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Bancroft Fail
A couple of weekends ago, we headed out for Mt Bancroft. We went as far as our CRV would take us on the 4-wheel drive trail before we gave up and started hiking. It’s a beautiful area with 4 lakes near the base of the mountain. As mountains would have it, storm clouds started rolling in just as we were approaching the ridge. We waited 30 minutes to see if they’d pass, but in the end, we opted to return home safely. We are just about to leave home for attempt #2, but we’re backpacking in the night before this time. Here are a few pictures…we may not get anymore this time, depending on how our camera decides to behave.
Approaching the mountain:
Waiting on the clouds:
This was the view opposite the mountain. It reminded me of the Smokies!
Cukes are in
I’ve never been a fan of cucumbers, but they are on my list of things I decided to learn to like. It may not be possible to learn to like everything you dislike, but I can always try. Since cukes were on my list, we decided to plant one this year. The variety is called “White Wonder,” and the first ones are in! They taste pretty good as far as I can tell. The one on the left was sizeable when we went out of town last week, but I waited to pick it until yesterday. It seems a bit seedy inside, but I’ll have to see what the other one is like. It was also pretty smooth, but I got a “splinter” from the spiny surface of the one on the right.
Camping is fun
Oh yes it is. For part of the 4th of July weekend, we went camping with our friends Kyle and Stephanie in the Independence Pass area outside of Aspen. It is SO pretty. I guess we understand why it is insanely expensive to live there. We camped at the Weller campground, and our tent was nestled among a huge grove of aspen trees.
Joel and I headed out after work on Thursday, so we had some time to kill before Kyle and Stephanie arrived on Friday. Joel wanted to drive up to the trailhead of Capitol Peak. He and his friend Jason were forced off of it due to weather several years ago, and Joel is determined to avenge his loss. He has decided that we will return here in August, backpack in some amount of miles that is farther than I would like to go, camp, and then summit the mountain. We shall see. Anyway, it is really beautiful at the trailhead. Capitol Peak is on the left:
Here’s a picture of more beautiful aspens on the drive to the trailhead:
Our friends arrived later that day, and we drove to the Maroon Bells area. They said it’s the most photographed spot in Colorado. I think I can see why. We also hiked up to Crater Lake for a closer view of the mountains.
Here’s a picture of what is, if you’re looking at the picture above, to the right of the Maroon Bells.
Beginning with our trip up Torrey’s Peak, we have had camera drama. This is with our 2003-model point-and-shoot, and we think it’s finally biting the dust. We’ve missed several memorable occasions now, so I think it’s about time for a new one. This camera apparently hates altitude in its old age. Luckily on this trip, Kyle and Stephanie had their camera to capture the sights. Here’s a pic Steph snapped of us making dinner.
Joel’s and Kyle’s faces were too funny to not post this one:
We had a much-needed face-washing session on Saturday morning…we had some nasty hair, but Joel had a particularly beautiful style.
Our final activity was a strenuous hike to Cathedral Lake. It was beautiful, but I was huffing and puffing big time (of course)!
First zucchini!
What a victory it is. The first zucchini of the year was wonderful. We’ve now also had the second, and there should be many more to come. You just can’t beat eating the zucchini about 10 minutes after you picked it!
Mom & Dad’s Visit
A few weekends ago, my parents came to visit! We had a lovely time. We went to Boulder on Friday, hiking a bit at Chautauqua and taking the tour at Celestial Seasonings tea factory. The next day when Joel was off work, we rode our bikes down the Platte River trail. We LOVE the Platte River trail. It’s easy to get on from our house, and the section near us is very peaceful, running right alongside the river. Here’s a picture of us at the Confluence Park area in front of REI. (thank you Lewis and Vanessa for lending us bikes!)
That night, we took Dad (and Mom) to a Rockies game since it was Father’s Day weekend.
On Sunday, we headed to church, and then we drove up Mt Evans in the afternoon. Unfortunately the weather was not so great, so it was MUCH colder than we expected up there (quite different from a Tennessee summer!). We braved the cold just the same and enjoyed our time. It did keep us from hiking as we had planned, but that’s ok. I think we had at least a decent break for them from the heat wave and humidity Nashville was experiencing.
