Friday, October 28, 2016

A start to October - Maroon Bells

I'm a bit delayed on getting in a post about our most recent hike, but life sometimes just simply gets busy.  What I can say is that Maroon Bells is gorgeous, despite that every time we go it gets busier and busier.  This last time, though, took the cake when it came to the large amount of people we saw there... it bordered on alarming.

My fiancé (it's still so exciting to say that!) and I have decided that, while we have some time before our projected wedding date, we would take some time to tour a couple of potential spots for our wedding.  I am very attracted to the idea of the mountains for our wedding day, but also want to be mindful of expenses.  Maroon Bells is not only beautiful, but has been a meaningful spot for us during the course of our relationship.  There is a little amphitheater up there which could be a great place to tie the knot and is an inexpensive ceremony space to boot.  So we decided to take a look to see if this might be the location for our wedding in 2018.

A couple of our friends agreed to join us in the trek up to Aspen in the early morning on a Saturday in early October, the leaves changing, the air starting to get crisper as the seasons transition.  We dropped off our dog with my future sister-in-law, picked up our friends, and set off for our three hour jaunt to get to Aspen.  It was smooth sailing until we get closer to Maroon Bells.  Suddenly there was a massive amount of traffic, we literally sat for an hour to drive half a mile near the entrance to the mountains.  When we got up a ways a park ranger informed us that all parking lots at the bells were completely full and that we had to go back into town to fetch the local bus to take us to the guided tour bus to get to the mountain.  I can say that it was a bit frustrating.  So another hour went by for us to get back to town, fetch one bus, get tickets for the guided tour bus, hop on that bus and then ride to the mountain base at Maroon Lake.  We were informed by the guided tour driver that at any given moment there were at least 1,500 people on the mountain that day.  It was actually heartbreaking to see so many people there.  Granted it was a Saturday, and one of the last good weekends to see the fall leaves, however sometimes you want to tell people, "get off my dang mountain!"

Maroon Bells is one of the most photographed places in the world (the most photographed peaks in North America).  The bells actually look like a painting across the sky they are so magnificent.  It catches your breath.
Photographs literally don't do it justice...

But to see all these people, and knowing that they are simply there for a photo-op and not to actually unite with nature and experience the mountain, my heart sunk and my level of irritation rose.  There was absolutely no space that you could go to simply be separate and take peace with the mountain.  I tried to shrug it off, I tried to stay in the moment and enjoy as much as I could simply because we were there.

We took a look at the amphitheater, nothing terribly "wowing" about the small space other than the magnificent view behind it.  We decided to trek down a path toward Crater Lake, about a mile and a half one way.  It took longer to walk than expected, having to regularly stop behind someone who was snapping a picture or having to move to the side to pass or let someone else through on the trail.  Ultimately since we didn't start our short hike until about 2:30 pm, and the last shuttle to take us down from the mountain was leaving at 4:30 pm, we turned back around at 3:30 pm without getting all the way to Crater Lake, but near enough that we could see a little bit of it in the distance.
Crater Lake in the distance...

Our day turned out to be so much longer than we initially intended, the length being added due to the throngs of people on the mountain and the hordes of cars.  Don't they know that this is my mountain?  That this is our spot?

What was good to see for wedding purposes is that while it is a beautiful location, it would be a logistical nightmare, more stress than we will want on our wedding day.  And we still got to see the mountains, and walk in the fresh air a bit.  I love opportunities to be in nature, to recenter myself, to ground myself.  We made the most of our jaunt, and we were in good company which made it all the more enjoyable.  We learned a good lesson, and we got to view the bells which is always a wonderful thing.

We grabbed a "quick" bite in the town of Aspen (what was also discovered is that there really isn't a "quick" option in Aspen... no fast food eateries, and even when you request quick service it's still a couple hours for a sit-down meal), and then we made our way back to Denver, arriving home much later than we had anticipated for the day.  Maybe visiting on a Saturday wasn't the best idea, but I'm still glad that we went.

Regardless of any amount of griping I could do about crowds and how much longer our day was than we had hoped, it is still a beautiful space, and we had a great short hike in a special and meaningful place.




Wednesday, September 7, 2016

Travels in Ireland - covering ground, making new waves in life!

