected by the pine beetle like the larger mountains, so all of the forests look pristine and green here!

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(One of the tree sisters rock formations) (Prickly Rose)

The trail continued to climb providing great views of the rock formations and foothills.

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(Lots of green!) (Miners Candle)

The Miners Candle flower above was my absolute favorite along this hike, and I only saw just a few of these plants along the sunny side of the mountain. Along with the flowers, there were views of the surrounding mountainsides which had several amazing houses jutting out from the side of the mountain.

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The trail continued up at a moderate incline until Evergreen Lake was visible and shortly after the trail continued over the mountainside and into the pine forest. This side of the mountain was much windier and we hiked a lot more briskly. We checked in with Magnolia who was much happier after her snack and tucked her in with a blanket, she was very content in the Snugli carrier that was gifted to us by friends. Josh feels very comfortable carrying her in this, however it hurts my shoulders terribly and feels like they carry all of her weight. It also doesn't have a sun shield, which is a necessity in Colorado. I am debating if we should invest in one that I can carry comfortably, or just have Josh carry her on weekends, thus eliminating my hiking on any moderately difficult trails while carrying her in front with the Ergo.

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Once over the mountain, the trail continues downhill through the pine forest until you reach the intersection at the Ponderosa Trail, then pass the Silver Fox Trail and continue on Ponderosa to take the moderate 2.5 mile loop, or follow the Ponderosa trail in the other direction to head back to the parking lot for a shorter route. Be sure to look at the valley with views of the larger mountains and snow capped peaks in the distance.

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We passed this tree and Josh was pretty sure the claw marks were made by a bear, the marks are pretty large and very claw like, so he could be right. Magnolia thought that bears were funny and laughed!

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We continued along the trail which winds near the road and continues through the forest back to the parking lot. A wooden bench along the trail is a great place to stop for a rest.

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We got pretty chilly near the end of the hike and were glad to be back to our car. I was really glad to get out on a hike, even if it wasn't as adventurous as we are used to doing. I didn't climb a peak or to a waterfall, cave or arch, but I showed my daughter some of why we love Colorado and gave her a new experience to learn from. I am looking forward to doing many more with her as well!

Please leave any comments or questions.

Evergreen on Dwellable

Lookout Mountain, Boettcher Mansion; a snowy hike on a sunny January day

2012-05-19T10:33:00.002-06:00

Clearly, I didn't hike this trail very recently; it was actually hiked in January 2012, but as a busy mama with a 2 month old baby, I didn't get a chance to blog about it until now. But, its worth the write-up, so here it is! The trailhead starts at the Boettcher Mansion and Nature Center on the top of Lookout Mountain; which is worth the visit even if you don't like to hike. The mansion was built as a summer home in 1917 by a prominent business man Charles Boettcher and the property was donated to the Jefferson County Open Space in the late 60s. Its a beautiful, rustic property on the top of the mountain and is a great place to visit in the springtime with all the wildflowers in the area.

Lookout Mountain offers a great number of trails and several places to park to pick up these trails. We decided to hike here because it got us up into the mountains, a little bit, and it's a trail that I hadn't hiked before.
It was a bright and sunny day in Golden as we drove up Lookout Mountain, and we quickly realized that there would be deep snow along the trail and I hoped it wouldn't be too much of an inconvenience for my sister and brother in law, who didn't bring their hiking boots to Colorado this trip. However, they braved the snow, and we saw some elk, so it was worth the wet feet and knee deep snow drifts.

Getting there and Specs: The address is 910 Colorow Road, Golden CO 80401 and the trailhead can be reached via I-70; if you are driving west, take exit 256 and turn right. Eastbound, use exit 254 and turn left. Then follow the brown highway signs to the mansion, which is about 10 minutes off the highway. This trail is for hikers only, NO dogs, horses or bikers allowed. The trail in its entirety is only 1.4 miles, and is very easy.
The park has a trail map and large parking lot; you can find the map here, and you can find more information about the park on the Jefferson County website here.

The Hike: My sister and brother in law were in town to meet their first niece and we of course had to get out on the trail for at least a little hike. This trail seemed perfect! It wound through the woods on the forest loop before heading into the meadow; I heard something off to the right and glanced up and saw two elk running from the forest into the meadow and we were able to snap some photos as they ran by.

The start of the trail in the snow got a little confusing, and we had a hard time figuring out where to go, but we managed to get on the Forest Loop Trail and then hooked up with the meadow trail. We didn't realize dogs weren't allowed until we got there, and decided since there was no-one else around to take them anyway.

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Some of the trail in the 0.6 mile forest loop.

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Magnolia in her Ergo carrier on the trail, she fell asleep pretty quickly and enjoyed the hike snuggled next to me.

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Once out of the forest we continued on the Meadow Loop Trail, which offers views of the city below.

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The Boettcher Mansion offers a lot of cool places to check out; a rock gazebo is pictured above, along with a really cool quite on a tree along the trail. "Heaven is not a place that you go to when you die, its the moment in life when you feel alive."

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The Boettcher Mansion is above; a great place for weddings, social gatherings and more! I'd love to have had my wedding here, or it would be a great place to take photos!

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Here is a trail map of the park, you can connect to several other trails from this parking lot.

The full loops of this trail are only 1.4 miles long, however there are many other hikes in the area including the Beaver Brook Trail which spans 8.65 miles from Genesee to Lookout Mountain and The Grant Terry Park which follows Clear Creek near the bottom of Lookout Mountain are two of the closest trails.

Please leave a comment or questions in the section below!