Sad

On Saturday, I gave my knee a good test. The jury is still out on how well it did. I was working on building up some distance. I went to Rogers Pass Lake and Heart Lake in the James Peak Wilderness. The hike is not suppose to be too difficult. The elevation gain is 2000 feet spread out over 4 miles. However, the hike became more difficult than I anticipated. The snow levels are still pretty high just below tree line. That made for some rough hiking. I probably added a mile to the hike because the trail disappeared. I had to get above tree line to find where the lakes were. Adding to the fun, I would occasionally hit pockets in the snow where my leg would sink up to my hip. I eventually made it to the lakes. The lakes were beautiful, but at Rogers Pass Lake, I saw a tragedy in the animal kingdom. An elk had fallen through the ice and could not get out. Its fate did not look good. Nature's way. Here are some pictures.








The snow covered banks of South Boulder Creek

The elk in Rogers Pass Lake









Rogers Pass Lake








Looking down on Rogers Pass Lake. The elk is in the center of the lake.







Heart Lake







There was sad news for the Bulldog Nation this weekend. University of Georgia's mascot, Uga VI, died of congestive heart failure on Friday. Uga VI was Georgia's winningest mascot in school history. Uga VI was a year old when he took over for his dad, Uga V, in 1999. The registered name for Uga VI is "Uga V's Whatchagot Loran." The name is a nod to the radio broadcasts for UGA football.


Uga VI at the 2008 G-Day game this past spring.



Uga VI, 1999-2008
Record: 87-27
"Uga V's Whatchagot Loran"

Minus The Bear

I climbed Grizzly Peak on Sunday. This is the smallest of the Grizzly Peaks listed on Summit Post. This Grizzly Peak has an elevation of 13,427 Ft. I started my hike at Loveland Pass. The round trip is 5.22 miles according to Summit Post, which also says that it will feel longer. I agree, it felt longer than 5.22 miles. To get to Grizzly Peak, you have to climb an unnamed 13er. And of course, you get to go over it again on the way back. Here are the pictures.


Early morning sunlight hitting the mountains









Grizzly Peak in the center of the picture. Grays Peak on the left





Me on top Grizzly Peak







Me wandering around Grizzly Peak.




Looking back on the trail, which is the top of the ridges. Mt. Sniktau is on the right. I climbed that last year.







This picture is looking towards Keystone and Mount of the Holy Cross. It also has a marmot in it.

Eight is Enough

I did a short hike on Saturday. I went to Devils Head in the Rampart Range. It is not too far from Denver and is a popular family hike. The only negative is that the Forest Service road that leads to trailhead is paralleled by a dirt bike and 4-wheeler trails. Lots of people were out enjoying the peace and quiet of their recreational vehicles. I guess four dollar a gallon gas is not enough to deter that activity. Fortunately the trailhead was off the main drag enough so that I didn’t have to eat trail bike dust or hear them as I hiked. The hike was worth the drive on Forest Service road. There are several overlooks and cool rocks. There is a fire tower on top that is still manned. The elevation at the fire tower is 9,748 feet. The view was fantastic. I could see Pikes Peak, the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Mt. Evans, Mt. Bierstadt, Torreys Peak, Grays Peak, Longs Peak, and downtown Denver just to name a few of the places I could see from the top.



A view on the way up Devils Head











The Flag on top of Devils Head











Pikes Peak from the top of Devils Head

The Fire Tower Lookout and Pikes Peak

Me in front of Devils Head.

Enjoying the view on the way down.





World Cup Qualification has started for the U.S. The U.S. played Barbados on Sunday and beat them 8-0. It was not much of a game. At times it looked liked the U.S. didn’t know what to do with all the time they had with the ball. As expected, it was not like their three brutal warm-up games. They get to play Barbados again next weekend at Barbados. It is a home and away total goals series. With an eight-goal lead, I think it is safe to say that they got this series won.

Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers and future fathers out there!

-MM

Remember Every Moment

I went to my first concert at Red Rocks last Tuesday. I got to see R.E.M., which is one of my favorite all time bands. The set list was great in my opinion. They played a lot of stuff off of their great new album. They also played some great deep cuts off of some their classic albums from the 80’s and 90’s. The crowd wasn’t that good. There were way too many casual R.E.M. fans there. Now that R.E.M. is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I think they expected R.E.M. would be apart of the Old Timers Touring Circuit that just plays the hits. R.E.M. still considers their music relevant. I was beginning to doubt their relevance with their previous three releases, but their new album shows that they are not a dinosaur act yet. The casual R.E.M. fans did provide me with some humor. There is nothing like seeing couples embracing to lyrics like “This one goes out to the one I love. This one goes out to the one I’ve left behind. A simple prop to occupy my time…” You would think after 21 years since the song has been released, one might catch the “simple prop” line:)

On Sunday, I went up to Rocky Mountain National Park. I drove up Trail Ridge Road to Rainbow Curve. The road was closed at that point due to the weather. I walked up the road for maybe 2 miles. It was very windy. I even saw a few snowflakes. It was nice walking the road. I’m usually driving and can’t really look around.



That me on Trail Ridge Road






Looking across Forest Canyon from Trail Ridge Road.






View along Trail Ridge Road






Looking towards Horseshoe Park







Sundance Mountain







On the way back home, I stopped at Lily Lake, which is also apart of Rocky Mountain National Park. I walk around the lake. The trail is supposed to be 1 mile, but it felt like a half mile. Pops, you can handle that trail. Click here for extra pictures from this day.



Mt. Meeker, Longs Peak, Estes Cone, & Lily Lake




The US Men’s Soccer team just finished a killer 3 game exhibition schedule against England, Spain, and Argentina. They lost 2-0 to England and were basically pathetic. They lost 1-0 to Spain and were somewhat respectable for a half thanks to Freddy Adu. And finally today, they tied Argentina, the number one ranked team in the world. It was a 0-0 draw, but it was an entertaining match. The US was able to get some decent chances, but I have to give goalkeeper Tim Howard the Man of the Match Award. He was brilliant, especially in the first half. The games count for real next weekend. The US has a World Cup Qualifier against Barbados. They have to score some goals for that game. GO USA!!!

I'm Still Here

Here's a short update to let everyone know that I'm still around. I hurt my knee at the beginning of May so I haven't done as much lately. I've been doing some stretching and short walks to get it back into shape. On Sunday, I went to Mt. Falcon Open Space Park and did a short walk. Here are a couple of pictures.

Look a deer

The ruins of John Brisben Walker's home. It burnt down in 1918.