I cannot say that suddenly I'm fit as a fiddle, or that any weight was dropped during my adventure in Ireland (the food and drink are far too good), but being able to study abroad and tour a beautiful country, it becomes easy to rack up steps!  Not the same as making way up one of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, the terrain very different, but I would average about 15,000 steps a day in Ireland, which is a huge increase from my typical days previously where I would be lucky to break 5,000 steps as my days were primarily spent at a stressful desk job.  Before leaving on this three week adventure, I was forced to resign - the agency (actually my supervisor to be specific) was unable to make accommodations for me to be gone for the length of time that I would be away.  Ultimately leaving this agency was a blessing in disguise.  I was stressed all the time, and the return on my personal and professional investments were relatively void and only added to frustrations.  Concerns about financial stability  made stepping into the unknown a bit scary, yet also I felt a significant sense of relief wash over me knowing that I wouldn't have to return to a job where I didn't see any growth.  I would instead be going on an incredible adventure and then trusting the next steps in my process (thank you Universe and whatever powers may be)!

I left on August 2nd, arriving in Dublin on August 3rd.  My first time traveling internationally on my own so that I could attend an intensive course, A Counselor's View, looking at mental health across cultures and specifically the use of play therapy abroad.  There was a wonderful sense of home that I experienced in Ireland.  A sense of peace, comfort, feeling welcomed and safe.  We had the opportunity to see wonderful relics throughout Dublin, such as St. Patrick's Cathedral and going to the Wicklow mountains to see the Powerscourt House and Gardens and Glendalough.  We had a literary pub crawl around town, visiting numerous pubs and being entertained by delightful Irish actors.  A night of theatre to see the Riverdance at the Gaiety Theatre.  Seeing the ancient Book of Kells and the Longs Room where 200,000 books live on old shelves, a fragrance to the air of old books and a bit sweet almost.  A day in Belfast (I can hardly find the words to describe the impact of this experience alone!) and a day in Galway to explore other areas of Ireland.  We were given the opportunity to explore on our own, adventuring around the city center of Dublin such as Temple Bar and a ghost tour.  And the food... Oh I could talk for hours about the food!  We experienced wonderful eats, good drink, hooleys and fun, and then of course plenty of lecture at Trinity College.  It was meaningful to me to actually stay and learn at Trinity College, a familial connection to the campus.  Participating in this course and the Institute in general was very meaningful, and worth every bit of sacrifice in order to partake in it.  It meant that I was away from my partner, Chris, for the longest span of time since we started dating almost five years ago, a distance that technology today helps to bridge with Skype and email.  It meant losing my job, with the realization that it was not a positive work environment and that likely I won't be without income for long as other jobs will be found.  It meant investing a lot of money, but you can't take it with you anyway, right?  In general I still find it hard to actually describe the immense impact that this opportunity had on my life.  I am so grateful to have been able to study in Ireland.


 It was two weeks into my journey that the course ended and Chris came to Ireland to join me, from there we would then embark on an International Road Trip.  I collected him from the airport, and we picked up our rental car that our dear family friend, Sean, assisted us with reserving.  The goal then was to keep Chris awake as long as possible in order to ensure that he could adjust to the time change.  We had lunch and pints at the Ginger Man (one of my new favorite restaurants), we walked to the Dublin Castle and St. Patrick's Cathedral to walk about the outsides before going to the Guinness Storehouse for a tour followed by a pint at the top where there was a beautiful view all the way around to see Dublin in all its historic glory.  After some adventuring, we made our way back to Ashbourne for the night, too exhausted to stay awake any longer.  It was then where I finally realized how exhausted I was from Institute, having an agenda which kept us constantly moving from first thing until late night each day.  I welcomed a full night of sleep, finally next to my love again.

The next day we ventured to the Powerscourt Waterfall to start our touring around the Wicklow Mountains.  We were expecting to have a bit of a hike from the parking lot to get to the waterfall, as this is how most natural treasures are in Colorado, however it was a quick couple minutes from the car.  It was nice that we were there relatively early that there weren't too many tourists flooding the area yet.  (I will say, Ireland has had a record increase of tourism recently between affordable travel rates and the fame of certain parts of Ireland being used to film scenes in popular movies and television shows, and somehow word got out that Ireland is one of the most beautiful countries in the world, needless to say there was lots of tourism traffic throughout our time in Ireland.)  We went up to the large waterfall and took some pictures, enjoying the sites and wandering around the rocks.  Chris redirected us down around to the base of the waterfall, there was a wonderful rock to sit on that was perfect for capturing the bottom of the waterfall. 

