What a day!! It’s crazy that we are less than ten days until the end, but today was our first backpacking hike. Water is scarce in the desert, so we’ve had to wait until we got to Colorado. In a way I’m glad we’ve waited, since I felt totally 100% prepared.
The hike was unlike anything we’ve seen this summer and was a welcome change of scenery. I think the most noteworthy part were the wild flowers. The trail was lined with flowers, all heights, every color imaginable. I tried to take several photos, but kept getting frustrated when they weren’t turning out. There is simply no way to document the beauty. Sure, you can see the flowers, but you’re missing out on the hundreds of butterflies surrounding them. I can’t share the scent of the mountain breeze. The rumbling of the creek and the chirping of the birds don’t come though in a photo. I wish I could pass it all onto you, but it will have to stay in our memories for now.
I paused at one remarkable bunch of flowers to snap a photo and looked up to see a majestic waterfall falling hundreds of feet on the mountain next to ours. Just as I spotted it the girls, in unison, whispered, “A moose!” Sure enough there were two moose, one of whom was a youngster, knee deep in the creek munching on plants just a few dozen feet away from us. We silently watched and then I remembered the Gary Paulson books I’ve read to my class and got a little nervous. We tiptoed away, continuing the hike, allowing them to enjoy their lunch.
I found the hike to be relatively easy. My hiker app says we did just over nine miles and had 2700 feet of elevation gain, most of which was in the final mile. I think the biggest challenge for us all was carrying our backpacking packs. It wasn’t so much an issue of the extra weight, but trying to find a new center of gravity and staying balanced. My bag dug into my hip bones and I think I’ll have bruises for quite a while.
The hike ended at Conundrum hot spring, a consistently 102* pool on the side, but near the top, of a mountain. It was like being rewarded with a hot tub at the end of a day’s hike. Much to our surprise no one was naked as we had been told numerous times to anticipate. There were 7 other people who had made the hike and had also brought their swimsuits along. Zak and I put a 32 ounce can of fancy beer from the Telluride Brewery in the (cold) creek and before long we were hanging out in a natural hot tub with cold beer and the most serene backdrop. It was heaven.
We had to hike another half mile to our campsite where we very quickly set up camp. The mosquitoes had come out and we did everything we could to avoid them. We had a dinner of beef jerky and are going to do our best to sleep well tonight. Ellie’s my tent buddy, so I’m sure I’m in for some laughs before closing my eyes.
