I will be posting what I believe to be one of the most awesome moments in my week each week. It will range in different types of awesome from a great movie to a different country to an experience that I deem worth of awesomeness. So, this first post will not be the Gold Standard of awesome (there is no Gold Standard if you were wondering), but it is as I am always, awesome.
The morning sun rising over the Rockies in my kitchen window as I hastily put my hydration pack together while sipping down a protein shake wanting coffee, but knowing this will be better in the long run. Coat; check, water proof gear; check, Cliff bars; check, water; check, Tang, double check. Ok , everything is in order. I sling the pack over my shoulder grab my keys, gulp down the last of the shake, and run out the door. Its 8:30am.
I arrive at my friends place, 9am, she is active, but has told me she doesn't hike much and I will have to “take it easy” on her. Well in the end this turns out to be a gross mis estimate of her abilities. After a quick cup of coffee at her place while she gets her pack ready we jump into her boyfriends car. He will be running the trail that we will be hiking, sick; I know.
After taking the scenic rout on the way to 287 we finally break through the first walls of the canyon and the Poudre is snaking below us in its quite, powerful unassuming way. The canyon is beautiful this morning. It is without haze and the waters of the river are clear and flowing with a few fishermen here and there left in the Autumn before it freezes over. We will be doing one of the most popular trails of the area and the reason is clear, its the most beautiful I have ever found in this canyon.
Grey Rock is about eight miles round trip, but in parts it can feel like more as the incline at the top is challenging for many. It takes about two hours for me to reach the summit on my own, but my hiking companion has told me she is not going to be fast so I estimate it will take about three hours. As we reached the scrabble to the top there was a man and his dog who had gotten lost at least once already, an easy thing to do as the trail is difficult to discern if you have not done it before, this will be my fifth time summiting this year. He accompanied us on our way up. A mutually beneficial endevour as he is interesting and fun to talk to. He tells us of his work, OR nurse, and of his travels of hiking, climbing, and diving. I recommend a 14ner or two and we reached the summit easily in about two hours with a few stops along the way.
The view from the top is amazing. The clear bright sun streaming down from an almost cloudless sky. We linger there looking at the peaks around us as the gale force winds try to unseat us from the mountain. The nurses dog being a Boston terrier hiding in the shelter it can find from the cold push of the weather. We take a few pictures, say our good bye's to the nurse, and head down as fast as we can. We saw boyfriend running down the home stretch as we were going up and know he must be either in the car or almost there by now.
Making it down in record time, one hour and twenty minutes, we reach the car to find boyfriend sunning himself in the Subaru listening/napping to NPR, he has been there almost an hour, again;sick I know. As for my new hiking partner she had not given her abilities enough credit, we did it all told in under four hours with stops for rest, food, and time with an old friend of hers we ran into. Ahh, what a great way to spend a Saturday. Now time for food and a shower.
The cool fragrant air of decay is beginning to creep into my room at night. The Aspen leaves changing to hues of yellow, red, and brilliant shimmering gold twisting off the new branches of summer as they draw all their strength in for the long Colorado winter months. The sounds of those leaves crunching below my feet, crackling down the side walks, and gently sliding to the ground with a soft crinkle are all things that I associate with Autumn. Fields of the summer sunflowers hanging their heads in shame to see such breathtaking beauty. I see pumpkins everywhere and I can smell the spices of the season; nutmeg, cinnamon, cardamom, and the ever present peppermint.