Chris settled next to me, but suddenly gave me a quick kiss and said "hey honey, I have a question for you."  I looked at him and obliviously said, "yeah, what's up?"  He then said something along the lines of, "I wanted to find the most beautiful spot as this is an important questions..." and then I can honestly say I don't remember what else came from his mouth as I caught onto what was happening and the whirlwind of "what is going on??" and "ohmygodohmygodohmygod..!!!" and "took him long enough!" and "I can't believe this is happening!" and "are you serious?!?!" and on and on went through my head.  Then he asked the very important question, "Will you marry me?"  He brought the ring from his pocket, and it was as if the wind had been knocked out of me.  My hands clasped around my mouth, I looked at him and back at the ring, tears overflowing my eyes, I failed to remember how to speak.  Eventually I caught breath and was able to say, "Yes!  Yes of course!  Oh my god Yes!"  I kissed him and put the ring on, wiping mascara from my face.  I thanked him and kissed him again, still in a state of disbelief.
We then took a walk about, finding a pathway to jaunt around, hand in hand, talking of the future in terms of "when" instead of the "if" which had taunted me for years.  I felt our love swell between us as he told me about how long he had wanted to ask me, discussing light plans on when we will and how we want to get married, how he had asked my mother a year and a half ago, the thought he put into the ring and the meaning behind the stone. After our time at the Powerscourt Waterfall we went to Glendalough, walking around the relics of the 7 churches and tombstones from the ancient monk settlement.  Eventually we made our way up to the path that overlooked the Upper Lake which was beautiful.  So far we were off to an excellent start!  We then spent the week together touring Ireland and celebrating our engagement between just us two, and would share more broadly once back home.  We broke away from the immediacy of social media and having to share to word promptly, and instead got to relish in this new step in our lives together, just us two.

The next day we ventured from the Dublin area down to see the Kilkenny Castle and then to the Rock of Cashel.  We stayed the night in Cork City staying at the Creedon's Bed & Breakfast, the next morning taking a spin through the Old English Market before venturing to Cobh to see the sites.  We walked the stretch of the old harbor city where the Titanic had launched from, ending at a Titanic Memorial.  We were able to go down to the ocean side and touched the water.  We then went to Midleton to see the Jameson Distillery that is still working, we had a tour and some drinks and met some wonderful people.  It still fascinated me after almost 3 weeks being in Ireland as to how kind people are, everyone a friend.  We then drove to Killarney where we stayed at the Killarney Avenue Hotel, greeted by a bottle of champagne and a box of chocolates courtesy of my Mom and Sean as a congratulations on our engagement (two of the few we had shared the news with at this point).  The next day we made our way to the Torc Waterfall and went on a terrific hike.  We went to the top of the Torc Waterfall, down to the lake, and then followed a sign that indicated that there were rose gardens down the way which ultimately led us to the Muckross House and Gardens that was lovely to visit.  We then continued to follow the trail which led us to the lower part of the Torc Waterfall, then up a zillion natural stairs to Aghadoe which overlooks the Killarney Lake, and then back to the car.  Being in the County Kerry area we decided to cruise around some of the Ring of Kerry, going about halfway around.  It was a fine jaunt, but ultimately it's going from little town, then seeing the ocean, then through a little town, then seeing the ocean - all of which was beautiful however after a while you get the point, so instead of going around the entire ring we turned back when we were about halfway and headed up to Dingle where we stayed for the night.  I must strongly recommend that if you ever find yourself in Dingle, you simply must stay at Ard-na-Mara Country House bed and breakfast.  They are simply marvelous!  It is a quaint little place just off of Slea Head Drive, about a mile away from the town center, and the couple who owns and operates it are just delightful!  We had a great meal in town and wandered around the harbor, drove part of the Slea Head Drive and then took some rest.  We had a wonderful homemade breakfast in the morning before taking off for Tralee to see the rose gardens, then made our way up the west coast, caught a ferry and headed to Kilkee.  It was recommended by Sean that we bypass the Cliffs of Moher which are constantly overrun by tourists and instead see the Cliffs of Kilkee which are stunning.  Chris said that had he not been anxious to propose early during our trip that this would have been his second choice of location.  I don't blame him!  The cliffs are breathtaking!


