I would be lying if I didn’t say I was looking forward to our week in Colorado just as much as I’m looking forward to our time in Hawaii in a few weeks. Colorado is home more than any place I’ve ever been in my life. No, we don’t have family there, and that’s actually the only hard part about life there. My heart and head feel so free when I’m in the mountains.. that means home to me.

Huron Peak 14,003 feet above sea level

Brian and I came here to visit friends, but also hike some mountains! We convinced our friends to take the windy drive up to Leadville, camp, and wake up early to summit Huron Peak. The mountain is one of Colorado’s fifty three ’14-ers’ meaning that it stands over 14,000 feet above sea level. The trailhead was accessible by a 4×4 road, which scared and excited me. We bought a new truck a few weeks ago exactly for this purpose! Once on the 4×4 road, there was a lot of hopping of the truck, leaning over the windows, and jaw clenching.. all in hopes of not damaging the bottom of the truck. Rain and darkness started to descend upon us so we parked and set up camp for the night, about a mile from the trailhead. The group thought that we could push on with the truck, but that it was probably best to set up camp before it got too dark. We whipped up some delicious chicken fajitas for dinner before calling it quits.

Brian soaking in the views

The next morning we woke up at 5:45 and had a quick breakfast. The group decided to attempt the last mile of the 4×4 road to get us right up to the trailhead. Brian drove through the last section of the road quite easily! We were all kind of bummed we didn’t just go through with it the night before, but oh well! Parked next to all the other trucks, we laced up our boots and hit the trail!

Mountain Goat

Brian and I have summited 6 other 14-ers, and this one was one of the more mellow summits we’ve done! The trail wove in and out of the forest before approaching a beautiful (and flat!) meadow which then led into the last and hardest part of the hike. Just past the meadow we started seeing quite a bit more wildlife. Pika, Ptarmigan (with 7 babies!), Prairie Falcon, and Mountain Goat were among the highlights of the trip! The last 50 feet of the trail was a scramble to the peak. When we reached the top we immediately dropped our bags and did a slow 360 degree spin to take it all in.

Atop Huron Peak

The summit was really warm, and I wasn’t itching to get down and out of the wind like I usually am! We snacked and lazed around in the sun, trying to amp ourselves up for the rocky climb down. Scrambling down the mountain and into the gentle meadow was probably my knees favorite part. The clouds also started rolling in just as we reached the meadow. Hiking in the rain isn’t a problem for us, but being on the top of a mountain in the middle of the storm is. Thankfully we didn’t have to outrun the storm! The drive back from the trailhead was insanely easy compared to the drive in. Brian said confidence in the truck and familiarity with the road played a huge part. The day ended with a steak dinner from Quincy’s in Leadville and an early to bed kinda night.

Sunrise from Bowman’s Shortcut

We also took a smoky hike up to the top of Bowman’s Shortcut to the Top of the World in Vail. There was a wildfire 40 miles away that completely tarnished our views from the top as well as our eyes! The smoke was so thick and strong that our clothes smelled as if we had lit a campfire and sat by it for hours. Bowman’s Shortcut is a fairly easy hike and I highly recommend it.. when there isn’t a wildfire in the vicinity!

Sun behind the smoke