A great trip to Colorado

After two days of travel we came down the Rockies in a monsoonal storm. After arriving ten minutes too late for dinner in Boulder we headed up the mountain to Red Feather Lake with a couple of pizzas to eat in our cabin at 11pm. We knew we were doing this adventure travel style....and loving it.

 

The next morning we arrived at the only restaurant 

15 minutes too late for breakfast ....

.so we raided the local market

and Randy cooked us a delicious breakfast.

He had to bash the frozen potatoes!!!

We set off to explore the cute village 

And Elf Lane where locals 

have decorated with gnomes 

Caught by the rain but the 

local "everything" store provided shelter 

 Dinner that night....eggs again after the only 

place for dinner decided not to open that night.

A hike the next day to acclimate to the altitude 

Sadie got carried over the mud 

The dogs forced us to rest often

Time to enjoy the flowers 

 Vikki offered to carry Sadie

when she went on strike and refused to walk,

 

The next day a start to our 5 day backpack

 into the Rawah wilderness,

 an area that had only just opened due to mud and snow.

Jim and Vikki are our trusty pathfinders

We crossed logs over swollen streams.

Sometimes balancing on logs...

sometimes just wading through.

"Which way, Randy?"...says Mary

With a little help from our friends.

It felt higher than it looks

and the logs were wobbling.

Ah.....beer making that evening

And Vikki making quesadillas.

Janet carefully measures the beer ingredients

And Jim happily pours

Great tasting food....Mary dehydrates her own,

Janet eats whatever comes in the pouch,

and Sue likes instant mashed potatoes,

 beef jerky and wasabi peas.aka...steak dinner.

After dinner we hang the bear bags

to keep our food away from the critters.

After pumping water we get cozy for the night...

Janet plots out our progress. 

The next day ready for more adventures

Logs to cross...we all have our own techniques.

We drop our packs to hike

 up to twin crater lakes

Careful on the crossings

A family of big horn sheep watch us.

We find the snow...

but we dont need the clamp on spikes

 for our shoes that we carried.

Vikki engages us in a snow ball fight.

A nice spot for lunch.

Off to the upper lake

A rainbow in the clouds

The beautiful colors in a glacial lake

Pocket Gopher mounds

Ever present wildflowers

More river crossing...pitching tents for the night

Sue has a cup of tea...with mosquitoes

It was hard to remember to lift the net to sip.

And of course...more beer

Refusing to go to bed at 6pm, 

we explore a nearby waterfall.

climbing to the top.

Jim communicated with a marmot.

Jim speaks "marmotese"

Camping next to the creek

The "freeway" noise kept Randy awake.

Is it bed time yet?

Well rested and ready for more...

Going over the passes is really the best.

Anticipation of the views ahead...and at the top

spotting a herd of big horn sheep 

crossing a distant snowbank.

And the big ram suddenly appears before us.

And then the entire herd

The ram stayed on the trail with us a while.

We check our direction at every junction

By the third day we are more

 confident at the water crossings.

We think this is where Mary lost her raincoat.

This is the site of a washed out bridge.

And Moose Lake...where we saw...a moose

Janet blows up her air mattress

This is the marshy are we have to cross the next day.

That black line is the moose in the distant,

so I am sure we will also be 

wading through moose poop.

And the rain starts in the middle of happy hour.

Vikki finishes her painting,

while Randy falls out of his chair.

"Just get up" says Mary

while Jim goes on with his beer brewing.

And Vikki finishes her watercolor.

Randy survives...to joke around another day

The rain increases as we fix dinner

Mary mourns her lost raincoat

As Janet and I look out from our cozy tent.

The rain clears in time for me to enjoy

sunset over the lake

And the Alpen Glow

The next day we negotiate our trail with 

a couple camped nearby....

The young do our loop in a weekend 

but we take 5 days.

We saw very few other hikers on this trail.

We decide to hike up to another 

beautiful lake before heading out.

We solar charge the electronics

before taking off to slog across the muddy bog.

We clean off our feet and muddy water shoes.

And head out towards another rain storm.

I now fully understand John Denver singing

"Theres a storm across the valley"

Our last camping night. Jim levels his spot.

And the storm begins...hail...thunder and lightening,

and rain most of the night

Janet and I snug in our tent

and Vikki calling us wimps.

The next day we hike out....

all feeling a little sad for it to end.

Back in civilization....

that burger does taste good.

Then we head for Steamboat Springs

to meet up with Treva..who dog sat..and Janets relatives.

We enjoyed a couple of nice dinners,

 a stroll and good conversation before 

starting the two day drive back to Cambria

Autumns home made car.

A day to soak in the hot springs

And visit Fish Creek Falls

The Coors waterfall?

A night at St George, Utah

Sunrise..

An early breakfast delivered to our room

The end...till next time