After we finished walking the area we drove over to Bunratty, and I will again recommend that if you are ever staying in this area a wonderful place to stay is the Courtyard at Bunratty, another bed and breakfast run by a wonderful and very genuine couple.  We had a large room down a quiet hall where we were able to settle in for two nights.  We had supper at the Creamery which was wonderful.  Tuckered by all the driving and touring, we headed back to our room a bit early.  The next day we went up to Galway, and I shared with Chris little tid-bits from what I had learned about Galway during Institute, seeing little relics around the city center.  We ended up at a tattoo shop, taking the opportunity to get some designs that we both have wanted for a while, documenting our big life experience.  Our tattoo artist was a unique guy named Joey who did incredible fine line work and chatted about politics (quite a Nationalist that guy).  It was a memorable experience, and documenting with a tattoo seemed fitting for Chris and I.  I'm grateful to share so much with this man.  We returned to Bunratty, had supper at Durty Nelly's and enjoyed our last night in Ireland together.
It was perfect.  We were exhausted, and we are happy.

Best... Trip... EVER!


 












Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Quandary Peak - a birthday 14er

To bring in my 32nd year, I decided a while back that I wanted to accomplish something big, an achievement significant to me.  A fourteener was what I elected.  The fact that we hadn't really done any training wouldn't be a big deal......... sure....

When I was a teenager my father, older sister, cousin and I hiked Grays and Torreys Peak, no training.  A couple years later my father, older sister and I hiked the majority of Mt Princeton before getting chased off the mountain by a storm, again no training.  I've been successful in the past of making my way up mountains, but it has been quite a long time.  Back then it was my father who selected the peaks and I went along with because I didn't want my dad and older sister to do something cool without me.  (I was a typical younger sister who wanted to do all the cool things my big sister did.)

But this time - the decision was mine.  It was my hike, my achievement.

I selected Quandary Peak by reviewing things on 14ers.com and other mountaineering blogs and determined that this one had the most optimistic posts about it being a class one (meaning easier), that it was a good peak to start on for a fourteener, that it is a little long, a little busy, and a little windy but is a slow and steady incline all the way to the top.

Boy... that wasn't quite the hike we had!

Alarms chimed at 4am, not even a sliver of the sun up yet, our dog disoriented as to why he was getting breakfast so early.  We tossed our gear in the car and headed out to the Brekenridge area to get to the trail head.  A little drama occurred when the Google directions we were following ultimately led us to the wrong starting point, but we got to see some mountain goats and pretty views...


 and then we had to back track a little in order to ensure that we were going up the correct trail (I didn't want to set myself up for failure right off the bat).
Being a Monday we figured that there wouldn't be too many people on the mountain, but we were a bit wrong with that assumption as we came across many other hikers making their way up the mountain, too.

We started the hike, immediately it started off rather steep, the sun starting to make its way into the sky.  Eventually the path seemed to even out, my trekking poles helping my balance, my heart having some difficulties keeping pace, but I felt so thankful to be moving and doing something challenging and invigorating on my birthday.

When we got about halfway up, that's when it really started to feel steep, and rocky.  Not just any rocks... loose rock, every step causing them to shift beneath our feet.  Often it felt like really intense bouldering, not always sure exactly where the trail was, hopeful that it was beneath our feet and that our boots wouldn't cause the rocks to slide completely out from under us.  Wind picking up around us from time to time, about knocking us over, pressing against our chests, causing even more challenge for breathing.

Eventually I found myself at a sloth's pace.  Move my two poles forward, ensure they were secure, move each foot a pace, pause.  Move my two poles forward, ensure they were secure, move each foot a pace, pause.  Thankfully I have a very patient partner, Chris, who would not judge but would simply wait when he felt he was too far ahead, making sure that I was still making my way behind him.

What was also very helpful were some of the other hikers speaking words of encouragement as we made our way up.  "You can do it!"  "You are so close!"  "The view at the top is well worth it!"  Each step meant that I was getting closer.  I continually reminded myself that I would get up this mountain, that I would be victorious, and that this achievement is mine, for me.

11am.  And there we were...


Victory at the top, the world unfolding below us in a sea of Rocky Mountains.

We sat, looking around us as we munched on our sandwiches and apples.  We took pictures, but still it does not seem to actually capture the depth and beauty.  It was breathtaking.


