Snowshoeing at Rocky Mountain National Park

An absolutely picture perfect day up at Rocky Mountain National Park.  Sunny blue skies, no wind, fresh snow glinting so brightly it didn't seem real.

Dream Lake

Doesn't look real

On the way to Emerald Lake

Emerald Lake

We watched some crazy guy ski down that slope.

It's a short but steep hike from Bear Lake to Emerald Lake, maybe 3-4 miles or so round trip but challenging with the snow and the 10,000 foot elevation.  I went with a friend who's also unemployed and left the dogs at home since they're not allowed in the National Park.  Sometimes it's nice to have a walk without the crazies.  In general I prefer cross country skiing but sometimes I'll strap on the snowshoes for a fun winter hike to somewhere scenic that's difficult to reach on skis.  I have to concentrate when I ski but snowshoeing doesn't require any skill so I can let my mind wander a bit.  I forgot my gaiters in the car though and ended up with soaking wet feet from the snow getting in through the top of my boots.  It was warm enough and the hike short enough that it wasn't a serious problem but in different conditions on a longer hike my day could have gone a different way.  Won't make that mistake again.  I remembered before we started the hike too but I was too lazy to go back to the car to get them and didn't think I'd need them that badly.

Such a treat to be on that trail during a weekday.  On the weekends it's Grand Central Station, especially in summer, but today the crowd was small and we had fun chatting with some of the few people we came across.

The hike felt short and easy so I'm hoping that means I'm maybe sort of kind of getting into shape a little bit.  Last time I did this hike it felt longer and harder.  I made it to master's swim practice 3 times this week and took some long walks (1 1/2-2 hours) with the dogs.  I'll get a run in this weekend to round out the week.  If only my knee will hold out I might be able to get into some decent shape for races this summer never mind keep up with Strummer on that darn dogwalk.