Summer is full swing and we’re facing our first week with temperatures heading into the 90’s. I’m not much of a fan of heat; I’m much more into cooler temperatures like we’ve had most of May. However, on our first hike day last week, we did run into quite a bit of snow.

Dropping our horses off to their summer jobs in the mountains, lucky them, I met my hiking partner, Elaine. We’d ridden about twenty-six miles the previous couple days and were ready to begin our summer hiking adventures. Joining us that day to hike as far as we could on the Ouzel Falls trail, were Alex and Rikki. Blue skies and warm sun lead us up the trail to rushing water crashing over rocks.

A beautiful morning, we came upon fairy slipper orchids, Larkspur and a deer. Due to my creative parking of the horse trailer, we had to be back down to the entrance by 12:30, so we didn’t quite make the falls, but we still managed a sweet five miles. As tradition dictates, we forced ourselves to lunch at Meadow Mountain Cafe and had a round of chocolate malts all around. Wonderful.

Our plan this summer includes: Estes Cone, round two of The Manitou Incline, Thunder Lake and exploration in Golden Gate to culminate in a Mount Bierstadt/Mount Evans hike  in August. Although, I did just read this: “Mount Bierstadt (from Mount Evans) is only 200 lower and 1 1/2 miles from the Mount Evans summit. Connected by boulder-strewn ridges and the Sawtooth. It is possible to cross the Sawtooth without ropes; it is not advisable. Any route from Mount Evans to Mount Bierstadt other than across the Sawtooth involves a loss of altitude of about 2,500 feet and is also not very practical.” (MountEvans.com)

I’m not sure anyone has ever accused either Elaine or me of being practical in our hiking extravaganza.