And then we had to convince ourselves to head back down...
11:30. It was steep, but from that angle it actually seemed almost easier to see the trail.  We took it slow considering it was easy to slip and slide still, our toes pointing at quite the downward angle.  I am so thankful for the trekking poles as they helped to reduce some of the impact on our knees.  As we climbed down all the many rocks, I found myself thankful for solid ground and excited even to return to a dirt path.  Never in my life thought I would ever be excited about dirt.

As we made our way back down the mountain, there were times that it felt like the trail was longer than when we hiked up it.  Things sometimes not looking the same.  Amazing how different the afternoon light can make the mountain look.

My FitBit tracked almost 16,000 steps.  7 hours round trip. 14,265 feet up. 7.5 miles accomplished from starting at the parking lot 7am, to summit 11am, lunchtime pit-stop for 30 minutes, and back 2pm.  We did it.

Happy Birthday to me.  We survived it, no training prior to the journey.  My lungs still aren't sure exactly how to resume normal breath, my legs still burning, my knees tight, my back sore.
I am a very lucky woman.

(I can only imagine what I might be able to accomplish when I do train!)

Thursday, July 7, 2016

Tarryall Reservoir - a 4th of July adventure

Every year a group of friends venture into the mountains, escaping the bustle and noise of the city, set up their tents and gear, and take time to enjoy nature and company.  Due to falling ill last year I was unable to attend, but grateful to rejoin the group again this year.  Chris went to college with a number of the men on the trip, partners and other friends being added over time, this being the 9th year for this trip.  Chris' friend Andy scouts for months before the Fourth of July holiday in order to find the perfect spot... below tree line, near water, no fire ban, off the beaten path, free...  We always end up at incredible places.  This year was the Tarryall Reservoir in Pike National Forest.



We arrived on Saturday to a private area, a little oasis for us to enjoy.  We got unpacked and tents set up, everyone pitched in to provide food and beverages for the weekend.  The rest of that day was spent settling in, catching up, and avoiding getting soaked from the rain.  We have yet to experience a camping trip without some rain, but it poured!  At least the rain waited until after our tent was up.  Several of the folks with us were able to put together a large tarp coverage that helped everyone to stay moderately dry.  Dinner and s'mores were shared.  Eventually the rain seemed to quiet as we made our way to our tents for the night.

Sunday was when we split off to enjoy other activities, a small group splitting off for the hiking trails (Chris, Ryan, Katie and myself, accompanied by trail puppers Rusty).  The nearest trail to the reservoir that we found was Lost Creek Wilderness Trail.  We parked and reviewed the signs posted at the parking lot that indicated the trail to be a difficult one.  Not having done any intense or extreme hikes in quite some time, I was initially very nervous.  When they say "difficult", exactly what does that mean?  I've had trails listed as "moderate" that have kicked my butt!  So how bad was a "difficult" going to be?

We crossed the creek and headed up the path.  Somehow I ended up being point. *gulp!*  Regardless, onward we hiked, chatting as we went, enjoying the sights and sounds.  The sun was out, but there were some clouds in the sky that was cause for some concern given the rain we had seen the night before.  I snapped some pictures as we went, the scenery almost too beautiful to capture on film, pictures never seeming to quite do it justice.









The first two miles of the hike actually weren't too challenging.  An occasional slight incline, but mostly a relatively easy trek.  Initially I felt that I was able to keep a good continual pace, Katie even commenting that I was a good hiker.  I felt accomplished during that moment.

At roughly the two mile mark suddenly the incline got a bit steeper.  I wasn't as ready, finding my breath a little harder to catch, my ability to chit-chat being cut off as I breathed heavier.  I kept putting one foot in front of the other, slowly, but feeling my legs start to ache more, my shoulders falling forward, my camelbak suddenly feeling uncomfortable and heavy.  I sacrificed my place at point gracefully and elected to bring up the rear, pausing to take pictures and drink water as needed in order to have excuses to stop and breathe.  My confidence started to falter, concerned that I'm not as good of a hiker as I had hoped I was.  My upcoming birthday is a day I hope to hike a fourteener (an "easy" one), and I can hardly make it a few miles up this one... I started really doubting myself while the trail continued to get harder.  One foot in front of the other, that's all you can do.

"There's only three options when on a mountain.  Go back the way you came, finish the hike, or sit on the trail and wait for someone to come get you.  Only one allows you to stop, and you might be waiting for a loooong time."  Just keep moving.



My hiking companions took the darkening clouds into consideration (and probably my incredibly slowing pace) and determined that it might be better to turn around and head back to camp, certain that the four-wheeling group and the fishing group might already be back to the site.

