It's So Busy Nobody Goes There Anymore

I haven't been to Lake Isabelle in 2 years because the hordes of people, oh the hordes of people.  Last time I went I took Strummy and looking back on the pictures I can't believe how old he looked.  When we lost him it was such a shock because he didn't seem old at all and while he certainly didn't act old it appears that he had aged a lot physically and I was so close to it that I didn't even realize it.  Kind of shocking how that works.

Anyway, school is back in session so the crowds have died down a bit and apparently Wednesday is the new day of the week that you have to hit the trails if you want some peace so Jonny took the day off and we headed for the hills.  We even got a parking space in the lot at the trailhead, something that hasn't happened in maybe 10-15 years.  Usually we have a 12-15 minute hike from a lower parking lot.  Doesn't seem like a lot until you have to do it on the way back after an already long hike and it's thundering.  We ended up giving a ride back down to the parking lot to a fellow Boulderite who had 2 visitors from Boston with him.  They were struggling with the altitude and were thankful not to have to hike that extra bit.

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day.

It was like the good old days out there, quiet and peaceful, some people but not too many.  I didn't realize this was even possible anymore.

The hike to the lake is fairly short and easy (took us 50 minutes).  We continued on a trail that goes above the lake because there are amazing wildflowers up there and I've seen a moose up there.

Still a lot of wildflowers.  Normally the aspens start to turn yellow by now but I barely saw any.  Fall is taking it's time this year.

There's an alpine bench and some nice tundra at just under 12,000' but we didn't go all the way up to it.  The trail is getting eroded and it's steep and rocky.  The view up there is o.k. and if you really want a workout you can go another 45 minutes or so on the moon rocks and go up to Pawnee Pass.  We got close to the bench and decided we'd had enough of the steep loose rock.  We've both been up there zillions of times.

It's hard to take a bad picture up there.  I accidentally left my camera behind so these were taken with Jonny's cell phone which is older and not super fancy.

It's perhaps my favorite trail on a quiet day.  It's weird to think that that could be my last time on that trail.

Selfies at 11,000' and Collie Flowers

A beautiful hike from Brainard Lake to Lake Isabelle today.  A Friday.  Because if that's what it's like on a Friday I don't want to think about what the weekend is like.  But my growing discontent with the Front Range hordes is a post for another day.

Strummy and I got kind of an early start but not super early.  Hit the trail at around 9:15.  Don't try that on the weekend folks.  This hike was a spur of the moment decision so I didn't have gear packed, crate in the car, etc. and it took a little while to hit the road once I made the decision.  And it was a good decision.

The lake is awfully low (barely visible in this photo) considering all the moisture we've gotten.

Selfies at 10,910'.

I had Garmin with me so I finally know the elevation at the lake.  Ish.

Collie Flowers

Poor dog.  I sat his ass down to pose for pictures next to every patch of wildflowers I could find.  He was such a good sport.  Uncharacteristically so.  I guess he's figured out the quickest way to get hiking again is to pose quickly and get it over with.

So many wildflowers.

 One of these days I'll figure out how to photograph them to get the best effect.  But not today.  It was getting stormy and I don't like to be too high/exposed when a front is blowing in.  I made it to the car no problem.  I'm always amazed at the people starting their high country hikes at noon and going up into dark black clouds.  Lightning is so dangerous and prevalent at high altitude.  But there were asstons of them today and most summer days.

So beautiful but I didn't get an early enough start to go too high.

7 miles/3 hours of hiking and a 45 minute drive later and Strummer is throwing tennis balls at me while I try to do some reading for work.  He is relentless, just like Mountain Champs.

PIcture Perfect Day at Lake Isabelle.

Apparently I suck at taper week.  Was supposed to have an easy 45 minute recovery run today with maybe a few strides (sprints) but the mountains were calling and instead I went for a 3 hour hike.  But can you blame me?

Hard to take a bad picture at Lake Isabelle.

The lake is scary low for the 3rd week in July.  All that rocky area should be lake this time of year.

Strummer sez hiking at 11,000' is hard work.

A rare moment of Strummer lying down and relaxing.

Even rarer than the albino grasshopper from yesterday.

I'm not sure if he's really an albino or what but he was here again today and he's still white so it's not that he was molting which is a more common reason for white grasshoppers.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, pretty mountains.

Still a bit of snow/glacier up high.

It's a bit early for the wildflowers but a few have started to bloom.  Paintbrush is probably my favorite.

This is one dogwalk he'd better not miss his contact on.

