West Elk Loop

Setting off on the first backpack trip of the season, we made our way up Kebler Pass to Horse Park (Cliff Creek Trail) and began our hike into the West Elk Wilderness. The trail was beautiful right off the bat, and we were greeted by some beautiful grazing deer. We made good time to Beckwith Pass, where we took a break to soak up the views. Four people on horseback passed us here on their way to Beckwith Bench, which sounds like a great hike, too.

After our break, we continued on toward Cliff Creek Trail. At some point, we lost the trail completely and found ourselves on a game trail. After much consultation with the compass, map and GPS, we discovered we were below the trail; we hike straight up what felt like a mountain and were relieved to reconnect with the trail. The trail was very muddy in spots, allowing and severely highlighting animal tracks. I kept finding bear tracks, and I began to get nervous. Around 5:30, we were pulling into the area we wanted to camp in, and, as I rounded the corner I heard two loud grunty, breathy, deep snorts or barks from the bushes. I hollered ahead to Justin, who came back, but thought maybe it was just a deer bounding away.

I had a sinking feeling that those snorts came from a bear, however. We began to set up camp in a beautiful meadow and cook dinner. Just as dinner was ready, I looked up, and saw a bear. The bear was about a hundred yards away, he was, grazing and sniffing the air while, all the while, watching us. This was my first real encounter with a bear, so naturally, I overreacted. I watched in a panic for close to an hour as the bear lingered beyond our camp. As the sun began to set, the bear sauntered off in the opposite direction of us, but I decided we just couldn't sleep there. We packed everything up, and hiked about another mile before setting up our tent in the dark. I didn't get much sleep that night.

The next morning, we hiked up to Sheep Lake, an out-and-back trail off of our loop. We spent some time at the lake snacking and filling water, before realizing we still had 6 miles to hike that day. We didn't realize two of those six would be through snowfields. We connected in with the Castle Pass Trail, which had some truly amazing views, and began our track up to the highest point of our trip, 11,000 feet. We anticipated some snow, but what we found was certainly more than we were hoping for. Justin post-holed us a trail for nearly two miles through deep snowfields. He was determined to make it over Castle Pass.

Our feet were sopping wet by the time we made it over the pass, and we were relieved to be heading back down into lower elevation. The views of the Castles from the other side of the pass were magnificent. We made it into a beautiful basin, and decided to set up camp for the night.

On our last day, we hiked up and over Swampy Pass and back over Beckwith Pass before descending back to Kebler Pass. Overall, the trip was 29 miles long with roughly 5000 feet of elevation gain. The path we took was from Horse Ranch Park (Cliff Creek Trail) to Beckwith Pass to Cliff Creek Trail to Castle Pass to Lowline Trail back to Beckwith. I highly recommend the trip as an early or late season backpack, as I hear it is a popular grazing area for livestock in the summer months.

Barnard Hut

Although managed by the 10th Mountain Division, Barnard Hut is a Braun Hut, and therefore quite different, and much smaller than a traditional 10th Mountain Hut. Barnard Hut is cozy, sleeping only eight people on a single level.

The hut is accessed from the top of Ajax Mountain, so the elevation gain is minimal. We started our ski in around 9:00 and had good weather. We made it to the hut in decent time, stopping to soak in the views along the way. We enjoyed the sun on the porch all afternoon, and the clouds began to roll in as the sun was setting.

The remaining members of our group made it just after the sun went down, and we all enjoyed a warm dinner before going to sleep. The next day, we awoke to a fox on the porch. We watched him for some time before trying to cook breakfast and realizing the fox must have stolen our Nalgene of eggs. We had put the Nalgene in the snow the previous day, so it stayed cool, but we forgot to move it into the wood storage closet that evening. The eggs were gone. The fox lingered on the outskirts of the woods and watched us search for the Nalgene for over an hour before disappearing into the forest.

We finally gave up on the eggs and decided to get on with our day. We toured up to a saddle above tree line and took in the gorgeous views before heading back to the hut for an afternoon of sledding. That evening, I spent time reading through old log books and seeing that encounters with foxes had been commonplace at this hut for decades. I felt fortunate to have shared a special moment with the majestic, wild animal - even though that trickster pulled one over on us by stealing our breakfast.

Betty Bear Hut

Betty Bear Hut is part of the 10th Mountain Division hut system. As one of the newer huts in the system, the design and layout is different than many others that I have been to. In this hut, the sleeping quarters are on the lower level, which makes for a cooler night's sleep.