I must say the hike back to the car was much easier than what we had hiked up!  I felt that I was better able to keep moving, my legs not feeling as tired, my lungs not burning as much, my pace quickening again.  I found myself able to jump back into conversations again and a little more jovial.  The way there might be tough, but the way back felt easy by comparison.  

We joined the rest of our comrades back at the campsite, five and a half miles of hiking behind us.  Grateful for the hike, grateful for the company, grateful to be back to enjoy some food.

I had intentions of getting in a bunch of hiking this year, hopeful to get in roughly one hike per weekend starting in March.  I have since been trumped by poor weather and extensive school work that I hadn't anticipated and exhaustion and other obligations that have surfaced over the months.  Alas my hiking this year has been much more minimal than I had hoped.  But a hike is a hike, I'll take each one as a victory.  Any time I can escape to the mountains, enjoy the view, move my body, see the little things that so often go unappreciated during the day to day shuffle... it is an incredible gift.

My next hike:  Quandary Peak 7/11/16

Sunday, March 27, 2016

Bridal Veil Falls Trail - and the joys of the off-season

I decided a while back that we get so bogged down by the day-to-day -- we are so plugged in with irritating noise, and often the pressure gets overwhelming -- so we need to carve out more time to get away!  We need to unplug, reduce the noise, and get back to the basics.  So I found a reasonable accommodation in Estes Park and away we went.  I took Friday off from work so that I could get things done and then we could take off early afternoon.  It was great!

We aligned a house sitter (my lovely younger sister stepping in to make sure our fur babies were well taken care of), we got packed up with all that we needed, swung by to grab some road snacks and off we went, grateful that where we were headed did not include use of I-25!  We used the drive time to talk, and I felt myself relaxing more and more the further we got from the city.  I had been happy and excited all morning leading up to our getaway, recognizing how stressful my current work is and the stress of balancing that with a near full-time school schedule, getting out of town seemed to relieve me of some of the strain.  We checked into the Sunnyside Knoll Resort in Estes Park, our room included a small patio area, a fireplace, a spa tub, and we did not have any neighboring guests which made it all the quieter.  We were able to settle in before going to dinner at Wapiti just in town and walked a very quiet Elkhorn Avenue, normally a busy and touristy old town in Estes.  Very little was open, it's still very early in the season, but it was lovely to walk, the evening air cool, the stars visible. I have to plug the off-season here...  Considering how much Colorado has boomed with people, there seems to be congestion and traffic and noise and people just everywhere all the time, that to reach Estes Park where we are very early in the season was remarkable and so refreshing!  No crowds, no traffic, and everything running on "Estes time" where things just slow down.  You have nowhere else to be.  You can sit and enjoy a beer or a cup of coffee without having a jumble of thoughts running on and on about where you have to be next.  This is something I will have to figure out how to create in the daily shuffle of city life!

Saturday morning we enjoyed a leisurely start to the day, eventually getting up for brunch at Notchtop Bakery and Cafe.  My partner decided to stay healthy with a veggie omelet and side of fruit, I indulged in a "Country Benedict" which was pretty much a biscuits and gravy with eggs (I would later discover the error of my ways as I am still adapting to a system that does not have a gall bladder - apparently rich fatty delicious meals like this are of the past for this chick!).  Then we made our way to the trail head for the Bridal Veil Falls Trail.

So I use the AllTrails app on my phone to track down trails for us to try.  What I have discovered however is that my app on my phone tends to lie a little... like telling me a trail is "Easy", the friendly little green banner under the name of the hike, when it is actually considered a moderate trail.  In reading the description I can sometimes catch the correct info, but my partner's app doesn't seem to have this trouble.  His will show the more appropriately listed difficulty rating.  Not sure why my phone is against me in this way, but we determined that despite the mention of this as a potentially moderate trail, it was worth a go.  6.1 mile total was listed (though according to the signage when we got there is was 3.2 miles to the falls, so it was actually 6.4 round trip), an out and back hike featuring a waterfall.  Given that there was still snow on the ground around where we were, we opted to fasten our new snowshoes to the back of our packs just in case, and off we went. 
 
