Steam Engine

I hope everyone had a wonderful three-day weekend. I enjoyed a couple of soccer games on Saturday. I did some long neglected chores on Sunday. I did my hike on Monday. I hiked up the Newlin Creek Trail in the Wet Mountains. The trail is about 2.7 miles long. It goes up a canyon to the site of an old sawmill that was run off of a steam engine. The official trail ended at the historic site; however, there was a trail that kept going. So naturally I followed it. The feral trail climbed out of the canyon. The trail eventually disappeared, but a route had been marked by rock cairns. This led me to a high point where I had views of the surrounding valleys, canyons, and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.




Looking up








The Herrick Sawmill








A view from the top








Zoom view of the Sangre de Cristo Mtns.






Looking down on The City.

Can't Complain

Things have been a little busy for me as of late, but I can’t complain. Things have been good. Anyway this post is about a hike I did last Sunday. I climbed to the top of South Boulder Peak. (8,549 Ft.) I had done the approach trail up Shadow Canyon a couple of times, but I had not taken the spur trail to South Boulder Peak until Sunday. The view was great and the weather was perfect. I hung out on top for probably 50 minutes just soaking in the view. As I was going down, there was a rush of people going up. I’m glad I got the earlier start. Here are the pictures.

View of Boulder and Bear Peak from the top South Boulder Peak




Looking south from South Boulder Peak. The railroad is visible in Eldorado Canyon



Me thinking about some hikes for later this summer.

I Must Be In The Front Row

I did two hikes this weekend. On Saturday, I hiked the Spruce Mountain Open Space Trail. It is in Douglas County along the Palmer Divide. The trail is pretty easy. It follows along the top of a small cliff that has some nice views of Pikes Peak.



Looking towards Pikes Peak from the Greenland Overlook







View of Eagle Mtn.








Mushroom rock





Flowers are trying to come out despite it still feeling like winter on the Palmer Divide.



On Sunday, I hiked to the top of Mt. Morrison, which is the mountain above Red Rocks. It is a mountain that I have been thinking about hiking for a while. After climbing it, I wish I had done it sooner. The trailhead is less than 10 minutes from my Lakewood estates. There are several routes up Mt. Morrison. I used the trailhead near entrance 4 of Red Rocks. The trail is not well known. None of the trails are marked or have signs at their trailheads. Which is kind of cool, it keeps the number of people hiking it down. I saw several people on the trail, but it was not bad for the weekend and for being so close to Denver. The open space parks nearby are always overwhelmed on the weekend. The hike up was steep. It wasn’t the cakewalk that I had the day before. The view up top makes it worth the effort, and the weather was extremely nice.



A cactus flower near the top of Mt. Morrison




Looking towards Mt. Evans from the top of Mt. Morrison





Dinosaur Ridge and Green Mtn down below








Red Rocks from the Uecker seats.

Outlaw Man

This weekend, the American Outlaws got an official chapter in Denver. It’s about time. For those who don’t know, American Outlaws is a nation-wide supporters group for the US National Soccer Team. The British Bulldog will be home base for the Denver Chapter. We’re trying to rename it to the American Bulldog for the World Cup, but I doubt that is going to fly. It should be an interesting scene in the bar on June 12th when the US faces England in the World Cup.




Outlaw Man








As far as hiking, here are some pictures from a recent hike near Cañon City that I never got around to posting.



Inside one of the tunnels on the Tunnel Drive Trail







The trail goes through the tunnel







Arkansas River

Working For The Weekend

My adventures these days are going to be relegated to the weekend. That is very much a good thing. I’m a little more dependent on the weather now, but I’ll deal with it. Saturday was overcast and damp. It ended up being an errand day. On Sunday, the weather was great, and I enjoyed a Rapids game at Dicks Sporting Goods Park. The Rapids beat Toronto 3-1. Conor Casey got 2 goals. He has 3 goals on the season, and all of them have been penalty kicks. He needs to produce in the run of play if wants to make the World Cup team. I do think the Rapids might have a real good team this year. Unfortunately, the fans are not showing up. Even the shady side of the stadium is lacking fans this year. Hopefully, the World Cup will create some excitement for soccer in Denver, and the fans will give the Rapids another chance.

Turn The Page

Today, I went to Rocky Mountain National Park. I went snowshoeing in Loch Vale. I probably hiked a mile past The Loch. I thought about going further, but the terrain was getting steep, and I was developing blisters on both heels. Ouch. The scenery and the day made up for the pain. The wind was cold at times; however, I was tempted to strip down to my shorts when the wind was not blowing. Anyway, here are some pictures from the day.