The ski in was gradual for the first several miles, but just when I thought this might be an easy hut to access, we turned off the main road and started going up switchbacks. The switchbacks were steep and grueling; it seemed like we had been going up for over two hours when the hut finally came into view. Seeing the hut for the first time after a long day of hauling a pack on skis is always an exciting moment. We cheered and picked up our speed, since our destination was finally in sight.

We made it to the hut in the early afternoon and settled in for a celebration as friends arrived and the hut began to fill. We enjoyed a night lounging around the wood stove and singing along with a guitar. The next day, we decided to tour up to the Continental Divide to Hagerman Pass, where we discovered beautiful, expansive views of the surrounding mountains.

On our way back to the hut, some of our group decided to skin up a nearby mountain for a backcountry lap, while the rest of us meandered back through rolling hills and open meadows. Back at the hut, we enjoyed resting on the deck while the sun was out then ate a delicious, hot dinner, played cards and went to bed.

Cheers to adventure!

Andrew's Lake

Finding powder in an old stomping ground always puts a smile on my face. To me, Andrew's Lake between Durango and Silverton is one of my favorite places, and certainly one of those important places.  Just like the poem that was written from a father to a son in 1986:

The Important Places

Child of mine

come as you grow

in youth you will learn the secret places

the cave behind the waterfall

the arms of the oak that hold you high

the stars so near on a desert ledge

the important places

and as with age you choose your own way

among the many faces of a busy world

may you always remember the path that leads back

back to the important places.

— Dad for Forest, 1986

I first heard this poem and learned about the film The Important Places during the 2015 Five Points Film Festival in Carbondale, and it reminded me of all of my "important places" in the San Juan mountains. When my husband told me he had gotten time off work for the holidays, I was excited to get back to my old stomping ground. We pulled into the parking lot for Andrew's Lake just as the storm was lifting, and we were ecstatic to see the pocket of freshly dropped powder. 

Justin's mom met us in the parking lot with her wooden skis, and we toured into the powder. It was invigorating and much needed. The clouds lifted, and we were greeted with blue skies and familiar views. It was the perfect start to a wonderful holiday week spent with family and friends in Durango, Colorado. 

Morning Glory

As October was nearing an end, we loaded up the vansion for one last desert "hoorah" before winter. We drove into Moab and found a campsite nestled in among ancient dinosaur bones and history.

We decided to hike to Morning Glory Natural Bridge, well, us and at least a hundred of our closest friends. The hike was absurdly busy, as most hikes in Moab are these days, but still lovely. There was an abundance of water, which the dogs were happy about. The trail follows a creek for a good while with several crossings.

We made it to Morning Glory Natural Bridge just in time to see a group repelling down from above. Although it wasn't the most peaceful hike and a feeling of solitude was seemingly nonexistent, it was still a great way to celebrate the changing season and soak up the last bit of warmth the desert had to offered.

Leaf Peepin'

Fall is a magical season, and every year, one of my favorite seasonal activities is leaf peeping. This year, we decided to pack up the vansion and head up Kebler Pass in search of golden leaves.

It was the perfect weekend to view the changing colors, but we were certainly not the only ones who decided that. Kebler Pass was busy and crowded with photographers and others out to see the stunning colors for themselves.

We found a campsite at the way to Lost Lake and enjoyed an crisp evening under a late September sky. The next day, we drove further up Kebler Pass to Lake Irwin, which was super crowded. Once we were past the lake, however, we pulled off the road and hiked up to Green Lake. We only passed a few people on the hike and were able to get beautiful views of the valley.

La Plata Peak

La Plata Peak is the fifth highest peak in Colorado with a summit reaching 14,336 feet. It has been one of my favorite fourteener hikes to date.

October was looming in the distance, and my husband and I decided we needed to head out for one more peak summit of the season. My sister was looking for a birthday adventure, and since this was her birthday weekend, she decided a summit was in order for her, too.

We arrived at the trailhead before sunrise and were surprised by how many cars were already there. With access just off on Independence Pass, this is a popular hike. After about an hour, we were greeted with a brilliant sunrise, which gave us a much-needed energy boost.

The wind began picking up as we neared the summit, and we were wearing all of our layers by the time we reached the top. It was worth it though; the views were spectacular and the smiles were bigger than ever.