At the Bridal Veil Falls trail head

The area around was very quiet, no other individuals around, no noise.  Just us, some snow, and the trail.  As we walked, I felt the crunch of the snow beneath me, my trekking poles making a little "schrunch" noise as it connected and released the snowy ground with each step.  We ended up using our snowshoes for a very short period on the trail, but determined that it wasn't really necessary because the snow wasn't very deep.  The air was chilled, brushing our cheeks, it was so calm and quiet.  It snowed a bit, though the sun was out for the majority of the hike.  On the entire hike I believe we saw a total of 7 other hikers, maybe 8.  The trail had a couple moments of being a little steep, but for the most part wasn't too intense. 

There was a moment as we were moving, we were a little over two miles through when suddenly, as I'm struggling with my sunglasses repeatedly fogging as I huffed and shuffled, there was a bill I forgot to pay before we left!  I felt the immediate stress of financial torment run through my, my enjoyment zapped away in that moment.  Chris asked me what was wrong and I let him know what happened and how it just got me stressed, he responded, "Do we need to go back?"  I was shocked.  No!  Of course we don't, we've come this far I didn't want to stop, and I realized quickly that even if we did go back I didn't have all the info I'd need with me in order to make these payments, so no! 

In that moment I made the most gratifying realization.  If you can't do anything about it in the moment, there's no reason to let it bother you since it is out of your control.  Our options were to turn around, or to keep going to finish the hike.  And I was not ready to leave!  

The last mile of the hike to get to the falls was the hardest, it was the steepest, there were some switchbacks, the trail wasn't as defined and there wasn't any signage.  We even questioned if we were on the right trail!  But when we saw a horse hitch with a sign saying "no horses beyond this point", we knew that we were close to the falls.  Just a few feet later the imprints in the snow stopped.  There weren't any signs, but this must be where we would have seen the falls if there weren't still a bunch of snow! 

Bridal Veil Falls is under there somewhere...


A kiss and a high five to celebrate the victory, we then turned around to get back to the car.  The 3.2 miles back actually seemed much easier.  We were in good spirits and chatted as we made our way back, discussing goals of purchasing a someday cabin on a nice plot of land to have weekends in the mountains with our someday children, and we talked about steps that we would like to take to lose weight including weekly hiking adventures.  This hike left me so grateful in so many ways. 

On our way back to the resort we went to Via Bicycle Cafe, thank you Google Maps App for the recommendation!  Enjoyed the best cup of coffee I think I've ever had!  Plus the gentleman working there was super nice.  (Seriously, if you are in Estes, this is a place everyone must experience!)

We got back to the resort, peeled off our layers from our trek, showered off in the tiny lukewarm shower, and rested a bit before going to the Rock Inn Mountain Tavern for dinner.  Very fun little place, nice wait staff, quaint and a little eclectic - a perfect cap to the day.

Sunday morning we packed up, grabbed a cup of coffee from the Kind Coffee Shop, got a bag of salt water taffy (you can't go to Estes without getting some!) and returned to home.  As we were unpacking and greeting our animals, I started giggling, a warm feeling coming over me.  Chris asked me what was so funny, and all I could say in response was, "I just love our life together."
Taffy - a staple of Estes Park!
Another wonderful weekend experience with a good hike, some good local food, lovely mountain accommodations, and number-crunching efforts to start planning our someday mountain cabin in Estes Park.
#love #EstesPark

Sunday, March 13, 2016

Volunteering at Easter Seals Camp - March 11-13, 2016

I had a unique opportunity this last weekend to volunteer at the Easter Seals Camp - a camp for persons with disabilities - near Idaho Springs.  I was connected with this opportunity as part of a project through my grad school program.  While hiking was only a small portion of the activities, the camp is a 200 acre property so there was a lot of walking as a part of the weekend!
The view Friday night

Check-in for the volunteers was at 4pm on Friday, so I took Friday off of work to ensure that I had the morning to take care of packing and get on the road with enough time.  Well... my procrastination won against the punctual side of me and I ended up leaving for camp later than I had hoped, meaning that I was scrambling to get everything that I needed.  My phone was halfway dead without even having gotten through Denver with having the gps on, and I realized too late that I had forgotten an important piece of paperwork that I needed for school.  I was flustered and my anxiety had heightened, plus I rarely drive to the mountains on my own, often going with my partner or other friends.  I was worried about not making it on time, I was worried about getting lost, I was worried about not having what I needed for school... but most importantly, the piece I had been nervous about leading up to the weekend was that I would be paired with a camper who wouldn't like me...  I felt almost as insecure as a kid on their first day at a new school.  Thankfully my partner gave me words of encouragement while traffic had me at a frustrating stand-still, so I did my best to remain calm and simply drive safely to my destination.