On Monday, we got up early and drove to Rocky Mountain National Park. We drove up Trail Ridge Road to visit Jamin at the gift shop where he’s working. We then went down to the Wild Basin area and took a nice hike up to Ouzel Falls, passing other falls along the way.
Overall, we had a really nice long weekend. We wish they could come more often!
Garden Update
Here are a few pictures of our garden as of Friday, June 25. We’ve been harvesting a good bit of lettuce and spinach, along with herbs when we need them. I spent quite a while Friday morning destroying more than a dozen cabbage worms and probably thousands of their larvae. They are what has been eating holes in many of the plants leaves, especially the broccoli. Hopefully it’s better now!
This is the main bed and a smaller one. The potato is the center front, and it is exploding! I just hope there is actually a potato under all those leaves.
Our zucchini plant is getting massive as well.
Finally, this is the little bed in the back. Hopefully the two butternut squashes on the left will give us a bountiful harvest like last year. The back one was quite droopy Friday morning, but was looking good after I watered.
Surprise surprise
Pesticides are bad. Are we surprised? Carrie posted a link to this article on her blog. The Pediatrics journal has done a study that linked exposure to pesticides to to kids having ADHD. I think people think I’m crazy if I say I suspect plastics and chemicals are what’s causing a lot of our disease and cancer, but maybe it’s true after all.
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1989564,00.html
Chief Mountain
One Sunday after church, we headed up to Chief Mountain. It’s not too far out of town, and it’s not difficult. The hike only took us about an hour, and the views were great for so short a hike.
Memorial Day with a View
Lauren’s grandmother might have made a mistake getting me “Colorado Scrambles: Climbs Beyong the Beaten Path” this past Christmas. I’ve been staring at it since then, picking out lots of great climbs for us to do.
Pick # 1 – Torreys Peak via Kelso Ridge
Lauren and I left Denver Sunday afternoon and made the quick drive to the Grays Peak trailhead (1.5 hours from Denver). According to 14ers.com, the trailhead had been free of snow for only a few days. The dirt road to the trailhead is pretty rough, but we saw all sorts of vehicles up there.
At the trailhead, there are two or three great dispersed camping spots. Lauren and I were pretty sure we claimed the best one (it’s about 50 yards up the hill from the parking lot and bathroom). Since it was late May, it was still pretty chilly (30 – 40 at night). For whatever reason, maybe the altitude, we both had a terrible night’s sleep. At 5 A.M. when we woke up to start hiking, I think it crossed our minds to load up the car and drive home.
Around 6:00 A.M, we got on the trail. Most people head up the standard Grays Peak – East Slopes route, summit Grays Peak, then head over to Torreys. To escape the crowds, and to enjoy a challenge, Lauren and I opted to take Kelso Ridge to the top of Torreys Peak.
So, around 12,000 ft. we exited the main trail and got on Kelso Ridge. The route finding was pretty straightforward, and thankfully the wind was reasonable. We were on solid rock and patchy snow until we got 500 – 600 ft from the summit. We used ice axes for protection on the final stretch.
This picture is stolen from another site (see PPS), but it does a good job showing most of the ridge.
It took us about five hours to summit (plenty of breaks), and only two hours to get down thanks to a glissade that allowed us to drop 1,000+ ft in a matter of minutes. It was a beautiful day and a really fun climb…thankfully we didn’t skip out on this one.
PS – If you don’t have any rock climbing experience, this might be a bit uncomfortable for you.
PPS – Our camera didn’t want to work on the way up. 
Grand Canyon, part 3
I’m getting a little behind here, but what we woke up to at the North Rim was…snow! Surprise!
We packed up quickly and headed out of there! The drive between the rims boasts some great sites. The Navajo Bridge has spectacular views over the Colorado River and surrounding cliffs.
In the background of the photo above and in the photo below are the beautiful Vermillion Cliffs.
Despite the wind and snow, we had a great trip. It was a lot of driving, but seeing such amazing sites is totally worth it. I can say that because Joel drove the whole way.
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