The snowshoe route to The Loch








View of Andrews Glacier











Typical view













Me







The ice is melting around this rock in the middle of The Loch.

V

I was out and about today, and I saw this amazing site.













As windy as it was, it was hard to believe that it was safe for the balloon take flight. I somehow managed to get a picture before it blew away.

Happy Birthday Cara!!!

- Uncle Mighty Mike

Disappear

Today, I went for a hike at Reynolds Open Space Park near Conifer. I was there in January. I did the same hike. The snow was crunchy and the temperature was great. I am mainly doing this post so that I don’t disappear again like I did in February. I don’t know when my next grand hike will be, but hopefully I’ll do something soon. For now, here is a picture from Reynolds Park.

Anyway

Today was a beautiful day in Colorado. Tomorrow is supposed to be a snow/rain mix. Then it gets back to being beautiful. Anyway, I went for a hike today at Elk Meadow Open Space Park near Evergreen. I climbed Bergen Peak. Like a lot of my recent hikes, I have hiked this trail previously. However, I had done this hike only once. It is a great hike. It is about 9.5 miles round trip from the Stagecoach Blvd. trailhead. Here are some pictures.





On top of Bergen Peak








Looking down on Evergreen









Mt. Evans

In Your Honor

Happy Birthday Pops!!! For lunch, I had a Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwich in your honor. I did a short hike today at Mt. Galbraith Open Space Park. It is another park that I have been to multiple times. The park is right outside of Golden.



Lookout Mtn. is on the right. Green Mtn. is directly behind me.

Another Post On The Blog (Part 2)

It seems I have taken a minor vacation from blogging. It wasn't intentional; I just haven't been on any grand hikes lately. And I still haven't. The hikes have been local lately. In order to fill the void, I took my camera with me to Mt. Falcon Open Space Park. I have had quite a few pictures on my blog from this park in past. So here are a few more.



The sunny side of Mt. Falcon










The view from inside Eagle Eye Shelter










Abert's Squirrel










I saw a skunk today as well, but I had no intention of chasing after him to get a picture.

later,

-MM

?

So far in 2010, Greensboro, North Carolina has gotten more snow than Denver. I think Denver has gotten around 2 inches this year. We might get some snow tonight and tomorrow (Thursday), but it is not expected to be much. The storm is too far south. Apparently, this storm may impact the southeast. So Greensboro may get some more snow. While it hasn’t snowed much in Denver lately, I don’t have to go far to see it. I just have to look out the window. There is still snow in the shade that is left over from a November storm. If I want to see areas where there is total snow cover, all I have to do is drive west a little bit. In fact, that is what I did today. I drove up to Kenosha Pass and did some snowshoeing. Here are some pictures.




Me on the Colorado Trail









A view towards South Park








Looking down on US 285, South Park, & the town of Jefferson

No Reply At All

Today, I went for hike at Reynolds Park. It is an open space park near Conifer. I was there two years ago. It is a nice park with great views of Pikes Peak and Rampart Range. The weather was nice today. It was in the 50's in town and probably the high 40's at Reynolds Park. Anyway here are a couple of pictures.



Icy spot on the trail









Pikes Peak on the horizon

No Jacket Required

The weather was outstanding in Colorado today. The temperature reached the 60’s in Lakewood. I went for a hike at Alderfer/Three Sisters Park near Evergreen. The temperature was in the 50’s there. I hiked up Evergreen Mountain (8,536 feet). On top, I sat on the rocks and enjoyed the sunshine. I never even had to put on a jacket. I ate a peanut butter and jelly sandwich while I was up there. After enjoying lunch and the view, I took the long way down. I made a side trip up The Brother for old time’s sake. Here are a few pictures from the day.



Me on Evergreen Mtn. with a view of Mt. Evans








Me on Evergreen Mtn








Silver Fox Trail - Mt. Evans on the horizon

2010

Happy New Year! I’m back home in Colorado now. I got back on December 30th. I had fun visiting family in North Carolina. It was good to see everybody. I especially enjoyed throwing snowballs at Carter. Here are a few pictures from the visit.




Cara











Carter











Christmas Day










Duke vs. Fla St.

East Bound And Down

I'm on the way to North Carolina, and I'm driving. I left Wednesday morning. I made it to Mt. Vernon, Illinois for the night. Tomorrow, I get to drive through Indiana. That's a new state for me. Here are a couple of road pics from the day.


Sunrise on the Colorado plains








Wind Farm about 25 miles west of Salina, Kansas