Thankfully I was able to get there on time, was greeted warmly by other volunteer staff and was provided with information about the type of children who were attending this respite camp with their caregivers, as it was unique even to them, and I was provided with basic info about the two campers that were assigned to me: teenagers.  The camp was actually an opportunity for children who recently experienced some form of trauma specifically related to transitioning to their grandparents for custody for various reasons.  Unimportant, we were not there to counsel or diagnose or "make it better".  The role of the counselors: to ensure safety and that the children have a fun camp experience.

This meant opportunities for walking, hiking, running, fishing (well, ice fishing since it's still pretty cold up there!), costumes, a talent show, movies, snacks and excellent meals, rockets, arts and crafts, board games, horses, a therapy dog...  (I must say, if you are looking for a place to volunteer, this is a life changing type of experience and I highly recommend it!!)

Even with all the wonderful things available, the pair of sisters that I had been assigned were quite "un-enthused" about most all of the activities.  It somewhat felt like pulling teeth during dinner on Friday night to try getting to know them, but eventually they warmed up enough to share a bit about themselves.  I tried to simply hold space for them, not trying to force a dialogue but also trying to be present so that they could feel safe.  We broke the ice just enough that I could go to bed that evening feeling a bit better about the weekend ahead.

The next day we tried to engage more, but one of my two campers had some challenges with the altitude adjustment so we needed to keep things a bit more mellow.  So we had some time with arts and crafts, and participated with the meditation session that led to creating vision boards.  The back side was for the past, things that made us hurt or angry.  The front side was for our futures, and these were the images I found for the future side of mine:

We had some time trying to fish in the pond, one of my two campers really got into the fishing, the other wanted to hike but when the camper who was fishing didn't want to we had to figure out a compromise of hiking later in the day.  This arrangement still had the hiker distressed, the fisher tried to make up for it.  I drank tea while we sat quiet for a bit.  The sibling that wanted to hike and I went on a hike with some of the other campers, the other was the one who had been having difficulties with the altitude so she stayed behind.  The hiker and I got to see several really neat things including an abandoned cabin, a small cave and a cemetery.
 
Abandoned Cabin
One of the graves at the cemetery
On our way back to the lodge my camper and I kicked a pine cone all the way.  It was playful, and not something discussed, it just sort of happened.  She had kicked it a few times, it happened to land in front of me so I kicked it, and back and forth we went.  The closer we got to the lodge the more we joked about the "journey of the pine cone" and we buried it in the snow just outside the main entrance of the lodge.  It was the closest to a bonding experience we got, but I took it as a win.

There was a dance that night, my hiker camper was eager to head back to the cabin but my other camper (the fisher) wanted to spend time at the dance.  So I walked the rest of her family members back to their cabin and hung out with my camper at the dance to enjoy some more time.  All of the kids appeared to be having so much fun cutting loose and rocking out.  I joined in the line-dance of the "Cupid Shuffle", a song that I admit I haven't heard in many many years!  It was a fun time, but I was definitely ready for bed by the time I made it back to the cabin where the female volunteers/counselors were staying.

This morning I loaded up my belongings and routed myself by the horse barn on my way to breakfast.  It made my morning just standing with them, petting them.  I wished I had a carrot or something, but they still let me stroke their necks.  It brought me peace.  I was excited to have been on this journey this weekend.  We went in for breakfast and initially I didn't see my campers so I planned to sit with some of the other counselors but as I was waiting in line for my French toast their guardian called me over and invited me to join them for breakfast.  I was warmed knowing that she wanted me with them.  We talked about the weekend and both of my campers said that they want to come back to camp this summer.  For as disinterested as they had seemed, they liked it enough at least.  While the adult guardians/grandparents finished up their respite portion of the weekend, all the camp counselors and kiddos got to play parachute games together and it was so much fun!  Running around and playing, it was uplifting!  I don't remember the last time I enjoyed some genuine play like that, to let the inner child in me out, running around and playing, and watching how much the kiddos were enjoying themselves.  It was truly heartwarming.

I have to say... I feel changed after the weekend.  Got outdoors time in the mountains and some exercise, some time to explore with some youngsters who needed a break from life just as much as I did, got to experience some new things.  I'm sore and sleepy, and I am blessed.
I'm already so excited to go back!