The hike was a bit naughty as far as training goes but I was itching to get up to the high country and Jonny was too and it was such a perfect day for it.  The elevation gain is small, it's mostly a very easy hike with not a lot of climbing but there are some steep bits and we went for about 1/2 an hour on the steeper trail above the lake.  And I probably went on a little too hard/long of a mountain bike ride yesterday.  Still I'm sure I'll be fine by next Saturday.  Will have to do some extra resting in the next few days to make up for it.

Lake Isabelle

Played hooky on Monday and took Strum up to the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area for a magical day of hiking up to Lake Isabelle and points beyond.

Lake Isabelle.  I never tire of that view.

The hike up to the lake is pretty easy, it's only 2 miles with not quite 400' of elevation gain.  The only hard part is that the lake is at 10,868' so the air is a bit thin but that mostly doesn't bother me.  It takes a little under an hour to get to the lake.

Strum doesn't seem to mind either.

After a snack and some moments of whimsy at the lake we continued up towards Pawnee Pass.  My goal wasn't the pass itself but rather an alpine bench at 11,800' that flattens out just below the start of the steep rocky ascent to the pass.  It's maybe another 2-2 1/4 miles and another hour or so of hiking.

After you leave the lake you climb through a beautiful area of wildflowers and a some small falls and streams.

Collie flower.

After many stream crossings the trail gets steeper, rockier and more exposed.  There are a series of steep rocky switchbacks with sharp drop-offs in places.  I'm fine as long as I don't look down and Strummer doesn't try to pull me down the side of the mountain in search of pika poop.

We ran into an angry marmot on one of the switchbacks.  He had some loud, harsh words for us, so loud he hurt my ears.  I'm not sure if he was chasing us out of his territory or voicing his opinion on USDAA's 22" weave poles.

There are lots of nice views as you huff your way up the steep switchbacks.

Almost there.

Phew, we made it.  Hiking up to 11,800' is serious business.

Some views from the bench.

The pointy cone to the left of the glacier is Navajo Peak.  Don't know the name of any others.

We stopped for some water and more moments of whimsy then headed back down.  After Lake Isabelle we had the trail to ourselves on the way up and only ran into 2-3 people on the way down.  It got more crowded from Lake Isabelle back to the car but still not too bad, especially compared to the weekend which is a mob scene at that time of day.

All in all a fantabulous day.  And to top it off I came home and called the city about a $580 bill I received for failure to file city taxes even though I don't owe city taxes and never received a form from the city.  Somehow this is a $500 fine plus a $50 penalty plus $30 interest.  I'm not sure what the difference is between a fine and a penalty or how I can owe interest on money I don't owe.  But I was having many heart attacks and aneurisms when I opened that envelope over the weekend.  In the end when I called they told me all I had to do was write on the letter that I don't owe taxes and mail it back and I don't have to pay anything.  SUCH a big sigh of relief and my heart rate returned to normal.  I asked them where to get a form to file in the future and they said the city sends them out at the end of the year and they had no explanation as to why I never received one.  Sheesh.  Anyway, that was icing on the cake of a perfect day.

Hikies

Jonny is on vacation this week and rather than spend money on hotels we decided to do day trips from home this year.  Also it was so hot this past week, it was nice to get up high and escape the oven down in town.

Lake Isabelle
Only a 45 minute drive up to the Brainard Lake Recreation area and such a luxury to go on a weekday when the crowds were minimal and mostly spry old retired folk with the big hiking poles.  My chiropractor has suggested these poles to me on more than one occasion and they do take an enormous amount of stress off your knees but they seem like such a hassle.  Surely I'm not old enough to need these yet?

The wildflowers are still bashing away up there.

Lake Isabelle is a puddle this time of year.

You can barely even see it from this view.  Normally those rocks in the foreground are under water.

Last bit of snow that refuses to melt.

Then there was the elk encounter we had on a different hike in Rocky Mountain National Park.

What better time to learn how to use the video on your point and shoot camera than when confronted by a ginormous bull elk?


I got some photos of him and the girls as well.  Not too bad for a cheapo point and shoot camera.

View from Lake Helene in Rocky Mountain National Park

Lake Helene

View from Lake Helene

This was a short easy hike, only one steep section at the start and about 3 miles one way.  The trail was a bit rocky though.  It continues on to Lake Odessa but a storm was blowing in and we'd had enough excitement for one day so we had a nice lunch at Lake Helene and headed back.  The rain waited until we got in the car, perfect timing for the second or third time this summer.

I posted these photos and more on Facebook because I have friends, actual real life friends, who I thought would like to see them but who don't read the blog but I also wanted to have a copy of them on the blog so that's the reason for the double posting.  I think there's such a thing as too much social media and I'm straying into it but oh well.